What are collagen boosting vitamins?

Collagen is an essential protein – it is considered a structural protein that counts as approximately one-third of the protein within your body. It serves as a vital structural component of connective tissue such as skin, bones, and ligaments. Collagen also provides the skin’s mechanical characteristics such as strength, texture, and resilience.  

Over time, the collagen levels in your body deplete, and production may be interrupted. This results in a higher likelihood of thinning skin, loss of elasticity and the formation of wrinkles. Other reasons for the loss of collagen include sun damage, free radicals, smoking, which has been linked to lower collagen production, and excess sugar.

The interesting thing about collagen is that if you stimulate its growth, a domino effect will occur. The more collagen you have, the more your body can produce and maintain. There are several ways to boost your collagen levels. You could add different food into your diet, protect yourself from the sun and keep hydrated. 

Consuming collagen supplements is another method of boosting your overall collagen levels. Many of these supplements contain more than just collagen and have added vitamins that can also help to boost your overall collagen levels. 

Vitamins are essential for maintaining optimal levels of skin health, appearance, and function. Taking vitamin supplements and using topical products containing vitamins can all be beneficial. 

But what vitamins are best to boost collagen? That’s what we’re going to find out today and share with you. So, make sure you keep reading to find out. 

 

Antioxidants

Antioxidants are substances that can help protect your body from free radicals, which are molecules that can damage the body. Not all antioxidants boost collagen production, however, several vitamins such as vitamins E and C are effective antioxidants that play a role in collagen production. 

The antioxidants such as vitamins, polyphenols and flavonoids can slow down collagen degradation by reducing the concentration of free radicals in the tissues. Antioxidants can stimulate your body’s new collagen production while protecting your existing collagen from free radicals. 

 

Vitamin A

Vitamin A is one of the few nutrients that the skin needs. The protecting and nourishing properties of this vitamin lend a hand in keeping your skin healthy, firm, and radiant. 

The addition of vitamin A in topical skincare products can stimulate collagen production and encourages healthy skin cell production, reaching the deeper layers of your skin. It can make topical skincare products effective at reducing the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and can also help to even out skin tone.

Our Collagen Facemask is formulated with vitamin A and can strengthen your skin’s barrier, whilst promoting cell renewal, making it the perfect accompaniment to any skincare routine. 

Another Proto-col favourite that contains vitamin A, among other nourishing ingredients, is Collagen Skin Plus, which is designed to promote the body’s collagen production. Each serving of 3 capsules contains 100% of your daily vitamin A requirement. 

 

Vitamin C

It is well-known that vitamin C is essential to the manufacturing of collagen. One study found that the antioxidant properties of vitamin C and its role in collagen synthesis makes it a vital molecule for skin health. The human body cannot make vitamin C, so it is important to get it from the diet or by supplementing. As well as its antioxidant properties, vitamin C is highly acidic, which means it can regulate the synthesis of collagen and elastin in the body. Both collagen and elastin are known to help plump the skin and keep it firm – contributing to preventing premature ageing. 

One of the most important benefits of vitamin C is that it protects against the ageing effects of oxidative stress caused by free radicals. 

Another bonus of vitamin C is that it promotes healing. It does this by helping your body to produce the collagen necessary to heal wounds. Our Collagen Shots contain 80mg of vitamin C in each 50ml bottle, which is the recommended amount for adults daily.  

 

Vitamin E 

Vitamin E has been a go-to ingredient in the skincare and supplement industry for over 50 years, and it has a role to play in your collagen metabolism. This antioxidant has been proven to decrease the effect of the sun on the skin and prevent further damage. Like vitamin C, vitamin E is considered important in repairing damage caused by free radicals and preventing them from accelerating the ageing process. 

The body doesn’t naturally produce vitamin E, so it needs to be ingested through diet, supplementation or applied topically. Most people usually get enough through their diet, but this might not be optimising the skin benefits – meaning a supplement that includes vitamin E could be a good idea. 

This superstar vitamin supports collagen from the inside out, and something you may not have known is that vitamin E intake protects against collagen cross-linking, which means the collagen becomes hard and stiff, leading to damage. This is a process that plays a role in skin ageing. 

From one sachet of Complete Collagen, you would get 50% of your daily vitamin E requirement. 

Boosting collagen naturally improves not only our appearance but the rest of our health. The vitamins that we have focused on have an array of benefits for the body, alongside assisting in the collagen production process. Many of our collagen supplement formulations include these vitamins, to keep your natural collagen stores topped up and help to slow down collagen depletion in the body.