Key Points at a Glance
- Collagen is extremely important for bones, tissues, ligaments, muscles, and tendons.
- But our skin and teeth also need this structural protein.
- As we age, our bodies eventually stop producing enough collagen to meet our needs.
- But what are the other causes that lead to collagen breakdown in the body?
Our bodies need collagen. It is what is known as a structural protein, which is actually made up of delicate structures. However, collagen fibers combine to form very stable structures. These, in turn, give our skin, bones, blood vessels, ligaments, tendons, tissues, and teeth their strength.
There are several causes of collagen breakdown
It doesn't take much imagination to understand how important collagen is—and why its breakdown can have serious consequences for us. The results can include brittle hair, brittle nails, constant fatigue, frequent difficulty concentrating, joint pain, and tendons and ligaments that are prone to injury. And if the skin suddenly loses its elasticity and firmness, that, too, can be a possible consequence of collagen breakdown in the body.
But where does this loss come from? As is almost always the case, there are two factors blamed for the reduction in collagen: external and internal. External factors refer to influences over which we have control—internal factors, in this case, refer to processes beyond our control.
External factors that lead to collagen breakdown
Let’s be clear: Anyone who experiences accelerated collagen breakdown at a young age is not living a healthy lifestyle. Sure, there are always periods of stress beyond our control that slow down collagen production. But it’s up to us to allow ourselves periods of rest and recovery, during which the body’s collagen production returns to its normal level.
The fact that smoking is harmful to one’s health is hardly a new discovery. However, studies have shown that nicotine is a major factor in reducing collagen production in our bodies. If you eat a diet high in sugar or consume alcohol regularly, production is also significantly reduced. And last but not least, frequent sunburns and chronic sleep deprivation can also lead to these consequences.
The internal factors that lead to collagen breakdown
But even if you lead an absolutely healthy lifestyle and none of the factors mentioned apply to you, you still lose one percent of your collagen each year. Unfortunately, this is completely normal—between the ages of 30 and 80, we lose half of our collagen. Although the body never completely stops producing collagen, production slows down more than the rate of breakdown, which eventually can no longer be compensated for. This causes the skin to become increasingly dull. After menopause, the body’s own collagen production in women slows down significantly once again.
But because no two people are alike, the issue of collagen degradation is also a matter of genetic predisposition. There are people who, due to their genetic makeup, often suffer from collagen loss earlier and more severely than others. On the other hand, there are also lucky individuals who are genetically programmed so that collagen breakdown begins later or proceeds more slowly than the average for the general population.
