Should you be buying collagen products? Here's the answer!
Hey all, and welcome back to another week of Friday Q&A's! This week I am diving into collagen, carbs & weight gain and taking Hemp Seed Oil before surgery. So, without further a due this weeks top 3 questions are:
- Monique was curious “What are your thoughts on collagen protein for ageing skin?”
- Barry wanted to know “Do carbs cause weight gain?”
- Leone was wondering “Can I take hemp seed oil before surgery?”
1. “What are your thoughts on collagen protein for ageing skin?”
Collagen is an abundant protein in your body and serves as one of the major building blocks in skin, bones, tendons, ligaments, muscles, and blood vessels. As we age, we make less collagen, and this is one of the reasons that our skin ages.
Collagen protein is typically high amino acids (building blocks of protein) such as glycine, proline, hydroxyproline, and arginine.
Glycine, proline, and lysine are necessary for collagen production.
Studies on oral collagen supplements have shown to increase skin elasticity, hydration, and dermal collagen density (1).
However, this begs the question: is collagen protein better than foods containing protein, whey protein or hemp seed protein for skin health? There is currently limited evidence to suggest this!
So, it may be best to save your money when it comes to collagen proteins…
2. "Do carbs cause weight gain?”
While overconsumption of carbohydrates can cause weight gain, the main reason for weight gain is energy imbalance.
Energy imbalance can occur when we eat more energy from foods than use energy through movement (eg. exercise). What’s important to remember is that carbohydrates contain large amounts of energy (aka calories) and overconsumption can lead to weight gain (2).
When consuming carbohydrates aim to eat mostly complex carbohydrates (brown/wild rice, hemp seeds, wholegrain pasta, wholegrain breads etc) over refined carbohydrates (eg. white rice, white pasta, white bread etc) for sustained energy release that may help to curb feelings of hunger!
3. “Can I take hemp seed oil before surgery?”
Fish oil products have blood thinning properties and are believed to cause complications in surgery due to excessive bleeding (3).
Hemp seed oil has a similar mechanism to fish oil in that it provides essential fatty acids in the body that have an anti-inflammatory effect. It’s best to discuss further with your health professional or surgeon regarding this question.
If you have any questions, feel free to email our head nutritionist Ben at ben@13seeds.com.au
Disclaimer:
This article does not constitute medical advice and does not take into consideration your personal circumstances. Please see your medical professional before implementing the above.
