Collagen is often referred to as ‘The building blocks of the body’, for it plays a crucial part in our body’s structure. Collagen is especially important for people involved in sports or those who are particularly active because high intensity exercise puts great pressure on our bones, muscles and joints.
As we age, we also lose our ability to produce collagen as efficiently as we could before the age of 25. As our collagen levels reduce, we begin to see visible signs of ageing. Our hair and nails become less strong whilst our joints become stiffer and we heal less quickly from injuries. The rate at which our collagen reduces is about 1.5% every year from our mid-twenties onwards. Sports people often experience collagen reductions even faster than this.
In addition, women have a lower collagen density than men; because of this it is more common for women to show premature ageing signs faster than men even though they are the same age.