39. Collagen and Elastin-The Topical Vitamin C-Connection

Collagen is a protein that supports and your tissues and literally holds your body together, natural protein, the building blocks of skin structure. It is the main component of connective tissue. About 80% of the inner layer (dermis,) is collagen. Collagen strengthens your skin. Elastin enables your skin to stretch and bounce back. It is stretchy, elastic. Together, they are a powerful force in skin health – if you take care of them with proper nutrition and topical formulations that add to the nourishment of a good diet.

Where does collagen come from?

The body naturally makes its own collagen by breaking down dietary protein into amino acids. The amino acids build the various types of proteins in the body, including collagen. You get building blocks for collagen from protein-rich foods and a variety of fresh produce. Fresh vegetables and fruit also provide antioxidants, which protect the body from oxidative stress that degrades collagen. Your skin is your largest organ. The same way you nourish collagen stores throughout your body will nourish your skin, too.

As you age, your ability to produce collagen decreases, and your skin structure begins to break down, resulting in fine lines, “crepey” skin and wrinkles, stiffer, less flexible tendons and ligaments, shrinking, weakening muscles, joint pain or osteoarthritis due to worn cartilage, gastrointestinal problems due to thinning of the lining in your digestive tract.  Excess sun exposure, smoking and poor diet can also inhibit collagen production in younger people.

Vitamin C Boosts Your Ability to Produce Collagen

Collagen helps to strengthen, hydrate and promote elasticity of the skin, resulting in a reduction of fine lines and smoother, firmer, younger-looking skin. By applying vitamin C topically, you keep your skin tighter and firmer naturally.

 Topical vitamin C has been proven in clinical studies to:

• help stimulate collagen
• hydrate and plump skin
• diminish fine lines and wrinkles
• bind free radicals that oxidize and destroy skin vitality
• lighten dark spots
• regulate and balance pigmentation irregularities

Applied in a conscientious, daily application program over a 60 to 90-day period, topical vitamin C – has been proven to promote collagen production, protect skin from sun damage, reduce under-eye circles, accelerate healing, reduce skin discoloration, keep skin looking younger, improve hydration and moisture, reduce inflammation to enable brighter, healthier skin.

More Facts About Collagen

Collagen refers to a family of proteins that are the main structural component of connective tissues, such as skin and cartilage. The substance makes up about a third of all the protein in the human body, more than any other type of protein in the body by mass. There are 28 different types of collagen, each type categorized based on its amino acid composition. About 90% of the collagen in the body is Type 1, which is found in the skin, tendons, internal organs and organic parts of bone. Most of the remaining collagen in the body is made up of the following types: Type 2, found in the cartilage; Type 3, found in the bone marrow and lymphoid tissues; Type 4, found in the thin sheets of collagen that surround most types of tissues; Type 5: found in the hair and the surfaces of cells.

Add Topical Vitamin C to Your Skin Care Regimen

Keep the collagen and elastin coming!  Add foods rich in vitamin C to your diet, eliminate sugar and animal fat, focus on fresh vegetables and fruit, nuts, whole grains and WATER!  Guard yourself against dehydration, and your collagen will thank you!  Above all, add topical vitamin C to your daily skin care regimen. Use products that are formulated with a balanced mixture of stable and effective L-ascorbic acid – vitamin C – with other clinically proven vitamin and botanical ingredients, produced and packaged by a cGMP cosmeceutical laboratory to get daily vitamin C therapy and regimen that provides optimal skin protection, repair, restoration and rejuvenation.

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