Most have heard about collagen from TV commercials advertising skin products, therefore might think this article will be advising them about skincare. The reality is its usage goes far beyond skincare. As time went by and research has been made, this ingredient found its use in helping people cope with many problems that have been torturing them for decades. That’s why this article will give you all the benefits it might have on your body if you decide to introduce it in your diet. But, before we start with the benefits, let’s explain some of the basics.
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What is it?
To put it in simple words, it’s a protein found in the tissue of our body. This tells enough about its importance in maintaining the overall wellbeing and youthfulness of our bodies. It plays a key role in connecting bones, creating the protection around organs and muscles (at the same time making sure they are apart from each other), coats and protects blood vessels, and many other important things.
Source: Everyday Health
How can you consume it?
As we said, a healthy body contains just enough. However, as we grow older, we tend to lose it, which directly affects the quality of life we have. Therefore, to avoid running out of collagen, certain supplements are advised to be used.
It can be consumed as a food supplement, and in this case, aims to slow down the physical loss of this important protein. It can come as powder, liquids, or capsules as seen on malinca.hr.
Since it’s also widely used for cosmetic purposes, for preventing skin wrinkles and maintaining the youthful look of the skin, it can be given as a local injection application. The beauty industry uses it as mouth filler.
So, what are the benefits of collagen? Find out in the rest of this article.
1. It makes the body feel younger
Source: FitMapped.com
As it was said earlier, our body loses this precious protein as we grow older, therefore leaving the consequences on its functionality. The joints slowly get worn out causing different conditions affecting or better say limiting the movement of the body. Experiencing this is not a pleasant thing, especially for those who are used to being physically active, plus it can also influence the working ability. Luckily, there are supplements adding to the renewal of the joints, helping the body feel slightly younger and movement easier.
It is for this purpose that the increasingly popular dietary supplements based on collagen hydrolysates are used. Their composition is close to the biological composition of cartilage, tendons, and ligaments, which is why they can help more in the recovery of joints, skin, hair, and nails. They are intended for faster recovery and strengthening of connective tissue, especially after trauma and during recovery after surgery, and are also used as a means of preventing degenerative processes (rheumatism, arthritis, and arthrosis, gout, osteoporosis of the spine) and consequent movement disorders.
2. It aids digestion
Source: wiseGEEK
As a protein, it is made of different compounds, the most important for digestion being glycine. Half of the population is not yet aware of how great this compound is, and what fantastic performances in our bodies it is in charge of. We’ll not widen the story about it too much, but we will point out its importance to the guts and bodily digesting system. Why is it so important? Because it plays a key role in protecting the system from inflammation, especially the small intestine.
Things we eat today are full of toxins, therefore they need to go through the digestive system, leaving serious consequences. As everything is connected, when digested, toxins also travel to different parts of the body, carrying the inflammation elsewhere. So, in what way does the glycine from collagen work in reducing it? It does so by creating a protection coat inside the gut, controlling not too many toxins traveling inside our body.
It’s not only the inflammation reduction it aids, but a series of other medical conditions like the leaking gut.
Therefore, by making sure our collagen intake is enough, you’ll add much-needed protection to your guts that will prevent other diseases caused by inflammatory processes.
3. It increases the quality of sleep
Source: thecurrent.org
The same compound found in collagen, we wrote in the previous point is in charge of improving your mood, making you feel a lot more relaxed than usual, additionally increasing the quality of your sleep. Many will find this very useful because it’s a lot smarter than taking pills. Taking it before you go to bed, will make sure your sleep is much deeper and stable. No need to mention how quality sleep can influence productivity.
How does it do so? When you’re getting ready for bed, a natural thing that happens is that your body temperature slowly goes down. This is to prepare you for a deep sleep state. It continues to go down, as you sleep. Glycine is the key compound helping you get to that state of sleep, firming it so you can get plenty of rest and regenerate.
This is just something the latest research has noticed, but further studies need to be done for this effect to be sealed. Nevertheless, the intake of collagen for these reasons will surely change people’s perspective of it.
4. It’s a brain activity booster
Source: Verywell Mind
Knowing its effects on sleep, mood, and productivity, it is only logical to conclude it has beneficial effects on brain activity, right? It may also come as a surprise since most write about collagen being beneficial to other things. However, its effects on the brain have shown how beneficial it can be in states like schizophrenia, believe it or not.
One particular segment of this disease is being aided by collagen and its compound glycine, and that is mental fluency. It gives the brain a boost, so people who suffer from such conditions can function normally in everyday life.
The benefits of collagen are widely known, but not entirely. The surface has only been scratched, but no doubt it will prove to be a part of the solution to many problems.
