Truth bomb: collagen in skincare doesn’t work.
Not as you think anyway.
You can’t put collagen on your face and expect it to firm your skin and get rid of your wrinkles. In skincare, collagen is just a moisturizer. Bummer, isn’t it?
But that doesn’t mean your skin can’t still get its collagen fix. You just have to be subtle and trick your skin into producing more for you.
It’s easier than you think. These days, serums and moisturizers are brimming with actives that tell skin cells to produce more collagen, keeping your skin naturally younger and healthier. But what are these actives?
Here are 5 science-backed ways to boost collagen and replenish the one you’ve lost:
1. Natural Active Marine Peptides
Remember when I said collagen itself is too big to penetrate skin and boost your collagen? That’s true… but that’s an exception.
Hydrolyzed collagen, a.k.a. Natural Active Marine Peptides, is a mix of small size peptides derived from marine collagen (fish skin), which has great bioavailability (the rate at which food is absorbed through the bloodstream).
In plain English, hydrolyzed collagen is small enough and bioavailable enough, it can easily penetrate skin deep enough to reach the cells that make collagen and tell them to amp up their production. This minimizes loss of elasticity, reduces the look of wrinkles and masks the appearance of dark circles that are hemoglobin-derived.
You can find Natural Active Marine Peptides in our Collagen Booster EGF Serum With Marine Peptides & Sea Kelp. It’s also loaded with antioxidants to help you prevent new wrinkles in the first place.
2. Vitamin C
I’m sure you know what a powerful antioxidant Vitamin C is: it patrols your skin looking for free radicals to destroy before they can wreak their damage and give you wrinkles and dark spots.
But did you also know that Vitamin C is essential for collagen synthesis? Your skin can’t make collagen without it. If you want it to keep doing the job, it’s a smart idea to give it an extra dose of vitamin C.
While you’re at it, choose a Vitamin C serum with Vitamin E and ferulic acid, like our Super-C 20% Vitamin C Serum with C+E+Ferulic, EGF & Matrixyl 3000. Studies show that Vitamin E and ferulic acid supercharge Vitamin E, making it more effective against free radicals and sun damage. Plus, Matrixyl 3000 is another powerful collagen-booster!
3. Matrixyl 3000
Talking about Matrixyl 3000, this collagen booster is a peptide on steroids. It was born when scientists realised that two peptides, palmitoyl oligopeptide and palmitoyl tetrapeptide-7, reduced wrinkles way faster together than alone.
Studies show that Matrixyl 3000 increases the synthesis of collagen up to a whooping 258%! All this extra collagen helps skin behave more like young skin: old, deep wrinkles look smaller; new wrinkles are less likely to form in the first place and your whole complexion looks smoother and brighter.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg: Matrixyl 3000 also rejuvenates the texture of your skin, plumps it up and calms irritations. You can find the biggest dose of this super peptide in our Peptide Potion Matrixyl 3000 Anti-Aging Serum.
4. Retinol
Retinol is called the gold standard of antiaging for a good reason… or three. This form of Vitamin A destroys the free radicals that give you wrinkles, speeds up the skin’s natural exfoliating process to fade away fine lines and dark spots and boosts the production of collagen to keep skin firm and young.
The catch? Retinol traditionally can be super irritating: it stings your skin, makes it peel and dries it out. But, don’t worry, you don’t have to suffer all that. There’s a workaround: microencapsulation.
Put simply, instead of hitting your skin all at once, microencapsulated retinol is released into your skin over a period of several hours. This way, you can use a higher, more effective dose without getting any of the irritating side effects! Awesome, right?
We use microencapsulation in our Night Renewal Cream 2.5% All-Trans Encapsulated Retinol. Gentler than prescription retinoids, it produces visible results in just 12 weeks.
P.S. Don’t use Vitamin A products if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.
5. Glycolic Acid
Glycolic Acid is an exfoliant on steroids. Its main job is to remove all those dead cells that are glued to the surface of your skin that are roughing it up and stealing its glow. That alone makes you look a few years younger straight away.
But the real magic happens when you use high doses of Glycolic Acid (10% and higher). Now Glycolic Acid can also boost the production of collagen, keeping your skin firm and elastic for longer.
But… there’s a catch: such high concentrations of Glycolic Acid can irritate skin and - in the wrong hands - do more harm than good. If you’re gonna use it, follow the instructions to a T.
Take our 35% Professional Strength Glycolic Acid Peel, for example. Use once a week (the max we recommend), leave it on for no more than a couple of minutes at a time, and pile on that sunscreen afterwards.
FYI, a little tingle is ok. But, anything more than that and don’t hesitate to wash off the peel with cool water.
There you have it, 5 ways to boost collagen to keep your skin younger for longer. Choose one or use them all. The more collagen your skin has, the better it’ll behave.