How to Protect Skin’s Collagen, Starting Now

Let's start out by explaining what collagen is.

What exactly is collagen?

Collagen is the most abundant protein found in our bodies. It’s the main structural protein found in our skin and other connective tissues, meaning it’s responsible for making skin look plump, tight and firm! We want that, right!? We want smooth, firm, younger-looking skin for as long as possible. So in order to have that, we must protect the collagen we do have and take the right steps to encourage collagen production.

Here’s a breakdown of our healthy collagen’s worst enemies:

• Sun’s damaging rays, both UVA and UVB
• Free radicals, which come from sun exposure, environmental factors, pollution, etc.
• Toxins of any type, especially smoking.
• Stress, both physical and mental stress, and the kind that leads to a lack of sleep  
• Sugar, in the form of glucose or fructose, and especially in processed foods

Fun fact: Collagen is strongest and most plentiful when we’re young, and begins to decline in our mid twenties. By age 40, about 30% of collagen is already gone. However, when skin is healthy, it can easily repair collagen and even make more collagen. So how do we keep this important structural protein healthy? Know how to protect it and start protecting it now.

How to protect collagen:  

• Begin protecting collagen right now by eating healthy and exercising. Anything that delivers increased oxygen and blood supply to collagen is going to make skin healthier. Fill your diet with foods rich in antioxidants, fruits and vegetables and drink plenty of water day in, and day out.

• Wear sunscreen with at least SPF 30. Sun damage is one of the biggest offenders in destroying collagen, but lucky for us, sunscreen is our biggest defender when it comes to protecting us from UVA/UVB rays.

• Use a Vitamin C serum. Vitamin C is one of those antioxidants that you can benefit from incorporating in your diet, and applying topically. It is a powerhouse ingredient that fights free radical damage, promotes collagen production and makes skin tighter, brighter and more even-toned.  

• Use a peptide serum — peptides are basically two or more amino acids linked together that influence the behaviors of other molecules. Peptides act as messengers to skin cells and molecules in the skin and essentially instruct them to start creating more collagen. You can give your skin these ever-so-helpful messengers with the eb5 Advanced Repair Peptide Serum. As a serum, its molecules are super, super small, (smaller than say, a moisturizer’s molecules) meaning they penetrate the skin more easily and do their job more effectively.

• Avoid toxins more strategically. Toxins can enter the body through breathing, skin absorption and of course, ingestion, and while this might sound like a no-brainer, It’s smart to drink filtered water, change your air filters regularly, not smoke cigarettes and be very strategic about the skin care you use on a daily basis.

Not only is anti-aging skincare kind of our thing, but our products are especially clean and pure. We don’t find the need to stuff them with chemicals and harmful ingredients that do more harm than good. When it comes to protecting and nourishing aging skin, we believe in doing it with minimal, yet highly effective and healthy ingredients. And after using them for yourself, you’ll see that your skin agrees!