Collagen banking is the secret to looking younger for longer

The number of candles on your birthday cake don’t automatically correspond to your skin age. At 25, you’re still dancing on tables at 3am while working your way up the career ladder. But it’s also the tipping where your skin starts to experience what experts call ‘stealth ageing’ as collagen production starts to decline. In fact, after the age of 25, skin starts to lose one per cent of collagen each year. Likewise, women lose 30 per cent of collagen in the first five years after menopause. Why is this important?

Collagen is a structural protein in our body responsible for keeping the mattress of the skin springy. Without it, skin starts to sag, look dull and lines become more pronounced. But it’s not all doom and gloom, thanks to the new trend for collagen banking. The idea is to use science-backed skincare to shore up a ‘bank’ of collagen while your body is still efficient at making it. And when more heavy lifting is needed, take a technical approach to your concerns with the latest gadgets. It’s certainly an appealing premise – use these two strategies and it’s a bit like an insurance policy to soften the blow later.

Here, the best products and ingredients to help you ‘collagen bank’:

There’s a reason every dermatologist in the world waxes poetic about the importance of wearing broad-spectrum SPF. UV rays create destructive free radicals in your skin that attack your DNA, skin collagen and, in extreme cases, lead to skin cancer.

“UV rays are the biggest contributing factor to premature skin ageing,” says Dr Johanna Gillbro, skin scientist and author of The Scandinavian Skincare Bible. “A simple way to prove this is to look at the skin on the buttocks, which is the most covered up and protected area of the body. The skin here generally has fewer wrinkles and pigmentation spots compared to facial skin, which has been exposed to the sun.”

In our 20s, our past tanning crimes start to catch up with us, usually in the form of more freckles or hyperpigmentation. So it’s crucial to start protecting your skin with a high factor, broad-spectrum SPF30 or 50 even on grey days as UVA can still penetrate through clouds.

Dermatologists agree that retinol, a vitamin A molecule that falls under the umbrella group of retinoids, is transformative when it comes to improving collagen production. By triggering cells on the top layer of skin to turnover faster, new cells form, which help with increasing collagen production.

Perhaps the biggest Scandinavian advocate of retinol is Lars Fredriksson, founder of Verso skincare, who has built an entire skincare line around this one core ingredient. For him it’s the gold standard for helping skin cells to behave like younger cells. Together with scientists at Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, Fredriksson struck upon a patented vitamin A derivative that is eight times as effective as traditional retinol without being as aggressive on the skin.

“Retinol, a vitamin A derivative, is one of the few ingredients that has scientifically proven effects to improve the skin,” explains Fredriksson, who also notes that one reason vitamin A is so irritating is that it speeds up cell turnover while your skin’s natural hydration can’t keep up. “We created the Super Facial Serum with our Retinol 8 technology but also vitamin B3 to help build moisture in the skin.”

For retinol first timers, L’Oreal Paris Revitalift Laser Pure Retinol Night Serum is a good jumping off point. Based on 22 years of research, it contains 0.2 per cent retinol, which is normally a starting dose for many prescription brands, alongside hyaluronic acid to soften the potential for dryness and irritation.

The definition of futuristic, LED masking has moved out of the practiced hands of a dermatologist and into our bathrooms. There’s a sound scientific argument for why light therapy works: our skin is photosensitive so different light waves trigger a reaction. Red and near-infrared lights, in particular, are causing a stir in the beauty industry as they have been proven to encourage skin’s collagen-producing efforts.

“Red and near-infrared lights improve blood flow and tissue oxygenation in order to increase skin firmness and hydration,” says Laura Ferguson, co-founder of the best-selling The Light Salon Boost Advanced LED Light Therapy Face Mask. “LED also helps to re-charge the ‘energy’ battery in the skin to repair and rejuvenate damaged cells. A cell that has been charged by light is able to perform 150 to 200 per cent more efficiently.”

Likewise, Laura Bonné, founder of Copenhagen’s Amazing Space, is switched on to the power of LED and includes the technology in her spa treatments. “LED treats the deeper cell layers of connective tissue with light energy,” she explains. “The light energy is transformed into ATP (adenosine triphosphate), which is the energy these cells need to create collagen fibres.”

Related: Benefits of LED Masking

Peptides are like noble foot soldiers that get the job done without the fanfare that surrounds retinol. But make no mistake they pack a powerful punch. Technically speaking, peptides are amino acids and the building blocks of proteins such as collagen. Applied topically, they act as messengers to the skin, triggering cells to perform certain functions, including producing fresh collagen reserves.

"If I had to choose one anti-ageing ingredient, I'd pick peptides over any top ingredient that's trending right now like vitamin C or retinol," says A-list facialist Kate Somerville. "Peptides help with the stimulation of collagen and elasticity. Start early with this ingredient, like in your mid-20s, as it hits all levels of your skin.”

Lauded for its skin-brightening powers, vitamin C is also an effective ally for protecting the collagen you have and helping to keep levels topped up. “Vitamin C offers powerful antioxidant protection,” says Fredriksson, which means it neutralises rogue free radicals before they can destroy collagen in the skin. Vitamin C is also essential for two enzymes in the body required for collagen production: prolyl hydroxylase (to stabilise the collagen molecule) and lysyl hydroxylase (to give structural strength cross-linking). Precisely why you’ll want to apply our edit of the best vitamin C serums and moisturisers daily.

Related: Everything you need to know about Vitamin C and its benefits