Collagen is Essential for Health
I want to drill down deep and answer the question: What is collagen, exactly?
By your mid-20s, the collagen in your body starts to diminish, and by the time you reach your 80s, you have around four times less collagen, which explains sagging skin and wrinkles
And how can you incorporate this powerful superfood in your daily life?
For starters, collagen is the most abundant protein in our bodies. It’s found in muscles, bones, skin, blood vessels, digestive system and tendons.
If you’re vegetarian, you’ll likely have a more difficult time keeping up your collagen intake, because it’s stored in animal bones, and it’s one of the reasons why bone broth is now considered a superfood.
It’s what helps give our skin strength and elasticity. And it even plays a role in healthy bones. When it comes to our joints and tendons, many call it the “glue” that helps hold the body together.
And as we age, collagen becomes even more important.
Why?
Our body’s collagen production naturally begins to slow down.
Other lifestyle factors — like eating a diet high in sugar, smoking and high amounts of sun exposure — also contribute to depleting collagen levels. It’s been found that collagen-related issues most commonly arise from genetic defects, poor intake of collagen-rich foods, and digestive problems affecting production (synthesis) of collagen.
Thankfully, consuming foods like bone broth and supplementing with collagen can provide plenty of this vital protein. And if you’re wondering what is collagen good for,
I’m glad you asked.
What Is Collagen?
Collagen Benefits
? Supports Healthy Skin and Hair
When you meet people, how do you assess their age?
While a lot of factors play into your answer, the No. 1 giveaway of someone’s age is often his or her skin.
Think about how you looked in high school (or years ago) compared to today.
For example, just take one glimpse at your high school yearbook photo or another photo from years gone by. Instantly, you can tell you’re visibly older now than you used to be.
Have you ever wondered why that is?
To begin with, as we age, our skin cells don’t regenerate and repair themselves like they used to.
Generally, as a result, our skin loses some of its elasticity over time. As our skin’s elasticity fades, we start noticing fine lines, wrinkles and other appearances of aging that are often most noticeable around the eyes and mouth.
Thyroid problems can adversely affect your skin and lead to breakouts, but also cause dryness and itchy, dull, wrinkly skin. Because your thyroid works closely with your adrenals, it’s like a double whammy when one or both fail to function properly.
Factors That Work Against the Development of Collagen
Certain environmental and lifestyle factors, unfortunately, can diminish collagen production, your skin tone and elasticity, making the production of young and healthy skin seem less and less unattainable as time goes on.
Medical News Today explains:
“When collagen levels are high, the skin is soft, smooth and firm. Collagen helps the skin cells renew and repair themselves. Collagen also helps keep the skin moist. This is why collagen has been seen as a very important ingredient for skin care over the years.”
Ref: Medical News Today April 26, 2017
Indian Dermatol Online J. 2013 April-June;4(2):143-146
Here’s the thing: This is actually a normal part of life.
? However, this process can be accelerated by many factors.
For example, if your skin is exposed to the sun and UV rays for too long, that can cause the skin’s normal regeneration and repair cycles to lose efficiency.
The result?
Premature signs of aging, which no one wants.
The best way to combat this cycle and fight back against the appearance of early aging is to tackle the problem on two fronts:
1. Limit your exposure to damaging UV rays and other environmental toxins.
2. Support and promote the skin’s health with collagen.
? I believe that collagen is so beneficial that I consider it one of the best natural skin care ingredients available. In fact, some studies point to collagen’s ability to naturally support healthy skin elasticity, moisture and smoothness.
? Provides Support for Joint Discomfort
While bones and muscles are great, your joints are what keep you moving and living an active lifestyle.
Without joints to help you bend, moving would be impossible.
In other words, if you want to stay mobile throughout your life, supporting and maintaining joint health is critical.
Unfortunately, as we age, joint issues can surface.
Years of wear and tear and constant moving around can lead to joint issues.
? While regular exercise, a healthy diet, good posture and wearing the right shoes can slow the rate at which your joints wear down, those measures go only so far.
We have to address the root cause of joint issues and give our joints extra support. That’s where collagen can come in.
Certain foods and molecules — such as gluten and casein — can irritate the gut.
Over time, this can cause the gut to become more permeable, allowing even larger protein molecules to “leak” into the bloodstream.
? That’s why it’s important to fortify and support your gut with collagen. Here’s why:
? Collagen is one of the body’s main supportive proteins. It’s what gives bones, cartilage and tendons their strength.
? Once cooked, it becomes “gelatin.” Gelatin is important because it can support gut health.
? Collagen also contains the critical amino acids proline and glycine, which are known for supporting a healthy gut.
? Supports a Healthy Metabolism, Healthy Muscles and Healthy Energy Levels
A boost in collagen may help support a healthy metabolism, thanks to the amino acid glycine.
? Like proline, glycine is a main component of collagen, and is a non-essential amino acid, meaning that the body can produce it on its own when given the proper diet. Glycine is also the smallest amino acid size-wise, but it has huge and powerful effects on the body and is catalytic in various biochemical reactions.
? Glycine often acts as a glucogenic amino acid, which means that it supports the body’s blood sugar level balance.
Glycine also naturally provides glucose to your body’s tissues for energy.
Glycine can also “get on your nerves” in a good way. It can positively affect the production of brain neurotransmitters that are necessary for maintaining healthy brain function and for supporting emotional health.
? Promotes Deeper, More Restful Sleep
? The amino acid glycine can also support more restful sleep.
Restful sleep is a big deal, too.
You may have heard the phrase, “You snooze, you lose.” Actually, it is more like: “You snooze, you win!”
You need to get regular, quality, restful sleep, but most people come up short on getting enough Zzzzzzzs.
But sleep is essential because we require enough quality, restful sleep for physical and mental well-being.
Why?
During sleep is when the body restores itself through muscle growth, tissue repair, protein synthesis, growth hormone release and more.
? The amino acid glycine can also support more restful sleep.
Restful sleep is a big deal, too.
Over the last six months, I've been researching water and the role it plays in hydration and dehydration. If people drink a gallon of "dead" water, they'll become dehydrated.
Dehydration is probably the first step in physiological failure. Collagen is a good example. Like many other body fluids, collagen has structured water.
Collagen loses it elasticity and nourishment receiving capacity when structured water isn't present - it has to do with the hydrogen matrices -- think molecular biology.
Two of the easiest "reads" on how structured water effects physiological functionality can be found here - me thinks these two books should be in ever optimal health seekers library:
https://dancingwithwater.3dcartstores.com/Dancing-with-Water--second-edition--now-with-40-new-material_p_32.html
_ Your thoughts……?
Disclaimer
The information on this POST is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional Medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images and information, contained on or available through this article is for general information / education purposes only.
Thank you for reading !.