Line of no control

VIKAS SHARMA

The normal ageing process causes a decrease in the skin’s collagen production, giving rise to a number of common aesthetic skin concerns, including fine lines, wrinkles, and sagging skin. Collagen is crucial to supple skin.

The wrinkle-preventing protein that naturally occurs in our bodies keeps the skin plump and youthful. Responsible for smoothing fine lines and wrinkles, it’s the skin’s structural net, which makes it resilient, strong and elastic. It’s safe to say we like it. What we don’t like is that collagen starts depleting after the age of 20. Thereafter collagen production decreases by approximately 1 per cent with each year of age leading to a loss of firmness and elasticity of skin.

If you’re dealing with wrinkled, dry, flat skin, you’re missing the key ingredient— collagen. And without this key ingredient, you’re not going to see that fresh, smooth complexion you’ve been craving.

Chemical process

Unfortunately, as we age, the cells that make collagen, called fibroblasts either disappear or become less active. The less collagen you have, the more wrinkles you get. The skin becomes thinner thus more susceptible to fine lines and wrinkles.

When people want to age gracefully, one of things they wonder is how to increase collagen production in the skin.

Applying collagen topically is easier said than done. The collagen molecule can’t actually penetrate the skin; it just sits on the surface. Therefore you need to choose a product with collagen amino acids that are small enough to get to the deeper layers of the dermis to deliver that plumping effect you associate with collagen.

Eat healthy

Although topical collagen won’t help you to rebuild new collagen, there are agents that have been shown clinically to boost its production. These include agents such as vitamin C, soy, certain peptides, etc.

Eat beans, cabbage and garlic. These foods are rich in sulphur which aids in the forming of collagen and maintains the skin’s natural healthy texture. Vitamin C also supports the process of collagen formation and works to reduce oxidative damage, so can also munch on foods like broccoli, spinach, berries and kiwi fruits.

Get it right

Smoking can kill collagen, it ages the skin by eating away at proteins, thereby restricting blood flow. This results in dry, leathery and wrinkled skin around the lips and eyes. Unfortunately sugar can have the same effect. Keeping your skin hydrated with water, plant foods and hydrating skin care is good way to boost collagen. The more hydrated your skin is, the better environment it gives for collagen and elastin to thrive.

Laser treatments can stimulate collagen production by producing a controlled injury to the skin. Fractional laser resurfacing has been clinically proven to help the skin look and feel younger by promoting collagen production.

Laser treatments put energy into the skin that stimulates fibroblasts. Then those fibroblasts begin to produce more collagen. As the skin thickens, wrinkles fade. Injections of specialised fillers can help restore volume to the skin.

(Dr Sharma is a Chandigarh-based dermatologist)