Cast your mind back to a previous life, one that was lived before supermarkets dictated your purchases, before food had to be trimmed, tidied and presented in plastic. You bought meat from the local butcher, or perhaps reared your own animals. Nose-to-tail eating was the norm and nothing was wasted. During that life you almost certainly consumed a lot of collagen, the part of the animal that today is routinely discarded: cartilage, skin, bones and all the gristly bits that fail to make the grade and are instead incorporated into pet food and cosmetics.
Lucky pets and lucky cosmetics industry. Collagen is having a moment in the beauty world. This cheap by-product is crammed into as many creams, serums, potions and supplements as humanly possible. It is the secret elixir that makes skin glow with youthful radiance, and hair thick and lustrous. For once, all the marketing claims are not as absurd as they appear. It’s just a shame that collagen’s main purpose in life – to make us strong and healthy – has been relegated to second place.
What is this wonder stuff?
Collagen is the most abundant protein in all mammals, including us. It constitutes 20%-30% of all proteins in the body and is present inside and outside of cells. It is a constituent of bones, cartilage, skin, and tendons and provides structure and support. Fascia, the thin layer of connective tissue that encompasses and holds together every organ, muscle, bone, blood vessel and nerve fibre in the body, is comprised almost entirely of collagen. It also encases the brain and spinal cord.
And like all the best things that our bodies are able to produce on their own, our ability to make collagen diminishes with age. Just when we need it most.
There are more than 20 different types of collagen. Connective tissue contains mainly types I, II and III. Hair and skin contain mainly type 1 collagen, and this is the type used in cosmetic products. Types IV and V are found in internal organs.
Then there’s the brain
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