As we age, the source of beautiful skin, hair, and the body’s connective tissues do not store well in our bodies. There are several signs that you are not storing the most abundant protein in the body, collagen, as well as you did when you were younger.
Saggy skin, wrinkles, as well as aches and pains in the knees or other areas of the body, can indicate a lack of collagen. Fortunately, you can replenish it by eating beef, fish, and other foods. Here are some of the sources of collagen that you can ingest.
Aloe Vera Plants
Although aloe vera is well-known as a topical that helps heal burns, you can ingest it to get its benefits. One of its benefits is promoting collagen growth for healthy hair, skin, and connective tissues like ligaments.
This healing plant contains polysaccharides that help build stronger strands of collagen.
Aloe vera skin and gel are edible, but you should cut off its sharp spikes first and thoroughly wash the leaf that you are going to eat.
It is available as a juice as well. You can drink eight ounces of aloe vera juice per day to reap its benefits.
Vitamin C
Without the presence of vitamin C in your body, it cannot adequately store collagen. It also ensures that the collagen your body produces is stable so, you should also take in more of this vitamin.
Eat more oranges, grapefruits, and other citrus fruits, or take vitamin C supplements to increase its presence in your body.
Collagen Supplements
Taking collagen supplements is a good way to increase the amount of collagen that you have in your body. Along with giving you healthier hair and skin, collagen supplements can help your recovery after working out.
Since collagen supplements usually contain animal products, read the labels carefully to check for those that do not contain GMOs. For instance, Physician’s Choice Collagen Peptides Powder does not have GMOs and it’s a gluten-free product.
Nuts and Seeds
Certain nuts and seeds have extraordinary health benefits for human bodies. They have high amounts of protein, vitamins, and minerals that the body needs. They also contain collagen. The best sources for collagen in nuts and seeds include:
- Sunflower seeds
- Pumpkin seeds
- Chia seeds
- Almonds
Drink More Water
You’re probably tired of hearing it because every nutritionist promotes drinking water to be healthy and to hydrate your body. However, the easiest and fastest way to produce good quality collagen is to drink water.
Water is a key component of collagen, which contains about 60 percent of water by weight. Most women already know that water hydrates and plumps their skin, but they may not know that without water, collagen can dry out and start to shrink. Dry collagen will cause dry skin too.
If you want beautiful lush hair, radiant skin, strong nails, and a flexible body, you need to increase the collagen in your body as you get older. Since the body doesn’t store it as well, you can take these five sources of collagen to increase the amount you have internally.
