Are you collagen curious? It's said to be the gateway to great skin, hair and nails

According to Google Trends, online searches for collagen have steadily increased since 2014.

What is collagen?

Collagen accounts for 30% of your body’s protein. It provides structure, support or strength to your skin, muscles, bones and connective tissues

Your body naturally produces collagen, and you can consume it through dietary sources such as chicken skin, fish skin, as well as collagen supplements.

What promotes collagen production?

Collagen is made of proteins, whereas proteins are made from amino acids, Proline and Glycine. A diet full of protein-rich foods, whether from plant or animal sources, can help supply these critical amino acids. Other nutrients that aid the process of collagen production include zinc, vitamin C, and copper. So, fruits and vegetables high in vitamins and minerals are also a friend to supple skin.

Foods that contain these amino acids, vitamins and minerals include:

• Vitamin C. Vitamin C is found in oranges, strawberries, bell peppers, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and potatoes.

• Proline. Proline is found in mushrooms, cabbage, asparagus, peanuts, wheat, fish, egg whites and meat.

• Glycine. Glycine is found in red meats, turkey, chicken and pork skin, peanuts and granola.

• Copper. Copper is found in liver, lobster, oysters, shiitake mushrooms, nuts and seeds, leafy greens, tofu and dark chocolate.

• Zinc. Zinc is found in oysters, red meat, poultry, pork, beans, chickpeas, nuts, broccoli, green leafy vegetables, whole grains and milk products.

What can disrupt collagen production?

Smoking is known to degrade collagen and cause skin aging, wrinkles, and loss of elasticity.

Alcohol has also been shown to accelerate skin aging by reducing collagen production and damaging skin repair mechanisms. Other reasons include excessive sun exposure, sugar and refined carb intake, and lack of both sleep and exercise. Our bodies gradually make less collagen as we age.

How do you use it?

You can buy collagen in powder, capsule, and liquid form. Consuming collagen with vitamin C gives the body the best shot at effective absorption.

It is questioned whether topical creams are effective as collagen is not naturally found on the skin’s surface but in the deeper layers. Collagen fibers are too large to permeate the skin’s outer layers.

What science says: The benefits of collagen

Trials completed confirm significantly improved skin hydration, elasticity, and density after three months of intake. Since the collagen peptides and the skin nutrients were taken orally, the effects reached the deeper layers of the skin and sustainably improved skin physiology and appearance.

Your body may be able to use the amino acids in collagen to build hair proteins. It may also prevent hair damage and graying. Research on the effects of collagen on human hair is however still limited.

Another study showed an increase of 12% nail growth rate and a decrease of 42% in the frequency of broken nails.

Here's the Collagen I'm using: link