6 Amazing Benefits of Collagen

Organika Health Products

October 20, 2016

UPDATED: 05/16/2022

Do I need to take collagen?

Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body. It’s made naturally in the body. It’s also the protein that gets produced less as we age.

In fact by the time we reach the age of 25, the amount of collagen our body produces starts to decline. Yikes!

As a result, many are turning to supplementation. Do you need it? What is it good for?

Organika Enhanced Collage Relax beside a coffee and a candle ready for a bath

What Is Collagen?

Collagen is naturally found in the body and is a protein with many functions. It’s the main component in your connective tissues, muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints and skin.

Collagen can be thought of as the “glue” that helps hold the body together. It's responsible for keeping your skin firm and elastic, your joints strong and stable, and your digestive system healthy and working.

It’s a hard-working protein that your body has a limited supply of.

If you are thinking about taking collagen as a supplement, there are several benefits.

6 benefits to taking collagen

1. Supports Healthy Gut

You may have heard that a healthy gut is the key to overall health. It’s true. Building a stronger intestinal lining, preventing its breakdown or weakening, and protecting it from unwanted bacteria is the goal. When the digestive tract is weakened, it can lead to pain and discomfort but also “leaky gut.” Leaky gut (where bacteria flow into the bloodstream from the gut) can cause fatigue, allergies, poor immunity, and more.

Collagen can help. Loaded with the amino acid glutamine, it's been proven to be effective in preventing leaky gut and the subsequent chronic inflammation that can wreak havoc on the body.[1]

2. Improves Skin Quality

Since collagen is the structure that helps with skin elasticity, it makes sense that as the body loses it, skin quality goes down. However, diet can help influence skin health. Diets high in sugar and processed carbohydrates cause our bodies to produce advanced glycated end products (AGEs), which reduce the density of collagen fibrils, leading to wrinkles and aging skin quality. Chronic sun exposure also further damages collagen fibers.

To counteract that, consuming collagen peptides may help. Supplemental collagen has been shown to reduce the harmful UV-B induced skin damage to support superior skin quality.[2] Taking collagen supplements orally has been shown to increase skin elasticity, hydration and density of the skin.[3][4] Collagen supplementation is generally safe with no reported adverse events. [3]

3. Fights Joint Pain

The building blocks of healthy joints come from your diet. These include key amino acids like proline, lysine, and glutamine, which support the natural production of collagen in the body. Recent studies show improvement in pain and physical function after supplementation with hydrolyzed collagen peptides.[5] Consuming enough quality protein and digestible collagen can really support the joints long-term. Chronic pain and arthritis are two of the most common reasons for patient visits to the doctor. The solutions often prescribed from those visits are ointments and drugs that help ease the pain, but do not address the root of the problem. The building blocks of healthy joints come from your diet. These include key amino acids like proline, lysine, and glutamine, which support the natural production of collagen in the body. Recent studies show improvement in pain and physical function after supplementation with hydrolyzed collagen (see Figure 1.0)[3]. Ensuring you eat enough quality protein or easily digestible supplemental collagen is fundamental to healthy joints in the long run.

4. Supports Weight Loss

Collagen supports weight loss in a unique way. It’s not thermogenic or stimulant, like most weight loss supplements, but rather it impacts your satiety levels by naturally inhibiting the main hormone in the gut that triggers hunger [6]. What that means is that consuming collagen peptides can keep you from craving mid-afternoon sugar-laden snacks and unnecessary snacking. Adding collagen to your mid-morning coffee or mid-afternoon tea can be a great strategy to curb cravings and make it through to your next meal.

5. Improves Athletic Recovery

If you’re active, training intensely, or always on-the-go, then your joints are likely suffering from some wear and tear. You will want to do some form of muscle recovery after high performance. It’s been found that taking collagen 1-hour before exercise or rehab activity increases the uptake of collagen into your joints, which accelerates recovery. [7] Unlike muscles, which can soak up nutrients for hours after activity, your joints suck up the surrounding water and nutrients within the hour after exercise, making the timing of your collagen intake crucial for supporting joints.

Tip: Add a little vitamin C from lemon juice or a fruit snack to further increase absorption.

6. Supports Deep Sleep

It seems more than ever; people are craving a restful sleep. Interestingly, studies have shown how collagen can help support the deep sleep your body longs for. Collagen contains the amino acid glycine. Glycine helps your body decompress and unwind, and is needed for quality sleep. Quality sleep helps to keep energy levels up, give your body strength to fight off viruses and infections, and thrive in your daily life. [8]

Impacts of Glycine on Sleep Quantity and Quality

I need to take collagen, how do I add it to my diet?

The easiest and simplest way to consume collagen is through supplementation. In fact, that’s how many of the studies on collagen were done. For digestibility, hydrolyzed collagen peptides are a great solution.

A high-quality collagen supplement, such as Organika’s Enhanced Collagen is ideal. Voted Canada’s #1 collagen powder, it’s made with bovine collagen and is beneficial for bones, joints, gut, hair, skin and nails.

Check out the full Enhanced Collagen line up!

Organika Enhanced Collagen line up on a white kitchen counter

There are many variations of collagen supplements, however, depending on what you prefer or your lifestyle, one may work better than another. You can get collagen in powder, capsule, and liquid form.

You may enjoy adding collagen in powder form to your beverages or smoothies. You can even mix it into your yogurt or add it to baked goods.

Maybe you prefer taking your collagen in liquid form, easily adding it to water or juice.

Want to try collagen but you're vegetarian? We have a Vegetarian Collagen in easy to take capsules.

Organika Plant-Based Collagen Booster and Vegetarian Collagen on a table

The options are endless and the benefits are so worth diving into!

Incorporate more collagen into your diet and feel the difference for yourself.

References

1. Rao, R. Samak, G. Role of Glutamine in Protection of Intestinal Epithelial Tight Junctions/ J Eptihel Biol Pharmacol. 2012 Jan: 5(Suppl 1-M7):47-54.

2. Tanaka, M et al. Effects of Collagen Peptide Ingestion on UV-B-Induced Skin Damage. Biosci. Biotechnol. Biochem, 73 (4), 930–932, 2009.

3. Choi FD, Sung CT, Juhasz ML, Mesinkovsk NA. Oral Collagen Supplementation: A Systematic Review of Dermatological Applications. J Drugs Dermatol. 2019 Jan 1;18(1):9-16.

4. de Miranda RB, Weimer P, Rossi RC. Effects of hydrolyzed collagen supplementation on skin aging: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Dermatol. 2021 Dec;60(12):1449-1461.

5. Bello A, Oesser S. Collagen hydrolysate for the treatment of osteoarthritis and other joint disorders: a review of the literature. CMRO. Vol 22, 2006 – Iss 11.

6. Halden G, et al. Evidence for a Role of the Gut Hormone PYY in the Regulation of Intestinal Fatty Acid-binding Protein Transcripts in Differentiated Subpopulations of Intestinal Epithelial Cell Hybrids. J Biol Chemistry. Vol. 272, 1997. No. 19, Issue of May 9, pp. 12591–12600.

7. Hagarty, P et al. The effect of growth factors on both collagen synthesis and tensile strength of engineered human ligaments. Biomaterials 2012. doi:10.1016/j.biomaterials.2012.05.045.

8. Yamadera, W et al. Glycine ingestion improves subjective sleep quality in human volunteers, correlating with polysomnographic changes. Sleep & Biological Rhythms. Vol 5, Iss 2, April 2007, pg 126–131.