Today I wanted to talk about Collagen and the Benefits for Your Skin and Body.
Most people know about collagen right now. It’s been super popular over the last few years with tons of supplements being released on the market. It’s almost impossible to walk in somewhere and not see a variety of collagen being front and center.
But what is collagen and why does it benefit your skin and overall your body structure?
Collagen is the foundation of bones, skin, muscles, tendons, ligaments and it’s even found in your corneas, teeth and blood vessels, it is a protein that helps bind everything together. Pretty cool right? Really collagen is such a vital part of your body that we should want it to be in our nutrition.
So how can we get more collagen and what types of collagen are there?
There are a total of four different kinds of collagen. This is something that I never knew before doing a bunch of research and I just find it so fascinating to learn about our bodies and how they function from the inside out.
- 90% of collagen is this first type of collagen, it is meant to hold mostly everything together from your bones, cartilage, muscles, skin and ligaments.
- The second type of collagen is what is in your ligaments and protects your joints in places like your knees and elbows.
- The third type is for arteries, organs and muscles. It is the protein that helps build them all up.
- The fourth type is filtration and provides nutrients to your skin making it elastic and supple.
As we get older our bodies produce less quality collagen, which can be felt in our achy joints and muscles, but also seen on our skin with wrinkles and fine lines and the firmness of our skin decreasing drastically.
So for the most benefits we want to incorporate these foods:
- Vitamin C: You can take this as a supplement or get it from bell peppers, citrus fruits, strawberries, broccoli, brussels sprouts, and cantaloupe.
- Proline: You can find this in mushrooms, asparagus, cabbage, spinach, watercress, bamboo shoots, and wheat germ
- Glycine: You can find this in beans, nuts and seeds.
- Copper: Large amounts are found in organ meats, sesame seeds, cocoa powder, cashews, and lentils
Your body also needs high quality protein that contains amino acids to make new proteins, without these amino acid proteins it wont get turned into collagen. Meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, legumes, and tofu are all excellent sources of amino acids.
All of this can sound overwhelming and like a lot to incorporate when it comes to what you eat, which is why there are so many supplements on the market right now.
I recommend a natural collagen supplement like Plexus Joyome Multi-Action Collagen Complex which their website says the following about what it contains;
Plexus Joyome collagen complex + Beauty benefits
Hydrolyzed Types I and III Collagen – Highly-bioavailable Collagen from Wild-Caught Marine and Grass-Fed Bovine sources to help support the skin structure and reduce sagging and wrinkles.*
FOS – The same prebiotic found in our age-defying serums.
Vitamin C – Promotes antioxidant activity, protects against the oxidative effects of free radicals, and helps to support collagen production.*
Vitamin E – An essential nutrient and abundant antioxidant, which provides photo-protective benefits to help defend the skin against damage caused by environmental aggressors.*
Biotin – Promotes healthy skin, hair, and nails.*
Ceramides – Specialized lipids, or fats, found naturally in the skin that help to enhance hydration, keeping your skin looking supple and plump, while reducing the appearance of dryness, crow’s feet, and wrinkles.*
Superfood Blend – A powerful blend of antioxidant-rich superfoods, including Acai Palm Fruit, Lucuma Fruit Powder, Pomegranate Fruit Extract, Asparagus Shoot, Camu-Camu Fruit Juice, and other natural sources of antioxidants, phytonutrients, flavonoids, and polyphenols that help to defend the skin against damage caused by free radicals.*
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Really this blend of ingredients provides the most of any I have looked at on the market. I spent a lot of time comparing products and this one just won it for me.
But if you want just the grass-fed collagen peptides and nothing else, this one from Ulta has also been recommended
Orgain Collagen Peptides
Hopefully you have learned something new today about collagen and the benefits for your skin and body. I think you’ll enjoy the results you see by adding in some additional foods and supplements 🙂
Cherise ❤
Please note: I am not a doctor nor do I claim to be one. This is not medical advice, nor is it meant to treat, cure or prevent any diseases. If you have a medical concern please speak with a licensed medical professional.
At Home with Cherise 