Collagen & Elastin
Skin Firming Methods – Plastic Surgery or Creams?
Monday, November 16th, 2009
Skin firming can be done through plastic surgery, the use of injectable fillers or with nourishing creams and lotions, if they contain the right ingredients. There are advantages and disadvantages to each of the alternatives for firmer, younger looking skin. Here’s a look at them.
Plastic surgery is rarely used these days. In the old days, we called them face lifts. They worked by pulling the skin tight, sometimes to the point where people were unrecognizable.
Today, it is the injectable fillers that have center stage. Basically, they work by fattening up the skin’s deeper layers, which has the effect of stretching them out. Women (and men) that have the procedures done appear to have gained weight, but only on their faces. Obviously it’s not a natural look.
The fillers available include hyaluronic acid and collagen. There are also a couple of synthetic fillers that I’ll get to in a moment. First let’s look at hyaluronic acid.
Although it is a natural component of the skin’s outer layers, it is not found in the deep layers into which it is injected. Because of that, it is prone to “clump” when injected. Hard spots or bumps sometimes form at the sight of injection and do not fade over time.
Skin firming injections containing hyaluronic acid, will cost between $600 and $1000. Results are not guaranteed. If the bumps form or if your face looks too puffy, you can return to the doctor to have an enzyme (hyaluronidaise) injected that dissolves the hyaluronic acid. But, your doctor is likely to charge extra for that. So, ultimately it could be a waste of money.
A low level of hyaluronic acid on the skin’s surface is one of the reasons for lost firmness. Creams on the market contain it, but are only semi-effective.
Hyaluronic acid levels are low because of hyaluronidaise. Creams containing wakame kelp inhibit hyaluronidaise, which allows levels of hyaluronic acid to increase. That provides skin firming with no unwanted side effects.
Collagen shots cost less than hyaluronic acid. The potential side effects are the same and the results are not long lasting.
The synthetic fillers are supposed to stimulate the body’s production of collagen, the protein that makes up the skin’s elastic fibers. The production of collagen naturally decreases with age. So, anything that we can do to get production going again is a good thing. It’s just that topically applied skin firming creams are safer, cost less and may be more effective than an injectable.
Research has shown that some topically applied ingredients stimulate the production of new cells and collagen fibers. Others repair sun damage and reverse wrinkles. The prices vary, of course. A designer label product will cost two or three times more than other creams that contain exactly the same ingredients.
Ultimately, your best choice is to give the creams a try. If you are unhappy with the results, save your pennies and get a skin firming injection. Just remember that many people are unhappy with the results.
Are Collagen Replacements Effective for Anti-Aging Skincare?
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009
For decades now, people have been looking for a legitimate collagen replacement treatment that did not force them to have to undergo expensive clinical procedures.
There are a multitude of topical skin care formulas and nutritional supplements out there that promise that you can naturally produce collagen through their use. The question is, do any of these products actually work?
Let’s cover the nutritional supplements geared towards collagen replacement first. These liquids and powders do take advantage of the most efficient way of entering your system, and they really do help the body add collagen.
They do nothing however to stimulate tissue production, but instead are absorbed by the body in order to be used for repair and maintenance. The areas being repaired will not include the skin.
The connective tissue that makes up the foundation of your skin is the same tissue that your organs and circulatory system are made of. Once the body ceases to naturally produce collagen at the rate that it used to, the tissue that is created is transferred almost exclusively to your vital systems. Any additional collagen that your body gets a hold of is also directed to these areas.
Now let’s see if the topical collagen replacement formulas can offer you better results. It would seem to make sense that a formula applied directly to the skin would be useful in increasing the amount of collagen that you have.
Important Note: The products that the cosmetics companies are selling you do not do anything to help you to replenish your collagen stores. The primary ingredient cannot even be absorbed by your skin.
Even if collagen were not too molecularly dense to be absorbed into your skin, it would still not do anything in order to help you to naturally produce collagen. It would add tissue to what already existed for a short period of time, but it would be broken down by the body over a brief period of time and end up excreted as waste.
Is there an effective way to increase collagen production?
There is a collagen replacement formula that was created by a company in New Zealand that utilizes an odd pairing of keratin proteins in order to create cells within the skin that will dramatically increase the amount of connective tissue being produced. Not only does the ingredient Functional Keratin cause more collagen to be produced, but more elastin also.
This company’s formula to naturally produce collagen does not stop there though. Their line of products also contains an extract from a variety of kelp that grows exclusively in the Sea of Japan.
The extract is called Phytessence Wakame. This unique ingredient halts the destruction of your hyaluronic acid by an enzyme in your skin that is programmed to break the acid down.
The increase in collagen and elastin production and the rise in the amount of hyaluronic acid that you have does wonders when it comes to erasing the fine lines, and wrinkles from your skin. The ability to significantly increase all of these tissues makes the formula from New Zealand the only true collagen replacement formula around.
To learn more about a skin care product line that incorporates Functional Keratin, Phytessence Wakame, CoenzymeQ10 and other natural anti-aging ingredients click here.
They are produced in New Zealand but are shipped worldwide. They are the skincare product line that the editors here at DefendYourSkin.com use ourselves, and we recommend them to anyone who asks.
To learn more visit the Xtend Life website.
Natural Collagen Production, Functional Keratin & CoenzymeQ10
Monday, August 10th, 2009How Does the Body Produce Collagen?
For many years, researchers tried to learn; how does body produce collagen. Once they learned how it was formed by living things, they began to try and synthesize it. In other words, they tried to create it artificially in the laboratory. Just recently, they succeeded.
They had a great deal of difficulty, because of collagen’s triple helix structure. Each time that they tried to synthesize it, the helix would unravel. The details would be a good lecture topic for a chemistry class.
You may be interested in the subject from a strictly scientific standpoint. Or, you may be interested in conquering one of the causes of an aged appearance. That is decreased production of the skin’s collagen fibers. Either way, you should find the following informative.
Collagen bundles are found all over the body. The formation process may vary somewhat, but this is what basically happens.
Specialized cells secrete pro-collagen molecules into the matrix between the cells. A number of pro-collagen molecules bind together to form tiny fibrils. The fibrils organize themselves into fibers, which are then attached to anchor cells.
Vitamin C must be present as a co-factor or the fibers will not be strong and elastic. A person must get enough protein in their diet or the cells will be unable to secrete the pro-collagen molecules. So, you see, in order for the process to work, the body must be well nourished.
Once the fibers are formed, they can be damaged. Stretching, as would happen during a sudden weight gain, can break the fibers, causing stretch marks. Inflammation in the tissues surrounding the fibers can cause them to degrade. That’s one of the things that happen in rheumatoid and osteoarthritis.
When it comes to the skin, there are two factors involved. First, the body produces fewer new collagen fibers as we get older. Second, there are more free radicals and fewer antioxidants to neutralize them in older skin. So, the radical molecules can damage the fibers.
Free radical damage is one of the causes of aging throughout the body. It is sometimes referred to as oxidation. Some oxidation is inevitable. Otherwise nothing would ever degrade or break down. Ideally, we would want to keep the level of oxidation to a minimum.
Antioxidant-rich creams, if used on a regular basis can help us prevent the degradation of collagen fibers by free radicals. Some antioxidants, like coenzyme Q10, can even repair damage that has already occurred.
Many of the anti-aging creams on the market contain hydrolyzed collagen. Those are of no benefit. The processes used to soften the structural protein unravel the helix and the body can’t use it.
A few of the better creams on the market contain “Functional Keratin”, a different protein complex that has been shown to stimulate new production of the skin’s collagen fibers. The best creams contain Functional Keratin and coenzyme Q10 to address two of the causes of an aged appearance; free radical damage and decreased fiber production.
So, now we know; how does body produce collagen. We also know that we can keep the production going to delay the outward signs of aging.
To learn more about skin care products that contain both Functional Keratin & CoenzymeQ10 to promote & nourish the body’s own collagen production click here.