Your body begins to lose collagen when you turn 30. The effects become noticeable after several years. Even though this is a natural process, it's possible to speed it up with UV exposure, pollution, bad habits, and poor diet choices. While it's possible to accelerate collagen loss, it's also possible to slow it down.
You can begin taking collagen supplements at the age of 20 to 25 as a preventative or, as you start to notice the more visible signs of ageing. We'd always recommend starting in your early to mid twenties to get ahead of the body's natural depletion as you age.
Production starts to dwindle in our mid-to-late 20s and early 30s and we start losing 1% of our collagen per year after that. By 40, collagen drops dramatically, leading to signs of aging such as wrinkles, skin sagging, skin drying and loss of energy.
In fact, our collagen production decreases as soon as we turn 20. At Rejuvenation Clinics of Australia, we have many anti-ageing treatments which can slow down the effects of ageing. However, in order to understand why we age, it is important to know the basics of the skin.
From birth to the age of approximately 20, our collagen levels gradually increase, and from 20-25 an optimum level of collagen is maintained. This is when our natural collagen levels peak. After the age of 25, however, we start to lose collagen.
Eating foods that contain vitamin C and antioxidants, avoiding smoking, limiting caffeine intake, and protecting the skin from sunlight may all help preserve collagen or boost its production.
So caffeine is a collagen killer and we should steer clear? Not exactly. "It's worth remembering that coffee doesn't destroy collagen, it inhibits its production," says nutritional therapist at the Pulse Light Clinic, Lisa Borg.
The skin becomes thinner, drier, and less elastic. The loss of collagen leads to wrinkle formation. Your body begins to lose collagen when you turn 30. The effects become noticeable after several years.
Collagen loss due to increase in age
This is the reason why aging skin looks thin, pale and translucent. There may be large spots that are pigmented when some areas are exposed to sunlight. The various alterations in the connective tissue may decrease the strength of the skin and its elasticity.
The good news is, though you may not be able to bring back the lost collagen, there are ways to help get things moving and slow further loss. With the right skin care products and treatments outside and in, there's so much you can do to get back that spring back in your skin.
The evidence from the reviewed studies suggested that both collagen supplements improve skin moisture, elasticity, and hydration when orally administered. Additionally, collagen reduces the wrinkling and roughness of the skin, and existing studies have not found any side effects of its oral supplements.
Anything that damages collagen causes the skin to lose elasticity and firmness, while also causing fine lines and wrinkles to form more quickly. What is this?
No matter your age, it's never too late to start supporting your body's production of collagen and to see the benefits in your skin, hair, and nails.
Drinking water helps with your body's production of collagen. When you stay well hydrated, your skin is plumped up, which reduces the appearance of pores. Skin that's well hydrated has a radiant glow that gives you a healthier, more vibrant appearance.
Bone broth
Dr. Bradley says her favorite collagen-boosting brew is bone broth. Bone broth draws collagen out of beef, chicken or fish bones, leaving a flavorful liquid that you can drink straight up or use in other dishes.
Exercise—specifically heavy lifting—releases a growth hormone produced by the pituitary gland, which stimulates your fibroblast cells, resulting in collagen production.
Which Fruits Have The Most Collagen? Citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruit are known for being foods high in collagen-producing properties.
Slather on a vitamin C serum in the morning. The vitamin is an antioxidant that protects the collagen in your skin against UV damage, says Chwalek. More than that, she says, it triggers collagen formation and stabilizes the collagen proteins in skin.
UV damage is the main cause of skin collagen loss accounting for up to 80-90% of the appearance of skin aging. UV exposure causes both, less collagen to be produced, and. it also increases collagen degradation via matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and other proteases in the skin.
After 12 weeks of taking a supplement with hydrolyzed collagen, hyaluronic acid, vitamins, and minerals, patients in this study experienced improved skin firmness and hydration, as well as a lessened appearance of wrinkles. Collagen can help to reverse signs of skin aging by boosting elasticity in the skin.