Collagen, the body’s most prevalent protein, is the primary element of connective tissues, which comprise many body components such as muscles, tendons, ligaments and skin. It has various tasks, like giving skin support and building bones while also offering several benefits for health. Collagen supplements have become well known in modern times. The majority of them are hydrolysed, meaning it’s easier to absorb the collagen.
In addition to supplements, you may improve collagen levels by consuming foods too.
Therefore, in this post, we’ll discuss some of its benefits of us, such as:
- Collagen types
- Cardiovascular health
- Muscle
- Skin
- Bones
- Joints
- Alternative advantages
- Where to find collagen without supplements
- Adverse effects
As always, please consult your doctor before intaking any new supplements.
Collagen types
Collagen comes in 28 different varieties.
However, the majority of collagen in the body predominantly consists of three types.
Due to a list of 28 types of collagen being lengthy, we’ll focus on the three most prevalent types and where they’re located in the body.
The most common kind of collagen, type one, is found in the ligaments, bones, skin, tendons, and teeth; type two is found in the eyes and forms cartilage and type three, also referred to as baby collagen because of its role in the development of the embryo and early life, is found in blood vessels, muscle and skin.
Cardiovascular health
Collagen supplements, according to scientists, may have the potential to lower cardiovascular disease likelihood. This is because the protein supports arteries, which are the channels that transport blood from the heart to all other bodily regions.
Consequently, this means that a collagen deficiency can cause arteries to become unsupported, resulting in weakness leading to artheriosclerosis (artery narrowing), a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
In 2017, Tomosugi et al. gave 31 people without any health problems 16g worth of collagen per day over 26 weeks.
In the study, collagen was found to reduce the stiffness of arteries in those who took it in the trial.
Also, the researchers found that the participants improved their good cholesterol levels, which is important as good cholesterol help pick up the bad cholesterol which clogs arteries and bring them back to the liver to be removed from the body.
Nonetheless, further research on the function of collagen supplements in heart health is warranted.
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Muscle
Collagen accounts for up to one-tenth of muscle mass which is required for strength and optimal performance.
Collagen supplements may assist patients with sarcopenia (the loss of muscle from getting older), according to research.
In a 2015 study by Zdzieblik et al., 27 found that feeble men who received 15 grams of collagen every day for four months while engaging in a strength program gained more muscle growth than those who engaged in the strength program but didn’t receive collagen.
Further, similar to creatine, collagen may enhance muscle growth further following strength training too.
But again, further studies are needed for us to truly understand the effects of the supplement on muscle gain.
Skin
Like muscle, collagen is an important element for the skin.
It helps to strengthen it while improving its elasticity.
Its especially important as someone ages as their body will start to generate less and less collagen with time, causing dry skin and wrinkles.
Thankfully, collagen supplements have been found to assist these negative consequences that come with age.
In one study by Proksch et al. (2014), women who took a supplement containing up to five grams of collagen for two months had a substantial increase in elasticity than women who didn’t.
Alternatively, a study by Sibilla and Borumand (2015) showed that people who consumed a drink containing collagen for four months had fewer wrinkles than those who didn’t.
Collagens’ skin benefits have been ascribed to their capacity to promote your natural collagen production.
Collagen may also stimulate the building up of alternative proteins that help the skin, such as fibrillin and elastin.
There are numerous claims that collagen can reduce acne too. However, these are unsubstantiated by scientific data.
Bones
Collagen primarily makes up bones, which supports them and contributes to their strength.
Like bodily collagen, which declines with age, bone density does too, leading to conditions such as osteoporosis and subsequently a higher likelihood to break your bones.
Supplementing with collagen is thought to help combat this decline of bone density as it may help disrupt the breakdown of bones from osteoporosis.
In a 2015 study by Elam et al., it was found that women who had a five-gram calcium supplement lowered their levels of protein which are responsible for the breakdown of bone, when compared with women who took no supplement.
Alternatively, a study by König et al. (2018) found comparable results in 66 women who had five grams of collagen each day for a year.
Compared to women who didn’t have collagen, the women who took it exhibited an increase in bone mass of up to 7%.
These findings are encouraging, but additional human research is required before the significance of collagen intake for bone may be validated.
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Joints
Collagen aids in the preservation of cartilage, the rubbery tissue that facilitates movement within joints.
With ageing, the bodily collagen quantity diminishes, increasing the chance of getting joint conditions like osteoarthritis.
Some research suggests that collagen may improve the negative consequences of osteoarthritis and lessen overall joint discomfort.
Adults in another trial had two grams of collagen every day for 10 weeks and it was found that the participants had a substantial reduction in joint discomfort and were able to participate in more physical activity (Schauss et al., 2012).
Supplemental collagen, according to researchers, may build up in cartilage and drive your tissues to produce more of the protein and consequently improve inflammation, joint support, and lessen joint discomfort.
Alternative advantages
Alternative advantages of collagen supplements may include the following but keep in mind that these haven’t been thoroughly researched as of yet:
- It may strengthen your nails and help encourage the growth of your hair and nails.
- Despite the lack of researched evidence, there are health practitioners who advocate using collagen to address the permeability of the intestines, often known as leaky gut syndrome.
- Also, there are people who think that collagen can aid weight reduction through a faster metabolic rate, but there is currently no literature showing this
Although these prospective benefits appear to be encouraging, again, further research is required before any official conclusions can be drawn.
Where to find collagen without supplements
Collagen is present in animal connective tissues and, as a result, can be found in chicken, pig, beef, and fish.
The protein is also found in foods containing gelatin, like bone broth.
However, further studies are needed for us to truly understand if these sources of collagen are as helpful as from supplement sources.
Enzymes in the digestive system break down food sourced collagen, separating it into individual amino acids and peptides.
Supplemental collagen, on the other hand, has already been broken down, which is why it’s considered to be taken up better than food sourced collagen.
Adverse effects
Currently, there aren’t a lot of adverse effects that may happen from supplementing collagen except for people who are allergic to foods like fish and eggs.
People with these food allergies should keep away from these supplements to reduce the risk of adverse effects.
Also, these supplements are thought to be not very tasty and may cause problems like heartburn (Moskowitz, 2000).
Although the safety of these supplements is thought to be ok for most individuals, but as with any new supplement, consult your doctor first before consuming.
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Conclusion
Collagen supplementation has a lot of advantages and only several recognized concerns.
For instance, vitamins can improve skin by decreasing wrinkles and increasing hydration.
Also, they may aid in the expansion of muscle, the prevention of bone resorption, and the relief of joint discomfort.
Many other advantages of collagen have been reported, however not adequately researched at the moment.
Although the protein is found in a variety of meals, it’s uncertain if food sourced collagen provides the same advantages as supplementation.
Supplementation is typically ok, simple to do, and well worth undertaking to see if you experience any of their proposed advantages.
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References
Tomosugi, N., Yamamoto, S., Takeuchi, M., Yonekura, H., Ishigaki, Y., Numata, N., Katsuda, S., & Sakai, Y. (2017). Effect of Collagen Tripeptide on Atherosclerosis in Healthy Humans. Journal of Atherosclerosis and Thrombosis, 24(5), 530–538. https://doi.org/10.5551/jat.36293
Zdzieblik, D., Oesser, S., Baumstark, M. W., Gollhofer, A., & König, D. (2015). Collagen peptide supplementation in combination with resistance training improves body composition and increases muscle strength in elderly sarcopenic men: a randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Nutrition, 114(8), 1237–1245. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0007114515002810
Proksch, E., Schunck, M., Zague, V., Segger, D., Degwert, J., & Oesser, S. (2014). Oral Intake of Specific Bioactive Collagen Peptides Reduces Skin Wrinkles and Increases Dermal Matrix Synthesis. Skin Pharmacology and Physiology, 27(3), 113–119. https://doi.org/10.1159/000355523
Proksch, E., Segger, D., Degwert, J., Schunck, M., Zague, V., & Oesser, S. (2014). Oral Supplementation of Specific Collagen Peptides Has Beneficial Effects on Human Skin Physiology: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study. Skin Pharmacology and Physiology, 27(1), 47–55. https://doi.org/10.1159/000351376
Sibilla, S., & Borumand, M. (2015). Effects of a nutritional supplement containing collagen peptides on skin elasticity, hydration and wrinkles. Journal of Medical Nutrition and Nutraceuticals, 4, 47.
Elam, M. L., Johnson, S. A., Hooshmand, S., Feresin, R. G., Payton, M. E., Gu, J., & Arjmandi, B. H. (2015). A Calcium-Collagen Chelate Dietary Supplement Attenuates Bone Loss in Postmenopausal Women with Osteopenia: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Medicinal Food, 18(3), 324–331. https://doi.org/10.1089/jmf.2014.0100
König, D., Oesser, S., Scharla, S., Zdzieblik, D., & Gollhofer, A. (2018). Specific Collagen Peptides Improve Bone Mineral Density and Bone Markers in Postmenopausal Women—A Randomized Controlled Study. Nutrients, 10(1), 97. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10010097
Schauss, A. G., Stenehjem, J., Park, J., Endres, J. R., & Clewell, A. (2012). Effect of the Novel Low Molecular Weight Hydrolyzed Chicken Sternal Cartilage Extract, BioCell Collagen, on Improving Osteoarthritis-Related Symptoms: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 60(16), 4096–4101. https://doi.org/10.1021/jf205295u
Moskowitz, R. W. (2000). Role of collagen hydrolysate in bone and joint disease. Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, 30(2), 87–99. https://doi.org/10.1053/sarh.2000.9622