Have you heard all the hoopla from the supplement world about collagen?
Collagen supplements are gaining traction as the latest “Fountain of Youth” addition for your daily anti-aging regiment, with endorsements hailing from celebrities and nutritionists alike.
Last year alone the sales of collagen supplements reached $98 million from within the beauty world, and promises to continue double-digit growth by 30%.
While many buy collagen supplements to reduce joint pain and degeneration, many more buy them as an anti-aging fix — to improve hair, skin and nails — to look younger.
The Problem
But there is an unsafe side effect not talked about amidst all this excitement and product sales…
Collagen supplements cause constipation.
Do you know that constipation causes inflammation throughout your body?
Chronic constipation triggers irritation of the colon wall, causing the production of excess mucous and the proliferation of pathogen, like yeast, mold, fungus, rogue bacteria and parasites.
Since the health of your digestive tract effects your overall health, including your mental and physical wellbeing, and the widespread problems constipation can cause, what supplement could possibly be worth the benefits it’s touted to offer?
Your stomach was designed to breakdown and process the foods you eat, to absorb and assimilate the nutrients you need to function optimally, to then move out the waste you don’t need for for elimination.
If there is a breakdown in any of these processes, of course there is going to be signs of premature aging, excess weight and brain fog.
Waste is not leaving the body.
Rather than serve as a weigh station, your digestive system is serving as a toxic waste land.
What’s Possible
Twenty years ago I looked older than I do today (said a former employer I ran into), because I suffered from chronic constipation.
A year ago, when Courtney, my 34-year old client came, she said she felt she looked old and tired — She suffered from ulcerative colitis. Now? She’s off all medication and says she looks and feels better than she ever remembers.
Constipation is widespread today. Constipation brings millions of people to a clinic every year, with more than 700,000 emergency department trips.
The Problem is a Problem
Chronic constipation leads to inflammation, stagnancy and slow to in-frequent eliminations, which causes waste matter to harden, calcify and cause obstruction within your colon walls.
Herein lies the root of all health problems. Waste is not leaving the body.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 out of every 2 of us suffers from 1 chronic disease. One out of every 4 of us suffers from 2 or MORE chronic diseases. Seven out of 10 of us will die of a chronic disease.
Add to these statistics all the ways the digestive system impacts brain health/mental health — 90% of serotonin that is produced in the digestive wall. Researchers at John Hopkins are finding evidence that “irritation in the gastrointestinal system may send signals to the central nervous system (CNS) that trigger mood change. These new findings may explain why a higher-than-normal percentage of people with IBS and functional bowel problems develop depression and anxiety.”
Not an Aside
Among the top over-the-counter medications are treatments for pain relief, laxatives and yeast infections, which treat problems directly directly correlated to chronic constipation.
Yes, the problem of chronic constipation stems from many problems, like a diet high in processed foods and poor lifestyle choices. But with statistics of chronic disease near epidemic, it’s foolish to add a supplement that could hinder healthy elimination, since constipation has such far reaching consequences.
Consider This:
If you suffer from any digestive problem (Are you 1 of the 74% of Americans who does?), the enzyme pepsin and the acid HCL, which are both responsible for breaking down food in your stomach, will be impaired from the cascade of problems that happen from constipation (or diarrhea) — The body won’t be able tp break the collagen down anyway.
World renowned hydro-colonic therapist Gil Jacobs sees how products like these actually build up on the colon wall in his NYC practice — they are a hindrance to vibrant health, rather than a help.
And let’s not forget collagen supplements are a processed product, which the body doesn’t recognize as fuel, but as a foreign invader.
It’s Up To You
There is a we-are-being-sold-to mentality, and there is a question-everything-mentality.
Choose the later.
Why? Even some leaders in the integrative health community tout products that directly spin off the immediate gratification, fast-food, modern lifestyle mentality, with no apparent deeper inquiry into the long-term consequences of the short-term gains they’re suggesting.
This is why I say question everything.
I don’t care WHO the teacher is, put on your investigator hat.
Look to basic common sense. Always.
Trust this:
While we’ve all been taught to love quick fix solutions within our Fast-Food nation mentality, trust this, there are none. Near everything we are being sold today is a product of the modern lifestyle = give it to me (the result) and give it to me NOW (with NO effort extended… and far reaching consequences).
We are living beings that require proper care to function optimally.
If you want to look and feel your best, if you want to look and feel 10 years younger, you don’t need collagen supplements.
You need healthy habits that deliver real results.
Start with these 3 easy steps and you’ll see and feel the results you want in ways far beyond what collagen can offer you:
- Buy and use a juicer everyday.
- Eat a meal-sized salad every day.
- Eat less everyday.
No quick-fix works. But basic common sense does… AND a return home to your own inner guide.
