Enrich your skin with collagen food therapy
Print Edition
Pig trotter in sweet vinegar is a favorite dish of many Chinese, especially in winter. Apart from its nutritional value and rich taste, trotter is especially popular among women for another reason — it is said to be effective in nourishing skin because of its high collagen content.
Store shelves and beauty spas offer a wide range of collagen products and treatments. But the variety of pills, creams, injections and supplement drinks boasting the beautifying effects of collagen can leave some customers confused about what products are right for them.
Collagen accounts for about one quarter of our body’s natural protein. It is found in bones, organs and connective tissue. It’s also vital for skin.
“Collagen is a major component of the epidermis, which helps preserve water and keeps the skin elastic,” said Dr Wang Yifei of dermatological department of Yueyang Hospital attached to the Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
“However, the natural production of collagen in the human body decreases with age after reaching its peak time around 20-25 years old.”
Wang added that the skin of an average 50-60 year old may have less than half the collagen normally seen in a person in their early-to-mid-20s.
Among other factors, exposure to excessive sunlight, scalding water, environmental pollution, cigarette smoke can also effect collagen reproduction. This can lead to rough, dry skin and wrinkles.
Chinese tradition emphasizes food therapy to make up for lost collagen. Collagen-rich pig trotters are high on the list. The skins of pigs, chickens, fish and other animals are a good choice, as is white fungus. Meanwhile, e’jiao, made from donkey skin has long been a precious and popular skin reinforcing ingredient in winter.
The molecular size of collagen determines the effectiveness of its application, according to Wang. The naturally occurring collagen molecules are too big to be absorbed by the skin, said the doctor. The human digestive system can break down these molecules and enable their absorption. For this reason, oral medications in pill or liquid form are usually recommended by doctors.
“Eating foods that contain collagen can also help boost the body’s natural production,” Wang explained.
High protein foods such as chicken, eggs, dairy and beans were all tipped as skin-fortifiers.
To keep your skin nourished, Wang suggested taking only small doses of collagen rich products since the amount of collagen can differ in different products.
Wang further advised against taking any supplements or pills without first consulting a doctor.
Recipes featuring rich collagen
Fish maw, black-bone chicken and mushroom soup
Ingredients: dried fish maw (20g), half a black-bone chicken, seven mushrooms, ginger and yellow wine as needed
Preparations: 1. Soak dried fish maw for about 12 hours.
2. Boil water in a saucepan together with ginger slices.
3. Put the fish maw in water, cook for 20 minutes, take out and wash with cold water.
4. Boil water in a saucepan with ginger slices again.
5. Put chopped black-bone chicken in water; add a little yellow wine when water boils again.
6. Take the chicken out after the third boil and wash with cold water.
7. Put all ingredients in an earthen pot together with water. Cook for about five hours.
8. Add salt to season.
Soybean, tomato and pig’s skin soup
Ingredients: pig skin (750g), soybean (50g), tomato (150g), two jujubes, slice of ginger
Preparations: 1. Soak soybeans for about 30 minutes.
2. Remove hair from pig’s skin and wash.
3. Put the skin into boiling water in a saucepan for three minutes.
4. Remove the skin and wash.
5. Put the skin and soybean in a pressure cooker together with the jujubes, ginger slice and water. Bring to a quick boil and turn to gentle heat for another 20 minutes.
6. When the soup is almost done, add chopped tomato and simmer for another ten minutes.
7. Season with salt.
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