Everyone talks about collagen and elastin, but what actually are they and what do they do?
Elastin and collagen are proteins in the dermis that are essential to the functioning of the skin. Elastin is a connective tissue that allows your skin to stretch and then bounce back. Collagen is the protein that holds the skin together and gives it structure.
Think of collagen and elastin as the scaffolding of the skin keeping it firm and taut and in place, plump and hydrated and stretchy 👸🏼
As we age our collagen production declines and slows down, and this is why we age and get wrinkles! Saggy boobs, saggy face and saggy bum! 🤭 collagen and elastin is needed all over the body to maintain a youthful firm skin on the body and face. 🥳
What causes collagen and elastin to break down? 🧐
🚨 age- from the age of 25 our collagen production slows down by 1% a year.
🚨 our diet - low levels of protein, zinc and vitamin c causes our body to not have the essential ingredients needed to make collagen and elastin to keep our skin firm.
🚨 stress levels- have you heard the phase that ‘event in her life’ put years on her! It’s actually true, when your stress levels rise this causes your body to make a hormone called cortisol- cortisol hardens your collagen and reduces the amount of hyaluronic acid your body produces which causes your skin to look dry and saggy! Persistently high cortisol levels can also lead to acne
🚨 inadequate sleep- lack of sleep time means your body has less time to repair and renew. Your body will have less time to break down proteins and make them into collagen and elastin. As you sleep your body makes a hormone called HGH(human growth hormone) this protein hormone helps build elastin. As you sleep your stress levels naturally decrease too! It’s not called beauty sleep for nothing! 💤
🚨 smoking- smoking decreases your body’s vitamin c levels, your body needs vitamin c to stimulate and build collagen and elastin. Liquid peroxide in cigarettes destroy collagen and elastin in the skin. This causes skin to become dry, withered, sallow, lifeless and saggy! Fibroblasts (the cells that produce collagen) make 40% less collagen when they are exposed to cigarette smoke, especially in the eye area causing large dark circles as well as lines and wrinkles.
What can you do to make more collagen and elastin in the body? 🙌🏼
✅ have a good diet with lots of leafy green Vegetables and citrus fruits. By adding avocado, kale, kiwi, almonds, eggs and fish to your plate your body will make and produce better quality and stronger collagen and elastin fibres
✅ exercise- when you exercise your skin cells become oxygenated and they function better increasing cell turnover and produces more collagen and elastin to help you look younger. Exercise increases your circulation which in turns gives you a fresh glow!
✅ Drink more water. By staying hydrated your skin will look more plump. Hydrated skin cells swell, which makes the skin look plumper reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
✅Get your beauty sleep! No explanation needed! Sleep for 7-8 hours a night so your body has time to restore and renew itself!
✅ Supplement with Skin Collagen Support and Skin Vit C. Your body can’t make its own vitamin c so it relies on what you eat to get enough of a supply. Your body can’t make collagen and elastin without vitamin c! When you take a vitamin c supplement your body takes what it needs and excretes what it doesn’t need! (Bring on the orange coloured pee 1 hour after taking a skin vit c) By taking a skin vit c supplement daily your body has sufficient supplies to make all the collagen it needs! The Skin Collagen Support contains no collagen it simply stimulates your body to make more stronger firmer collagen and elastin resulting in less fine lines and wrinkles and less aging! collagen when applied to the skin is too large of a molecule to get anywhere near the dermis. So you need to get it from within.
Beauty begins deep inside you, my aim is that you stop thinking about only the surface of your skin. When you start treating from within you will notice how much your skin improves 🙌🏼
Stephanie 💋