I am a gen-X. Growing up, I was fortunate to eat food prepared by my grandmother the old fashioned way. Grandma was originally from China and would frequently prepare pig's feet, chicken feet stew, frog legs, bone broth, fermented vegetables and steeped liver and ginger.
Almost at my golden 50 years, I still enjoy youthful glowing skin (well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder), no issues with arthritis or osteoporosis, and still keep an active lifestyle. I believe that the diet high in collagen boosting foods have laid the foundation for my overall good health. Although, I haven't had the opportunity to savor much of the traditional collagen boosting delicacies for the last 40 years, I do enjoy them whenever I visit Asia.
I've always try to keep it simple. General rule of thumb, eat cooked collagen, protein, foods high in antioxidants, vitamin C and omega- fatty acids. Select fruits and foods that are in season as they are usually fresh and cheaper. Below are collagen boosting foods that are commonly sold in our grocery stores.
#1 Cooked Collagen
Make your own bone broth. The source of the bones used in the broth such as from cattle and chicken provide different types of collagen. It would be wise to source organic to prevent antibiotics, hormones and chemicals from contaminating your broth. To save time, you may want to consider supplementing EatFit Collagen Peptides which is easy to digest and absorbed by your body.
#2 Antioxidants
Antioxidants help restore damaged collagen by preventing free radicals from breaking down the collagen in your body. Below are some suggestions:
- Dark leafy greens such as Kale, spinach, and cruciferous such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts.
- Red veggies such as tomatoes, red peppers and beets naturally protects the skin from sun damage while boosting collagen production in the body.
- Orange veggies such as carrot and sweet potatoes high in Vitamin A helps restore damaged collagen.
- Blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and strawberries that are high in antioxidants help fight free radicals while increasing collagen production.
- Teas such as Matcha.
#3 Vitamin C
Citrus fruits such as grapefruit, lemons, limes and oranges are loaded with Vitamin C which helps fight free radicals that breakdown skin collagen. Vitamin C is also essential in collagen synthesis where proline and lysine are converted to collagen.
#4 Omega-3 fatty acids
Tuna, salmon, mackerel and lean grass-fed meat are high in omega-3 fatty acids which protects the fatty cell membrane around the skin.
#5 Protein
White eggs and nuts have the amino acid lysine and proline which could help support the natural production of collagen in the body. To supplement your diet, you can take EatFit Collagen Peptides to give your body a boost.