When I tell people my age, they simply don’t believe me. Why? Because I look at least 10 years younger than my biological age. That’s thanks to several decades of following a healthy diet, using Young Living’s essential oils and oil-infused products, and reaching for natural therapies when needed, rather than pharmaceuticals.

Even so, the mirror still shows me that the years are being clocked up. I have some wrinkles. I have some dryness. And my skin is a little less taught than it was 20 years ago.

So you can imagine how excited I am by this new product from Young Living. It works like magic to add a “pillow top” to your skin, improving its plumpness, and reducing the visible signs of aging within 30 to 90 days. Let’s check it out!

The #1 Skincare Product which works from the inside out

We’re so used to nourishing our skin with moisturisers, masques and natural oils (including essential oils). But nurturing our skin from the “outside in” is only half the equation. One of the most important aspects of skin care is the nourishment we provide from the inside out.

What causes our skin to age?

Ever wondered why you develop dull, dry, wrinkly or sagging skin? It’s all to do with the loss of collagen in your skin.

The thin outer layer of your skin is called the epidermis, and it protects you from UV radiation, harmful chemicals and infections. Underneath that layer is the dermis. It’s much thicker, and this is where you will find your skin’s collagen fibers. These fibers are joined together by elastin (which maintains your skin’s elasticity), and hyaluronic acid (which traps moisture in your skin, filling the space between the collagen and elastin).

One of the main factors in skin aging is the loss of collagen from the dermis. In fact, this takes place long before it becomes visible in the epidermis, and it is what causes your skin to wrinkle and sag.

Unfortunately, I have some rather bad news. You are losing collagen every single day after the age of 20. And this is what produces the visible signs of aging. Ouch!!! By the time you are 40, 30% of your body’s collagen has been lost (oh no!!!), and by age 50, half of your body’s collagen is gone.

This even has an impact on your hair. Your hair is made up of 65 to 95% protein. As collagen production slows down, your body starts to redirect its remaining collagen to more vital parts of your body such as your organs. This leaves your hair to fend for itself, and it helps explain why hair fibres weaken over time, making them more brittle (ie. easier to break) and less shiny.

How can we turn back the clock?

OK, so we all know that essential oils are amazing for this, and we can incorporate a myriad of essential oils into our skincare regimes with great benefit. This includes oils like Frankincense, Myrrh, Geranium, Patchouli and Sandalwood.

But we can also support our skin and impede this natural aging process with the use of supplemental collagen. This is the perfect nutrient for the skin, and is recommended if you are:

• Aged 25 and above
• Love the sun and tanning
• Spend a lot of time on electronic devices, exposing your skin to blue light radiation
• A night bird, and love staying up late
• An athlete or a fitness fan
• A smoker, or eat processed foods

This isn’t a “take it one time and she’ll be right, mate” approach. Once we’ve hit the magical age of 25, it’s important to intake collagen regularly and continuously.

But if (like me) this is the first you’ve heard of this, it’s never too late to start…and you will see wonderful benefits to your skin by taking collagen.

“BLOOM by Young Living” Collagen Complete

This is a completely unique collagen drink that will support your skin from the inside out, helping to revitalise and rejuvenate your skin. By nourishing your body’s collagen levels, your skin will begin to glow!

It has a delicious wolfberry-citrus flavour, and can be drunk on its own, or mixed with NingXia Red.

Each 50ml serve contains 10,000 mg of Peptan® hydrolyzed liquid marine collagen from the world’s leading collagen manufacturer in France, which has undergone a sustainable and eco-friendly manufacturing process. In fact, their sustainability practices are certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, the Marine Conservation Alliance, and Friends of the Sea.

The collagen is sourced via premium aquaculture from tilapia, pangasius, cod and tuna fish. Unlike other types of farmed fish, these haven’t been exposed to antibiotics and other chemicals. In fact, using farmed fish is the best way to ensure the end product is free of all heavy metals and toxins, and it delivers a stable amount of collagen.

The collagen is then extracted from the skin and scales of the fish (the parts of the fish that are usually thrown away). The oil is then removed using a process of “hydrolyzation”, so that the end product has NO fishy taste to it. But hydrolyzation also breaks down the collagen into peptides. These are smaller than collagen, and therefore better absorbed into the bloodstream after digestion.

Different types of Collagen

Collagen makes up 25 to 35% of your body’s protein content, making it the most abundant structural protein in your body. It’s the glue that holds everything together in your body.

90% of the collagen in your body is Type 1…and that’s exactly what you want. Type 1 is the best collagen for your skin, nails, and hair….and it helps with the collagen needs of your entire body.

Type 2 collagen works specifically to cushion your joints, and provides protection to your long bones and thigh bones (especially where they insert into the joint sockets). Type 3 is the second most abundant collagen in your body. It’s found in bones, teeth, skin, connective tissue and tendons.

When it comes to taking collagen, the common sources are Beef (Type 1 and Type 3), Chicken (Type 2, eg. found in bone broth) and Marine collagen (Type 1).

Where beef collagen will tend to have a more direct effect on joint pain, gut health, athletic recovery and physical strength, marine collagen is more bioavailable and absorbable due to its smaller peptide size, and it will have a more direct impact on the appearance of wrinkles, signs of aging, and skin health.

And marine collagen is rich in the amino acid hydroxyproline, which is an essential component of skin, blood vessel walls and other connective tissues – so it definitely has an impact on your entire body.

In fact, it’s even been scientifically proven to help increase the moisture levels in your skin, and to help protect your skin against the harmful effects of UV exposure and photoaging.

What are the benefits of Peptan® liquid marine collagen?

Young Living’s Peptan® marine collagen has the advantage of being in a liquid form, which is the Gold Standard for nutrients (as it makes it much easier for your body to assimilate, even if your digestive system is compromised). And being a peptide, it has an extremely small molecule size (2 Kilodaltons/KDa in size), which also contributes to its ease of absorption and assimilation by your body. Compare this with 50 KDa for gelatin, and 300 KDa for regular collagen powder.

And it contains 10g of protein per serve! So if you could do with a bit of extra protein in your diet (eg. to support your physical strength and mental health), here’s a great way to get it….and because it’s in a liquid form, your body will absorb it a whole lot better than other protein sources. Just as a comparison, here is the protein content of other protein sources:

• Chicken breast (31g of protein)
• Steak (25g of protein)
• 100g of nuts (20g of protein)
• Egg (13g protein)
• 100g of tofu (8g of protein)

So with two usual meals that contain any animal or plant protein (typically 20-30g of protein per meal) and one bottle of BLOOM by Young Living Collagen Complete, you would have achieved the Daily Recommended Intake of protein for an adult.

The other ingredients in Bloom Collagen Complete

Next, we come to all the other amazing ingredients which make this drink absolutely unique in the market place. In Bloom Collagen Complete, the marine collagen is combined with 5 powerful “anti-aging” antioxidants:

• Wolfberry extract
• CoQ10 (a powerful antioxidant, and an energy battery for your cells)
• Vitamin E
• Jasmine Green Tea extract
• Red beetroot

Antioxidants quench free radicals and prevent oxidative damage to your skin cells.

It also contains:

Skin supporting Vitamins and Minerals, including Vitamin E, B2, B6, Biotin (B7), Zinc (gluconate) and Copper (glutonate)
Grapefruit, Lemon and Lime essential oils (these are rich in bioactive antioxidants like d-limonene, which not only are vital in protecting the collagen of your skin, but also support your entire body and mind)
Apple juice
Natural sweeteners (erythritol and stevia) which contain zero calories

In fact, Young Living is the first company to infuse essential oils into a collagen drink.

And of course it meets Young Living’s stringent Seed to Seal standards, being completely CLEAN and·      

• Free from preservatives
• No added sugar
• No artificial colourants
• No artificial flavours
• Produced in glass bottles, so there is ZERO oxidation

An amazing discovery

It also includes an exclusive and proprietary synergistic complex. Using the cutting edge technology of the Synergene platform, Young Living discovered that the citrus ingredients (ie. the essential oils) and Green Tea extract on their own don’t possess significant collagen boosting activity, but when combined with each other, they significantly boost collagen secretion, and accelerate the collagen formation of skin fibroblasts! See the green bar in the chart below.

Why Bloom Collagen Complete?

Quite frankly, it’s the best liquid collagen drink on the market, and one of the best tasting ones as well.

Young Living have conducted a blind taste test among 20 people to justify their preferences between 5 different brands of 10,000 mg collagen drinks. Bloom Collagen Complete was rated as one of the top two for its taste and texture, depending on each person’s preference between citrus flavour (Collagen Complete) and peach flavour (Brand M).

As with all products that Young Living creates, this one has cutting edge ingredients which synergise for better effects on the body. Here’s it’s been compared with 3 popular commercial collagen drinks on the market:

What benefits will I see, and how long will it take?

It only takes 21 days to experience an effective skin improvement by taking 10,000 mg per day = one Bloom Collagen Complete bottle per day. If you do this for 90 days:

• In 3 – 4 weeks you will feel your skin hydrating and brightening
• In 4 – 8 weeks, your skin’s collagen content and moisture will have risen, so your skin will look more plump and elastic
• It also benefits your bones, joints, eyes, hair, teeth and all parts of your body that use collagen type 1 as their magic glue

Each region has its own claims it can make about this product, based on local regulatory requirements. In Australia/New Zealand, we can make the following claims about Young Living’s Bloom Collagen Complete. It:

• Helps to revitalise skin suppleness
• Helps to rejuvenate skin complexion
• Helps to restore the natural radiance of skin
• Helps to improve skin tone and smoothness
• Helps to strengthen skin elasticity and firmness
• Helps support hair, nails and connective tissue health
• Helps with tissue building and repair

And if you love the Science, here it is…

The Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology have published a research paper where they showed clinical evidence that the ingestion of 10,000 mg of marine collagen for 4 weeks can significantly improve skin moisture, boost collagen synthesis and prevent collagen degradation. It gives you a glowing, plump skin – like adding a soft, fluffy “pillow-top” to your skin.

According to other clinical trials, a daily intake of 5,000 to 10,000 mg of collagen peptide per day will help to maintain your skin’s hydration, firmness, elasticity, and of course its youth and beauty, with the visible improvement typically being noticeable after one to three months of consumption. Several communities have demonstrated the benefits of collagen peptides for preserving joint health as well. (Source: www.rousselot.com)

How to use Bloom Collagen Complete

Shake the bottle well before use, then drink one bottle a day. You’ll LOVE its taste!

If you are 30 years of age or older, start with a 90 day program where you take 1 bottle a day for those 90 days, then after that you can reduce to a maintenance amount of one bottle every second day on an ongoing basis.

If you are under 30 years of age, take one bottle every second day in order to maintain your collagen levels.

Ideally take it 1 to 2 hours away from food….but it’s more important to take it (even with food) than to miss a day.

Combining Bloom Collagen Complete with NingXia Red will give even better results in terms of skin improvement. Start your day with a Beauty Red Shot (60 ml of Ningxia Red). End your day with the Beauty Duo (60 ml of Ningxia Red + 1 bottle of Bloom Collagen Complete).

There is no need to take more than 1 bottle of Bloom Collagen Complete per day, as 10,000 mg (a single serve) is sufficient to revitalise your body, rejuvenate your skin and restore its natural radiance.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration. Young Living products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Lou C. writes: I used the Bloom Collagen for 3 months and the effects were amazing!! Definite reduction in jowls! Now to maintain this…. I will continue to use Bloom every 2nd day with the aim of ageing gracefully!