September 2019/Fairlady 45Skin deep
or
inEdenvale,Johannesburg.‘It’s
whatgivesusstructureandit is
foundinthebones,cartilage,skin
andorgans.’
Alsoknownas thebody’s
scaffolding, 30% of our bodies
are made up of collagen; it also
plays an important role in immune
function and wound healing.
‘Think of collagen as the glue
that holds your body together,’
says Dr Sinclair. (In fact, the word
collagen comes from the Greek
word kólla, meaning ‘glue’.)
Although there are about 28
different types of collagen, 80-90%
of the collagen in our bodies is
made up of type I (in skin, hair,
nails, tendons, bone, ligaments,
and organs), type II (cartilage)
and type III (connective tissue).
Our bodies can make plenty
of collagen when we’re young,
but from the age of 25 we start
to lose some of that ability, and
we lose more year on year. ‘By the
age of 60 you will have lost 50%
of your collagen,’ says author and
nutritional therapist Sally-Ann
Creed. This is due to ageing, but
hormones and lifestyle choices
(such as smoking, drinking, stress,
poor diet and UV exposure) can
also play a big part. Some genetic
disorders such as osteogenesis
imperfacta, Ehlers-Danlos
syndrome and Marfan syndrome,
can also result in a loss of collagen.What happens if we
don’t have enough?
As the production of collagen
slows (and the collagen we already
have begins to break down as well),
we start experiencing symptoms
most commonly related to ageing.
‘Most people associate the loss of
collagen with wrinkles because ourskin becomes thinner, which
results in lines and a loss of
fullness,’ explains Dr Sinclair.
But it’s not just the outside of
our body that is affected, because
collagen forms an important part
of our connective tissue. Losing it
can affect your mobility and body
strength. ‘Our bones and joints
start to deteriorate, which leads to
an increased risk of osteoarthritis
as well as an increase in fractures,
ligament injuries and muscle tears.’
Not only that: because collagen
forms part of our organs, blood
vessels and intestinal lining,
when your collagen levels start to
deplete, you’ll experience increased
bruising and digestive problems.
Creed adds that other symptoms of
a deficiency include wounds that
take too long to heal, achingbeauty fad?
Bone broth, salmon,
sardines, trout and
exercise all help to
boost collagen.