Lack of collagen in the human body results in common signs of aging. Wrinkles, sagging skin that has lost its elasticity are all signs that the body is producing less collagen.

When collagen levels are high, the skin is soft, smooth and firm. Collagen helps the skin cells regenerate and repair themselves. Collagen also helps keep the skin moist. Collagen is an effective protein that can keep the skin healthy and youthful. This is why collagen has been seen as a very important ingredient for skin care over the years.

 There is no difference in the way collagen works in men and women. The health benefits collagen has for men are the same for women. Collagen is a fibrous structural protein that gives various body cells strength and structure. Collagen is present in skin and hair, occupying up to 25% to 30% of the total body protein mass. Women can lose up to 30% of collagen production in the first 5 years of menopause!

 Collagen protein is made up of amino acids such as alanine, glycine, proline and hydroxyproline and occupies large varieties of the human cells. In the skin, it is akin to a layer of leather. And when it intermingles with elastic fibers, it gives strength and resilience. Because we lose collagen as we age, many are using collagen supplements as part of an anti-aging beauty regimen.

 The breakdown of collagen and elastin fibers causes skin aging and wrinkles. The aging process is quickened by UV light and smoking. Research suggests that smoking allows free radicals to attack collagen fibrils, rendering them weak and of poor quality. It is not surprising therefore, that the skin of a smoker tends to look damaged and wrinkled, particularly around the mouth. Collagen supplements can prevent or considerably reverse the wrinkling process and treat the aging skin.

 Within the skin, taking up to 10gms of collagen peptides per day can help improve skin elasticity, hydration and collagen density. Moreover, hydrolyzed collagen also can protect against UV-induced melisma, a skin problem marked by patches of discoloration on the face, potentially thanks to its antioxidant effects.

 When a person has wounds on the skin, collagen is responsible for every stage of wound healing. However, it is not the only factor for wound healing. collagen has chemotactic and hemostatic properties.

 Although the protein present in artificial wound dressings helps the healing process, they are no match to natural collagen in benefits. Natural collagen offers anti-bacterial features, which are absent in artificial ones.

 Collagen supplements help the body create more natural collagen, elastin and fibrillin. These three proteins are beneficial to skin health.

Collagen benefits during pregnancy:

During pregnancy, a lot of your skin is either drying out or being highly stretched (stretch marks). Number of women even experience hyper-pigmentation or what are called as ‘dark spots’ on their faces. With the help of Hyaluronic acid present in collagen, adding it to your morning coffee or tea or beverage of your choice, chances are you will be less likely to get dark spots on your face, as well as stretch marks on your body.

Another big win is that collagen and Hyaluronic acid really help decrease heartburn and acid reflux, something a lot of women experience in the later stages of pregnancy. Hence collagen supplementation is a better, natural approach to treat heartburn. It also has a digestion benefit as well since it is packed with amino acids, which is something all pregnant women need help with all throughout their pregnancy.

Hyaluronic acid is also a great healing agent, thus along with collagen it can really help you recover faster during postpartum.

Last but not least, Vitamin C along with collagen helps digest the collagen supplement better and can give you a big immunity boost. Getting immunity support is highly important during pregnancy and importantly during tough pandemic times since you are not allowed to take most medications, or over the counter medicines while pregnant, so keeping illnesses away is HIGHLY significant.

How does this new paint work?

According to the researchers, the key has been to add calcium carbonate to the mix. The scientists found that by using high concentrations of this Calcium carbonate, with differing particle sizes, they were able to develop a product that reflected 95.5% of sunlight. This paint is basically creating free air conditioning by reflecting that sunlight and offsetting those heat gains from inside your house.” Such paints may have a broad range of applications - particularly in data centers, which require large amounts of cooling. Since the paint lacks metallic components, it is unlikely to interfere with electromagnetic signals, making it suitable for cooling telecommunications equipment.

Creating a single-layer paint that can reflect heat directly out into space without requiring an energy input would be a huge win for the climate crisis, as cooling is usually powered by fossil fuels and has a big overall impact on global warming. There is still be a long way to go before this product is available commercially in the market, as it needs to be tested for its long-term reliability and efficiency. But the researchers are optimistic and such developments shall pave way for green technology and reducing carbon footprint.