Can bone broth really make my skin glow?

July 07, 2021By Amy Cole

We’re a bone broth company talking about skin health. At first glance, you might be wondering why. But our skin health is actually a good indicator of our overall health; when we have skin issues like eczema, acne, or even premature aging, it’s often a sign of something going on internally. There are lots of topical ways to care for your skin, like choosing the right non-toxic products and using sunscreen, but today we’re going to talk specifically about how making changes to your diet, like adding bone broth to your day, can have a positive effect on your skin’s health. Here at FOND, we believe it’s important to feed our skin from the inside out first and foremost. We’ve coined our broth "food for your face!"

Our Skin’s Role in Health

The skin is the body's largest organ and it has many roles, including:

Keeping vital chemicals and nutrients in the body.
Functioning as a barrier to prevent pathogens and other harmful substances from penetrating your body.
Maintaining water and electrolyte balance.
Regulating body temperature.

When it comes to skin health, most of us are focused on aesthetics. We want our skin to look a certain way, so we try to take care of it. But as you can see, our skin is vital to our overall health, too, so taking care of it goes beyond appearance.

How Bone Broth Supports Skin Health

Bone broth contains gelatin, which is essentially cooked collagen (great bone broth like FOND will gel up when cooled!). Collagen is a buzzword these days, and for good reason! Collagen naturally occurs in our bodies and has various important roles, including providing structure to your skin and helping your blood clot. Collagen comes from the Greek word “kólla,” which means glue. Collagen is literally the “glue” that holds our bones, skin, muscles, tendons, and ligaments together.

According to Elizabeth Bradley, MD, Medical Director of Cleveland Clinic’s Center for Functional Medicine: “As you age, your body may no longer absorb nutrients as well or synthesize them as efficiently.To make sure your body has enough ingredients to make collagen, you may need to change what you eat or take dietary supplements.”

In other words the older you get, the less collagen your body produces. Enter bone broth! It’s a natural source of collagen, and different types of bone broth (beef, chicken, etc) will provide different types of collagen.

Bone broth also contains three important amino acids (the building blocks of protein) - proline, glycine and glutamine - and each one has key benefits:

Proline helps heal the skin and the production of collagen.
Our bodies use glycine to create proteins, which it needs for the growth and maintenance of tissue and for making important substances, such as hormones and enzymes. Glycine can also aid in the reduction of inflammation.
Glutamine helps skin cells function optimally for smooth, radiant, healthy-looking skin. Glutamine significantly increases collagen production within the skin – reversing the effects of aging, restoring skin's natural tone, and smoothing out the texture.

By adding bone broth to your diet, you are taking advantage of naturally occurring amino acids that will help keep your skin smooth, glowing and youthful looking. But it’s not always enough to just add something to your routine, it is equally important to also cut collagen-destroying behaviors such as:

Eating too much sugar and refined carbs. Sugar interferes with collagen’s ability to repair itself.
Getting too much sunshine. Ultraviolet radiation can reduce collagen production. A healthy amount of sun exposure is 10-30 minutes multiple times a week.
Smoking. Smoking reduces collagen production. It can also impair wound healing and lead to wrinkles.

Drinking bone broth daily is key to getting big results quickly, but if your budget doesn’t allow daily consumption, you can still see benefits drinking it a few times a week. Methods like journaling, drinking out of a favorite mug, or pairing your daily bone broth with other established habits may motivate you to turn your bone broth sipping into a healthy new habit.

When first starting bone broth, we recommend 2-3 times per day, every day. First thing in the morning, once in the afternoon, and lastly either while making dinner or as a nightcap between 8-9pm.
It’s important to start small and work your way up. We recommend 5oz per serving to begin. For long-term skin benefits, you will want to work up to 2-4 cups of bone broth per day. The most important thing about drinking bone broth is staying consistent. If you’re looking for results besides skin health, the amount and how often you drink broth may change.