When you were a kid, your mom must have told you many times to drink your milk so your bones could become healthy. That’s because it has calcium, which is essential in your bone health.
But calcium is not enough to keep your bones strong. You need calcium, Vitamin D, and collagen.
Collagen isn’t just for achieving younger-looking skin. It’s also vital in strengthening your bones and keeping them in their best shape as you grow older.
Let’s find out more about how collagen can make your bones stronger and the ways you can take care of your bone health better.
Effects of aging in bone density
Before we talk about collagen’s roles in your bone health, it’s important to know first why we’re discussing bone strengthening.
Men and women over 50 years old are more prone to osteoporosis. And they are more susceptible to bone fractures and injuries even in small incidents like falling or tripping.
That’s because one effect of aging is decreasing bone density. Also called bone mineral density, this is the amount of bone mineral in your bone tissue.
A decrease in bone cells will cause low bone density. And when you have low bone density, your bones weaken and it puts you at a greater risk of getting osteoporosis.
Women in their 20s to 30s have the highest bone density. But when they reach their 40s, their bone density decreases because the reconstructing ability of their bones slows down.
Our bones naturally reconstruct themselves and remodel by replacing old bone tissue with new tissue. So don’t think of bones as lifeless parts of the body because they’re like a construction company that constantly rebuilds broken bridges.
Collagen and bone health
One-third of our bones is collagen. It acts as the body’s glue and supports the structure of the bones, joints, tendons, muscles, and skin.
This is the protein makes bones flexible and without it, bones become brittle. And as you know, anything that’s brittle breaks easily.
As you age, your collagen production changes too. At first, it will slow down. Then it will continue to drop in your 40s. Until you reach the age of 60, that’s when you lose half of your collagen stores.
Collagen acts as a shock absorber by giving your bones elasticity that prevents it from fracture. So when your collagen stores decrease, your bones break easier than ever.
As mentioned earlier, calcium, Vitamin D, and collagen work together to maintain your bone health. Our bones absorb calcium through the help of Vitamin D. So when you have an inadequate supply of Vitamin D, you won’t have calcium that boosts bone mass and strength.
Vitamin D also aids in bone remodeling by promoting the mineralization of the bone’s collagen matrix. Collagen and calcium team in keeping our bones more flexible.
More collagen, healthier bones
The sooner you take your bone health more seriously, the better. Ensuring you have enough collagen in your body is a vital step in keeping your bones stronger and healthier.
How to have more collagen supply?
- Eat collagen-rich food like dark green vegetables, eggs, berries, avocado, and bone broth among many others.
- Get Vitamin D from the sun or in capsules
- Eat food with Vitamin C because it’s essential in collagen production
- Take collagen supplement like Collagen Complex
Collagen Complex contains five types of collagen - type I, II, III, V, and X. These hydrolyzed proteins are from grass-fed beef, chicken, fish, eggshell membrane, and avian sternum. This Premium Collagen Complex comes in 1500mg capsules.
And always remember, you need to exercise often as it makes your body younger. This also keeps your muscles strong enough so it can support your bones and the rest of your body.
With exercise, healthy diet, and collagen, you will have stronger bones even as you age.