Bone Broth vs. Collagen Peptides

Bone Broth vs. Collagen Peptides—What's the difference?

New to bone broth and collagen peptides? Fear not, because we are here to answer all the big questions. We are in love with these super powders and their amazing health benefits, and want to share them with the world, starting with you! 

What are collagen peptides?

Collagen is the “glue” that helps hold the body together and is the most abundant protein in the body. Collagen keeps your skin firm and elastic, your joints strong and stable, and your digestive system healthy and working. However, as we age and use our bodies for movement, the collagen levels in our body naturally decline. Organika’s Enhanced Collagen is a high-quality source of collagen peptides: the readily absorbable pieces that make up collagen, so you can easily enjoy its whole-body benefits.

Collagen peptides support healthy skin

The loss of collagen as you age contributes to wrinkles and poor skin quality. While spending money on expensive creams can help your skin externally, your diet has the biggest influence on your skin health, which means skin beauty literally starts from the inside out! Chronic exposure to the sun can also damage the collagen fibers in your skin. Supplemental collagen has been shown to reduce the harmful UVB induced skin damage to support better skin quality. [1]

Collagen peptides help alleviate joint pain

Chronic pain and arthritis are often treated with 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) [2]. Ensuring you eat enough quality protein or easily digestible supplemental collagen is fundamental to healthy joints in the long run.

Collagen peptides may help maintain a healthy gut

Digestive complaints are on the rise: gas, bloating, heartburn, constipation, and abdominal discomfort seem to be the norm these days. These are all signs of dysbiosis, the medical term for the accumulation of too much bad bacteria in the gut, which can lead to damage of the intestinal lining. This scenario is often described by the term “leaky gut.” People with leaky gut can also have silent, non-obvious symptoms. In this case, you may struggle with fatigue, allergies, poor immunity (or an autoimmune condition), joint pain, or brain fog. Collagen provides a source of the amino acid glutamine, which has been shown to be highly effective in preventing leaky gut and the subsequent chronic inflammation that can wreak havoc on the body. [3]

What is bone broth?

A type of broth made by simmering animal bones for extended periods of time, bone broth is featured in the traditional cuisines of many different cultures - and for good reason. Through the process of simmering, bones release beneficial nutrients such as collagen, gelatin and amino acids (such as glycine, glutamine and proline, to name a few). Alongside those nutrients are many key minerals that are often hard to absorb in our body; bone broth is an excellent way to up your intake. Organika’s Bone Broth line brings all the nutrition from chicken and beef bone broth in powder form – the ideal kitchen staple to give your home cooking that extra touch of health!

Why should I take bone broth?

Consuming bone broth daily has been anecdotally linked to significant improvement in allergies, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel conditions, chronic fatigue, stress, skin conditions, bloating, weight gain, thinning hair, food sensitivities and auto-immune disorders. These amazing reported results are likely linked to its nutrient profile: by decreasing the inflammatory response in the body, glycine improves the integrity of your digestive tract. This plays a vital role in the absorption of nutrients found in our foods, potentially helping with a number of conditions.

So, what’s the difference between bone broth and collagen peptides?

You can think of bone broth as general overall support for the body. It contains a wealth of key nutrients, including proteins like collagen that are rich in important amino acids like glycine and glutamine. It also contains an array of minerals (i.e. calcium, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and zinc) as well as joint friendly glycosaminoglycans (GAGs).

Collagen is a protein which is isolated via a process called hydrolyzation, making it a more concentrated source of the nutrient. This can be hugely beneficial because you get much bigger doses of collagen-specific amino acids like glycine, glutamine, proline, hydroxyproline, and arginine. These amino acid “all-stars” are terrific for keeping joints healthy, your digestive system running on all cylinders and supporting post-workout recovery.

Which one should I take?

As you’ve learned above, they are slightly different. Like choosing between a hammer and screwdriver, the tool best suited for the job depends on what YOU need.

Bone broth is a fantastic general tonic to support overall health. It delivers a range of key nutrients to support overall health and is also a fantastic addition in the wintertime to nourish the body and feel your best in the colder months.

Collagen can also be used as a general tonic, but it truly shines is when it is used for more specific concerns. If you want to support your sore joints, help soothe a leaky gut or improve skin health, collagen-specific amino acids will likely be very helpful.

Of course, you don’t necessarily have to choose just one. For example, mixing some Ginger Chicken Bone Broth and Enhanced Collagen in the evening is a great way to wind down before bed!