The Surprising Skincare Ingredient That ‘Texts’ Your Skin To Make More Collagen

What if your skincare could communicate with your skin—sending clear instructions to rebuild, strengthen, and restore what time has taken away? According to facial plastic surgeon Dr. Amir Karam, that’s exactly what certain advanced skincare ingredients are designed to do. The key players: peptides.

Peptides are short chains of amino acids that naturally exist in the skin and function as messengers. Dr. Karam explains that they work much like text messages, delivering simple but powerful instructions to your skin cells: Make more collagen. Make more elastin.

Collagen is the protein responsible for keeping skin firm, plump, and resilient. Unfortunately, collagen production begins to slow as early as your 30s—and the decline accelerates with age. As levels drop, skin becomes thinner, fine lines and wrinkles appear, and the face gradually loses its structural support.

This is where peptides come in. Rather than exfoliating or forcing rapid turnover, peptides operate on a more intelligent level. They signal skin cells to behave like younger cells again—encouraging them to rebuild the skin’s foundational proteins from within.

Not all peptides are the same. Dr. Karam highlights a specific category known as signal peptides, which are designed to stimulate collagen and elastin production directly. These peptides essentially tell fibroblast cells—the skin’s builders—to get back to work.

Some of the most researched and effective signal peptides include Matrixyl, palmitoyl peptides, and acetyl tetrapeptides. These advanced compounds are studied for their ability to support skin firmness, elasticity, and long-term structural integrity.

Dr. Karam points out that these peptides are featured in Illuminate, the third step of the KaramMD Trifecta, where they’re used intentionally as part of a larger skin-rejuvenation strategy rather than as a standalone trend ingredient.

Peptides aren’t a quick fix—and that’s actually a good thing. Unlike harsh actives that can irritate the skin barrier, peptides work gradually and cumulatively. When chosen carefully and used consistently, they help preserve collagen over time rather than simply creating a temporary plumping effect.

This long-term approach is especially important as skin ages. By continuously reminding skin cells to produce collagen and elastin, peptides help slow structural decline instead of just masking it.