Is Collagen Protein Good, Bad, A Miracle or A Hoax?
Unless you grocery shop with a blindfold on you have no doubt seen something on the shelves of your local store called “Collagen Peptides”, “Collagen Protein”, or just “Collagen”.
The collagen supplement industry is on FIRE with annual sales of over 2 BILLION dollars in the United States alone.
Companies are pouncing on the demand for product with an ever-growing list of offerings from “Collagen Water” to “Collagen Protein Bars”.
The packages are usually pretty slick, well designed, and made to appeal to people trying to improve their health and/or their fitness.
Typically the benefits of these supplements are marketed as “supports hair, skin and nail health”. Along with “improves joint pain and connective tissue health”. And last but not least “builds muscle, helps burn fat and improves gut health”.
Well, who the heck doesn’t want all of those things?!
But before we jump in our cars and hit the ATM to clear the shelves of all of the collagen peptides that we can fit in our pantry, let’s pump the brakes and look at the facts.
We need to start by defining what collagen is in our bodies.
They’re proteins that act as the building block of components like connective tissue, tendons , skin, teeth, and bones. Collagen is actually the most abundant protein in our bodies.
There are about 30 types of collagen. They can be broken down into categories based on their amino acid content and where we find them in our bodies. The primary amino acids found in collagen are glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline.
Breaking down those ~30 types of collagen even further.. there are 3 main types are types in our bodies:
Type 1 - Ligaments, bones, skin, tendons (most common)
Type 2 – Found in joints for protection against damage and wear and tear
Type 3 – Supports organs, bone marrow, and is important to our built-in cleansing/detox system called the lymphatic system
The protein that collagen supplements are made of are made mostly from the connective tissues and the skin of cows, chicken by-product, fish, intestines, chicken bones, and byproducts of processing egg shells. Sounds yummy already!
The working theory being presented to us by the supplement companies is that by taking extra collagen in supplement form we can bolster our natural collagen supply, heal and repair things like loose skin, wrinkles, poor hair quality, joint pain, and even build muscle and burn fat.
Why the heck would we even need to do that you ask? The fact is that after age 30 we lose about 1% of the collagen in our joints and connective tissue per year.
So naturally we think the best solution is to simply replace it by taking a collagen supplement or collagen protein. Sounds simple enough, rigt? I’m sure there is research out there to back up these claims right? Not so fast.
There have been studies on the subject that show favorable results when it comes to collagen supplements, but unfortunately, many of the studies have some big flaws that can’t be overlooked.
A study at Penn State looked at 147 athletes with joint pain.
Group 1 got collagen protein, group 2 got a placebo. After six months, Group 1 reported slightly less joint pain despite no changes in physical joint structure. The study was funded by Gelita Health (makes collagen protein).
In the study, there was no control group taking something like Ibuprofen that has been studied for comparison to the group taking the collagen supplement. This is the strongest study to date. Pretty weak evidence for such great claims and huge sales.
Update 7/2024 - There is still a lack of compelling research on the efficacy of collagen protein supplementation as an effective treatment for joint tissue (tendon/ligament) remodeling, joint health, and muscle protein synthesis. Larger research studies, randomized control groups, and a comparison of collagen protein supplementation to other forms of protein are still needed in this field.
Back to collagen itself… let’s look at how collagen protein is digested.
When eaten/taken, collagen supplements are absorbed like everything else that we eat and broken down into amino acids which are then used for ALL of the processes in our bodies that food are used for. Those processes include: creating new tissue, energy production, creating hormones etc…
My point is that our body doesn’t know that those amino acids came from collagen protein (with possibly one exception that we will discuss later). Eating collagen does not guarantee that your body will generate more collagen in your body. It’s just food. Even if those proteins weren’t broken down during digestion, there is no evidence to support that your body will create more collagen in your body with supplements made from collagen.
Our collagen levels are mostly a result of our age, activity, and our genetics. We do create collagen in our bodies, but the synthesis of it is not triggered by supplemental collagen intake.
I mentioned earlier that there might be one exception to what we’ve been talking about.
Enter Undenatured Type II collagen (UC-II) UC-II collagen does have some research to back up possible positive effects on joint health. It doesn’t “build” new collagen, but it may block an immune response that breaks down the proteins in our joints. Essentially, it may slow arthritis. Evidence is still sparse, but there is some promising research. Unfortunately, UC-II is expensive and rarely included in collagen supplements you find at the grocery store or online. If you’re specifically looking at collagen for its “joint healing” properties, look for UC-II collagen.
But what about my beauty?
Won’t eating collagen make my skin and hair look like new, fill in my wrinkles, and make my droopy skin bounce back?
Probably not. Remember, collagen is just a protein that when eaten is broken down into amino acids that our bodies will use for whatever it wants, not necessarily for building more collagen. Collagen groupies often refer to a couple of key studies on collagen as “proof” of their effectiveness for skin and hair benefits but unfortunately neither of the studies were “blind studies”, and both were funded by the collagen supplement companies. The scientists even worked for the supplement companies. Not good. There are however countless studies showing that collagen supplementation does NOT provide statistically significant benefit when it comes to improvements in skin and hair health and improvement, over increasing protein in the the diet through non-supplemental means. Sorry guys, it just doesn’t work that way. The only thing getting filled in, are the wallets of the people pedaling plastic containers of powders and pills.
Let’s move on to possibly the worst part about collagen supplements.
Collagen is being sold as a protein supplement. If you remember from this email that we wrote about what to look for in a protein supplement, you’d already know that collagen is NOT a viable source of muscle-building protein. Why you ask? Remember, in order to be a muscle-building protein, it must contain all 9 of the essential amino acids (the amino acids that your body doesn’t produce on its own) and it must contain all 3 of the branch chain amino acids and 2.5-3g of leucine. Leucine is that BCAA that tells your body “Hey, let’s build and repair some muscle!”. Guess what? Collagen protein/peptides fail this test. It’s not that the protein in collagen doesn’t “count” toward your daily protein, it’s just that it’s a terrible way to get your protein if your goal is to change your body composition. It would be like watching the movie Titanic on basic cable. Sure you’d see the movie, but it would take 6 hours with all the commercials. If you want a supplement that’ll help you look more toned or jacked, look to animal-based proteins like whey, or veggie-based powders made from pea, soy, and rice. If you want to know how much protein you should be eating per day, you can find out by grabbing our free guide HERE.
So why is collagen protein everywhere?
Supplement makers are savages who know that people are always looking for the “next thing” that is going to give them the results they want. They prey on our lack of knowledge and they lean on tricky marketing and packaging to make us think that we are buying something more than it is. Since collagen supplements are made from animal byproducts they’re dirt cheap to make and it is flying off the shelves faster than ever. We’re talking 500-1000% markups. The manufacturers and supplement companies will continue to ride the gravy train until the well runs dry. Then they will move on to the next big thing. It makes me mad actually. It’s estimated that as of 2024 customers will spend well over 6 Billion dollars on collagen supplements annually. That is a sin.
So there you have it.
Collagen as a supplement is largely a waste of money (except possibly UC-II). There are no well-controlled unbiased studies showing its benefits for skin, hair, and nail health. Don’t even get me started on how it stinks as a protein supplement. We eat and supplement with protein for its muscle building/repairing properties and collagen’s low Amino Acid content gives it a huge F in this regard. If you take our advice you’ll save your money and focus on the basics of eating mostly whole foods, lots of fruit and veggies, and get plenty of protein from animal sources that DO give your body what it needs to build itself. Stop lining the pockets of the supplement makers that are trying to prey on you. You’re smarter than that, and you have the tools to do what you need to do. If you have any questions, comments or need help with your nutrition, send us an email today.