Top 7 Foods That Boost Collagen Naturally

1. Egg Whites

“Sunday ho ya Monday, roz khaao Andey”, ever heard of this iconic slogan and followed it? If not, then you may start doing it after knowing this – egg whites can help you get not just protein but also enhance your skin quality. It is because egg whites contain proline.

Proline is an amino acid that our bodies use to produce collagen naturally. So, while egg white doesn’t directly provide collagen, it provides the raw material required. [1]

2. Fish

Fish are quite rich in collagen, especially the parts that most people avoid eating. For example, fish’s head, scales, and eyeballs contain the highest amount of collagen compared to fish meat.

Collagen present in fish is considered to be the easiest to digest, absorb, and use. A study found that marine collagen (collagen of water creatures) was easy to absorb and enhanced skin health. It led to supple and more elastic skin and reduced fine lines. [2]

While fish do contain collagen, note that cooking it in an unhealthy manner may actually destroy it. So, avoid high-heat cooking such as deep frying if you want to harness the most collagen out of it.

3. Chicken Cooked with Bones

Chicken, when cooked with bones, is another rich source of getting collagen straight from food. It’s because chickens offer a high amount of protein. Chicken is also comparatively cheaper. This is the reason most companies use chicken bones as the source of their collagen supplement production.

Similar to fish, chicken meat also offers less amount as compared to cartilage and bone. Also, the thigh of chicken offers more collagen as compared to chicken breast. So make your choice wisely when eating chicken for collagen.

A study done on chicken collagen intake found that it helped with joint pain, inflammation, etc. [3]

4. Soy and Soy Chunks

Soya beans and soya chunks, both of these foods contain high amounts of protein. Not just this, soya chunks contain good amounts of amino acids such as glycine, hydroxyproline, etc. These amino acids act as the foundation for collagen production. [4]

So, while soya beans and soya products might not provide you with collagen directly, they will provide the raw material required in good amounts.

5. Bone Broth

Bone broth might sound extremely high in collagen. However, it does contain very high amounts of collagen. Apart from collagen, it also contains rich amounts of calcium, phosphorous, chondroitin, amino acids, etc. [5]

Bone broth is a simple recipe that aims at extracting collagen by simmering bones in water. However, because different recipes might use different quality animal bones, the final collagen content might differ. If you want to ensure the quality of your bone broth in terms of collagen, source your bones from an expert butcher.

6. Citrus Fruits

Why citrus fruits for collagen? Citrus fruits contain a high amount of vitamin C. Now, vitamin C is a well-known antioxidant that boosts collagen production in the body. Studies have found that vitamin C intake boosted collagen production, bone healing after fracture, and enhanced wound healing. It is always a win-win, considering how citrus fruits enhance our overall health. [6]

Here are some citrus fruits you may consider adding to your diet for collagen boost –

• Grapefruit

• Oranges

• Lemons

• Pomelo

• Tangerine

• Lime

And the list goes on. However, when embracing citrus fruit, make sure you don’t have hyperacidity. Citrus fruits can make your acidity worse.

7. Garlic

Garlic and ginger are two foods that go almost always in the Indian wok. They flavour most Indian dishes, not to mention the herbed garlic bread and other garlicky delicacies.

Garlic, although zero in terms of collagen, contains rich amounts of sulfur. Now, sulfur is a trace mineral that helps not only collagen production but even prevents collagen damage.

Now, garlic also boasts a high antioxidant content. Antioxidants are known to enhance skin health due to their free-radicals-fighting property. Free radicals are known to damage cells and cause premature ageing with fine lines and wrinkles. [7]

8. Cabbage

Cabbage is the go-to component of any salad, be it anywhere in the world. It’s light. It’s crunchy. And it’s super healthy as well. Cabbage contains two compounds in good amounts:

• Vitamin C

• Proline

Both these gems are known to boost collagen production. Proline is required for the biosynthesis of collagen and other proline-containing proteins. This is critical to maintaining tissue integrity for instances like wound healing.

Furthermore, cabbage is full of antioxidants and has also shown strong anti-inflammatory properties. Studies have found that cabbage helps deal with cabbage-induced arthritis. [8][9]

Precaution: Individuals with thyroid disorder then, cabbage should be avoided as it contains goitrogens, which cause hormonal imbalance

9. Tomatoes

Tangy tomatoes are a treat to the tongues. But more than this, they are a treat to the skin and joint health. Tomatoes stay soaked in vitamin C. As said above, vitamin C boosts collagen production.

Apart from their vitamin C content, tomatoes also contain a pretty decent amount of lycopene. It is the same carotene that gives tomatoes their red iconic colour. Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant that is known to possess strong anti-ageing properties and boost skin health.

Pro Tip – The right way to harness the best of tomatoes is to cook them with healthy fat (mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated fat). You may use olive oil, virgin mustard oil, etc. Cooking tomatoes with fats enhances the availability of lycopene. [10][11]

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