No doubt you have heard that healthy skin and nails comes from the inside. Although proper grooming in terms of shampoos, conditioners, skin nourishing cremes, sun protection and proper manicuring go a long way, there are vital nutrients that are required internally to maintain healthy hair skin and nails. These include vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Specifically, we’re looking at vitamin C, zinc, copper, msm (methylsulfonylmethane), L-proline, L-lysine and silica. If you want strong nails, shinny hair and healthy skin, supplementation may be needed depending on your genetic makeup and life style. The benefits of Hair Skin and Nails Formula may be of interest to you. We’ll take a look at each ingredient separately to see what each does.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C has a number of functions however, one that is important for connective tissue and skin is that is assists in the production of a protein known as collagen. Collagen is a major component of connective tissue which acts as the glue stuff that holds our entire bodies together. If you don’t have enough collagen around your skin will sag and have wrinkles. Collagen helps to maintain that youthful appearance that we all desire as we age. Not only is vitamin C important for the production of collagen it is also a powerful antioxidant not to just skin but the entire body.
Vitamin C is important for the production of collagen throughout each step. Collagen is put together in stages as it is a large branched protein. In the beginning, the 3-D general structure is established with two amino acids known as lysine and proline as its major components. This molecule is known as procollagen. Vitamin C plays a major role in this assembly. Vitamin C is still required to turn procollagen into collagen. In the presence of vitamin C proline residues are hydroxylated to form hydroxyproline. This stabilizes the triple helix of the collagen structure. Then, lysine is hydroxylated to from hydroxylysine which is used to cross-link across triple helices. The hydroxylations are carried out by prolyl-4-hydroxylase and lysylhydroxylase respectively. Recent studies indicate that one molecule of vitamin C is destroyed for each hydrogen (H) that is replaced by hydroxyls (OH). So, maintaining healthy skin and connective tissues requires a lot of vitamin C. The benefits of vitamin C include health skin, hair and nails, as well as maintaining healthy metabolic pathways.
Zinc
Zinc is a mineral that is important for building, repairing and protecting all cells in the body. However, it plays an important role in skin cell renewal as well as maintaining water in your cells. Zinc deficiency can lead to hair loss and soft nails. Not to mention that zinc is a cofactor needed for over 100 different enzymatic reactions. Cofactors are required by certain enzymes to be activated. Without the cofactor the enzymes don’t work. These enzymes are involved in protein, collagen and DNA synthesis as well as vitamin A transport and skin oil function. Mild to moderate zinc deficiencies have been reported to be common in some places of the world and are linked to depression and skin problems.
Copper
Copper is another cofactor used by a number of enzymes and important in the formation of collagen along with vitamin C, zinc, manganese and silica. These components are also important for the production of keratin, another protein found in skin hair and nails. Keratin is a hard, water resistant protein that is a major component of hair, skin and nails. Copper is also important for the formation of elastin which is a protein that gives skin its resiliency allowing skin to stretch and return to normal shape.
MSM (methylsulphonylmethane)
Although MSM is found in many foods we eat, processing of foods destroys the molecule. For that reason MSM may need to be supplemented. MSM is now known to be very important in hair growth. It can actually increase the length of time you remain in hair growth phase. There are actually 3 phases to hair growth known as growth phase, resting phase and shedding phase. All of your hairs are in different aspects of these phases all the time. If you increase resting phase, your hair won’t grow. If you increase the length of time you are in the shedding phase, more hair falls out. However, if you increase the length of your growth phase your hair will grow for longer periods of time. Imagine, that your hair grows ½ inch per month and continues to grow for two years before it goes into the resting phase followed by the shedding phase. Your hair should grow about 12 inches by that time before it stops growing. If your growing phase is only 1 year, then your hair would only grow 6 inches before it stopped growing and then eventually be shed. If your interested in growing long hair, you many consider reaping the benefits of a skin, hair and nails formula.
L-lysine
Lysine is an amino acid required for the production of collagen and other proteins important for maintaining skin, hair and nails. Lysine happens to be an essential amino acid which means you have to take it in your diet to get it. Your body can’t make it. If you happen to have male pattern baldness (androgenetic alopecia), lysine should be of interest to you. It has been shown that L-lysine helps to enhance the effects of Propecia and Rogaine. A lysine deficiency may result in slow hair growth concomitant with excessive hair loss.
L-proline
Proline is a major component of collagen and important for connective tissues as well as skin, hair and nails. The presence of proline increases collagen synthesis along with vitamin C. It helps to maintain skin texture and resiliency thereby preventing sagging and wrinkles. Its important for maintaining collagen production during the aging process. It is also important for cartilage, joints, tendons and cardiac muscle. The main benefits of proline are increased collagen production.
Horsetail Plant Extract(silica)
The benefits of silicon include strengthening skin, hair, nails, muscles and bone. Although elasticity from collagen and elastin fibers is important for healthy skin, hair and nails, silicon is what adds spring to these tissues. Silicon levels decrease with age, so it’s a good idea to supplement as early as mid life stage to maintain healthy skin, hair and nails. Without the proper amounts of silicon, wrinkles appear and skin dries, hair becomes dull and brittle and nails become brittle. Some studies indicate that silicon is used for treating cardiovascular disease and bone loss. It is also known to enhance skin healing.
Why You Should Take Hair, Skin and Nails Formula
Is your skin, hair and/or nails dry, cracking, brittle, or flaky? Your problem may be an internal one. Healthy hair, skin and nails is not just what you were born with but good nutrition. To maintain healthy skin, hair and nails requires plenty of vitamin C, copper, zinc, silicon, proline and lysine to repair and replenish proteins such as collagen, keratin and elastin. Collagen is reported to be the most common protein in the body making up somewhere from 20-30 percent of all body proteins. If your lacking in vitamin C, silicon, copper, zinc, proline and lysine due to a fast food diet, taking prescription drugs or just not eating properly, you might want to consider taking a supplement that contains these ingredients especially if you have dull, cracked and brittle hair, skin and nails. The benefits of Hair, Skin and Nails Formula may include repair and increased production of collagen, keratin and elastin. This may provide for shinny, resilient and supple skin, hair and nails as well as strong connective tissues.
References:
http://www.jashbotanicals.com/articles/silica_and_your_body.html
http://www.recovbipeptides.com/index.php/hnsb.html
http://www.alternativemedicine.com/health/focus/focus-collagen
http://www.e-ijd.org/article.asp?issn=0019-5154;year=2010;volume=55;issue=3;spage=205;epage=210;aulast=Basavaraj
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2965901/
http://www.faqs.org/patents/app/20080248130