Are You Accidentally Making Your Skin Look Older?

Since your 30s, you’ve almost certainly noticed the signs of ageing starting to appear on your face, including wrinkles, dull, lifeless or sagging skin and even dryness.

Like many women, you might have experimented with those anti-ageing creams or even been tempted to take trendy collagen supplements.

You wish you could regain that fresh, youthful and healthy look, boost your confidence and feel like your usual self again.

While we can’t turn back the clock, we can take certain steps to take care of our skin, joints and connective tissues naturally so we can glow from within.

How? We need to start thinking about our natural collagen levels and take steps to protect what we have so we can age more gracefully. Today I’d like to explain what collagen is and how it affects your body, what can damage this abundant protein and what you can do to fight back.

What is collagen?

Collagen is a protein that is abundant in our bodies. It’s essential for building and maintaining bone and connective tissues like skin, muscles, cartilage and tendons and keeps them stretchy, nourished, youthful and healthy.

But that’s not all - collagen also makes up a significant part of our bone tissue and is important for maintaining bone density and preventing fractures. It might also interest you to know that it also provides structural support for our brain cells and helps them to communicate effectively and maintain optimal brain function.

We get this essential protein directly from our diet by eating foods like meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, dairy, legumes and soy.

Why does our skin change as we go through perimenopause and menopause?

As we begin to age (especially if we’re approaching menopause), those collagen fibres become weaker and thinner, and we start to see changes such as hair loss or thinning hair, dry, wrinkled or sagging skin, joint pain and even decreased bone density.

You’ve probably guessed why we experience these changes during menopause- it’s your hormone levels!

Although we do start to lose collagen from the age of around 25, it’s the sudden decrease in our oestrogen levels during perimenopause and menopause that accelerates the loss of this protein and makes us age even faster.

This is because the collagen in our bodies is produced by cells called fibroblasts that need oestrogen to function optimally. If your oestrogen levels are low, they can’t do their job as they should.

You could be making matters worse…

But that’s not all! Your skin is also significantly affected by the amount of sugar in your diet and could make signs of premature ageing, wrinkles and sagging skin even worse!

If you’re eating too much, your body will release more of the hormone insulin that controls how much sugar enters your bloodstream. This can lead to chronically elevated insulin levels, which damage the collagen and elastin fibres (connective tissues) throughout your body and can lead to inflammation, reduced bone density, joint pain and premature ageing.

An excessive sugar intake can also cause more of the harmful compounds AGEs (advanced glycation end products) to be produced. These compounds can build up over time and can lead to diabetes, heart disease, kidney failure and Alzheimer’s, and make those collagen fibres even less flexible and prone to breakage.

How can we boost our collagen levels to look and feel vibrant during menopause?

Many women choose to use collagen supplements to help combat this natural drop and choose powders or pills made from collagen peptides or hydrolyzed collagen. Usually, these are made from animal products, although there are vegetarian and vegan options available.

However, it’s always best to support your health and hormone balance naturally so that you can start to glow from within. Here’s what I recommend:

•  Reduce your sugar intake. By doing this, you won’t only help reduce collagen loss and help your skin glow with health, but you’ll also reduce your risk of suffering many chronic health problems like diabetes and Alzheimer’s. (Join my Flourish & Thrive programme to learn how to do this pain-free).
  
  
•  Stop smoking. Cigarette smoke accelerates signs of ageing and damages your natural collagen.
  
  
•  Eat your antioxidants. Foods right in antioxidants can help strengthen your skin from the inside out and support optimal hormonal balance and health. Fill your plate with brightly coloured vegetables and fruits.
•  Drink plenty of water. Your skin gets drier during perimenopause and menopause because your oil glands are less active. If you’re dehydrated, this will make matters worse. Drink plenty, and you’ll reap the benefits!
  
  
•  Reduce your stress. Stress can affect your hormone balance, trigger skin problems and make your skin dryer and more sensitive. Join my Flourish & Thrive programme to learn healthy ways to help better manage your stress and feel calm.
  
  
•   Exercise. When you exercise, you boost your circulation so extra blood and oxygen can flood your skin, leaving you looking and feeling healthier.
  
  
•  Get more beauty sleep. Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep per night to help your body rest and repair, better manage stress and make your skin brighter and more youthful.

By following the steps above and joining my popular Flourish & Thrive program, you can learn how to reduce your blood sugar levels, protect your natural collagen levels and support your health during perimenopause and menopause.

The result? You’ll look younger, fresher and healthier, plus keep your bones, brain and immune system healthy.

Get in touch if you have any questions. I’m always happy to help!