Which foods stimulate collagen formation?

The most important things in brief

• Collagen is the structural protein that makes up 25 to 30 percent of all proteins in our body.
• The body produces it itself, but from the age of 25 the organism slows down production little by little.
• It is all the more important that we eat right.
• Because there are certain foods that support and even accelerate the formation of collagen.

If we produce too little collagen, this will be noticeable externally in good time. Our cheeks sag, the pores of the skin clog. In addition, the skin is constantly sagging and sagging - and the first wrinkles appear. But these are only the visible symptoms. Because collagen also has to do a great job inside the body.

Collagen is needed in many places

Because there, in the body, collagen is needed. From our tendons and ligaments, muscles and bones, joints and tissue. Our teeth also benefit from the protein. Collagen ensures that these components, which we need for our movement, remain stable. Conversely, this means that a lack of collagen leads to bones becoming brittle, ligaments tearing more easily and joints being susceptible to injury.

Every year the organism reduces the production of collagen by about one percent. This means that by the age of 75, the body is only making half the amount of collagen it was making at 25. This isn't a process that can be stopped in general, but we can still start helping the body produce collagen early on. And that is through a healthy and conscious lifestyle, which of course also includes nutrition.

What you should avoid...

There are three factors in particular that have a very bad effect on the body's ability to produce collagen itself. First and foremost, industrial sugar is a real obstacle. So avoid too many sweets. The same applies to alcohol, which also significantly inhibits collagen production in the body.

Additionally, nicotine is blacklisted if you don't want to burden collagen formation on top of age-related throttling. In the case of sugar, alcohol and nicotine, however, it is not really surprising that they have a negative effect on collagen formation - after all, we know that these substances are inherently unhealthy. However, there are actually foods that you can use to fuel collagen production.

...and which foods support collagen formation

Amino acids are extremely valuable for boosting production, especially glycine, lysine and hydroxyproline. These support the synthesis of collagen. The substances are contained in fish, beef broth, chicken, lean beef and green leafy vegetables, such as rocket, lettuce, lamb's lettuce, spinach or chard.

Collagen formation itself improves when you consume zinc, organic sulfur, copper and vitamins, especially vitamin C and vitamin E. There are a number of foods that contain at least one of these substances. Peppers, citrus fruits, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries, for example, are particularly valuable, as are avocados, legumes, pumpkin seeds, nuts and poppy seeds. And even if they are not on the regular menu: From time to time oysters are highly recommended in this context.