Collagen powders and pills promise a variety of anti-aging benefits. But do these supplements really live up to the hype?
www.henryford.com
Many people take collagen supplements, hoping to capture the fountain of youth. But can these products really reverse the aging process?
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org
Celebrities and influencers claim that consuming collagen could have miraculous benefits for skin, hair, and nails. But what does the science say? ...
www.health.harvard.edu
Discover the incredible benefits of collagen for your skin, hair, and overall health. This comprehensive guide will provide you with all the information you need to know about collagen and its amazing effects.
www.webmd.com
Yeah, I looked into this a while back and bored everyone to death with it
.
The beauty side sell it on a very flimsy inference, i.e., "swallowing collagen = puts more collagen in your skin" but that's not how it works.
Collagen is a bundle of amino acids, so when you swallow some the stomach will break it down, in this case back in to those constituent amino acids — the same acids you get from a variety of other foods/drinks, not just "collagen drinks" flogged on selly telly.
Those amino acids are then available for your body to use for whatever it needs them for — spoiler: they're used for everything!
What the body can't do is say:
"oh, gosh - best not use THESE amino acids for muscles, eyes, or basic brain function. THESE ones came from the Ideal World collagen drink. I need to use them for not only skin, not only nails, okay…"…
Of course, it's logical that giving your body an
excess of amino acids makes it more likely it'll use them for things, but you can't choose what.
Plus, you'd need to not do any extra exercise (or those amino acids will be prioritised for repairing or building muscle, as that is more useful to your survival); you must be healthy and eating a proper balanced diet (to ensure you are getting an excess, and not just plugging a deficiency); and you take
more than your RDA of vitamin C (as collagen can't be made without ample vitamin C).
But it doesn't require a specific "collagen drink" or pill.
You can do the same thing by eating more rich protein sources, a packet of jelly babies (gelatine is literally just collagen), or buying a £3 tub of amino acid powder you mix into water (which body builders use - more amino acids are needed to build muscle).
Or scoff a packet of Jelly Babies - gelatine is just cooked collagen