Hello Radical Health Seekers,
When it comes to looking and feeling young, collagen is a BIG deal.
Collagens are the most abundant protein in your body, mostly concentrated in your joints and connective tissues (pay attention athletes). But they also make up 70-80% of the dry weight of your skin, providing strength, elasticity, and bounce, like it does for this bowl of Jell-o 😀
The quantity and quality of your collagen can determine:
Whether your skin stays smooth and plump as you get old, or sags faster than melting ice cream at a 6-year-old’s birthday party…
And whether your joints last a lifetime, or wear out faster than your favorite t-shirt.
Now as we age, our ability to replenish collagen decreases by between 1% to 3% each year. And this is accelerated by inflammatory foods like seed oils and processed foods.
(but you’re not eating those anyway, right? 😲)
Traditional ancestral diets always contained a ton of collagen, because they ate the entire animal nose-to-tail, including its skin, tendons, cheeks, and other collagenous bits.
But in the modern world, we rarely eat these parts of the animal, meaning we’re getting a lot less of this super anti-aging nutrient than our ancestors did.
Combined with sky-high levels of inflammation (from the seed oils and processed foods), this results in a perfect storm of accelerated aging.
The multi-billion dollar skin-care industry will gladly sell you expensive collagen-boosting creams, potions and lotions.
But the best way to get your collagen is to eat it via whole foods or a high quality supplement.
Because consuming collagen directly ensures your body can break it down and direct it right where it needs it most. And scientific studies have shown that ingesting collagen this way:
– Increases serum collagen and reduces skin cracking;
– Reduces joint pain and osteoarthritis;
Collagen-rich foods contain the very building blocks we need to replenish the collagen in our skin and joints, keeping us looking and feeling young.
Building blocks like glycosaminoglycans, which are your body’s version of WD40…
They attract up to 1000x their weight in water, and coat your tissues in a layer of lubrication…
Keeping your skin hydrated and looking youthful…
And your joints lubed up!
Look, who doesn’t want youthful skin and smooth joints?
*crickets*
Exactly!
We all want to look and feel our best as long as possible…
We want to be that radical retiree who is dancing at bingo, with beautiful skin to boot:
In which case you will want to be eating lots of collagen.
How to eat more collagen
The first thing to do is find a good butcher or rancher. Because the collagen-rich parts of the animal are rarely found in a typical grocery store.
Ask them for the following collagen-rich cuts:
Cheek, shank, brisket, chuck, ribs, marrow bones, and ox-tail.
An added benefit is that these cuts are also delicious and very often more affordable than prime rib (doesn’t animal-based eating rock? 😎)
Now that you’ve got your collagen-rich cuts, it’s time to cook em up.
It takes a little time, but the end result is guaranteed to be nutritious and delicious.
Roasting, braising, stewing, boiling, smoking, barbecuing… the options are endless…
(Don’t forget to make some bone broth for the ultimate collagen drink!)
And if you’re looking for a more convenient way to get your daily collagen, don’t sleep on our Skin, Hair & Nails or Joint Strength & Repair supplements.
Both contain the highest quality full-spectrum collagens ((Type I-V & XI)) from grass-fed & finished cows.
Joint Strength & Repair is specifically formulated to support strong, healthy, and mobile joints:
“I have bad knees, and after taking this for a few months, I can tell a big difference. I just got back from a trip to Universal Orlando, and I was able to put in 6-11 miles a day with no pain or soreness like I’ve had on vacations/trips with lots of daily walking in the past!” – Joshua J.
Skin, Hair & Nails is specifically formulated to support healthy (and beautiful) skin, hair, and nails:
“I am a hairdresser and recommend this product to my clients. It’s AMAZING and I’ve seen it work WONDERS over time. I have seen lack-luster, dry, broken hair turn into perfectly healthy, thick hair!” – Lauren C
This week on Instagram:
This week on Radical Health Radio:
The Power of Icelandic Sheep Organs: Health Benefits Explored
This week on the Blog:
What To Eat On A Carnivore Diet
That’s all from us this week…
Keep thriving!
The Heart & Soil Team
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