Things to Know Before Taking Collagen Supplements
If you’re well-versed on the health benefits of Collagen (Chen to link that “health benefits of Collagen” to other blog on our site highlights health benefits) then you’re probably in the market to purchase. In order to make an informed purchase, it’s important you understand everything before picking a Collagen supplement for your usage.
1. Not All Collagen is Created Equal
The trickiest part of buying a dietary supplement is falling into the trap that they are all the same. If you’re sourcing an ingredient how could one jar on the shelf really be so different from the jar right next to it. First and foremost, you always want to buy “hydrolyzed” Collagen. In terms of quality and bioavailability that is imperative. Equally important, you want to look for grass-fed, pasture raised for Bovine Collagen and wild-caught for Marine Collagen. Supplementing the right Collagen not only benefits you, but also has a positive impact on the environment as the sources of Collagen from animals is often put to waste – i.e. fish scales, skin, bones.
2. Collagen Comes in Different Forms
The most common form of Collagen supplements is powder. However, if you do not like mixing the powders in food or drink and would prefer pills – they exist as well. The efficacy of the Collagen is the same in either powder or pills.
3. The Main Benefits of Collagen
There are many benefits to Collagen supplementation that are well-documented on our website. We cannot specifically call out a particular benefit but some clinically proven benefits are – joint pain relief, reduced inflammation, rejuvenated hair/skin/nails, improved digestive health, builds lean body mass – reduces fat/cellulite through appetite control, and much more.
4. Backed by Science
As mentioned in the previous point, there are CLINICALLY proven benefits. Essentially what that means is very smart scientists tested the impact on subjects who supplement Collagen and compared results to a control group that did not supplement Collagen. The results are measurable and there’s another blog on our site that highlights some of these studies.
5. Collagen Production can be Influenced by Diet
We’ve discussed that your natural Collagen production decreases as you age. There are foods out there that influence your Collagen production. Foods like leafy greens, chia seeds and foods rich in Vitamin C increase your natural Collagen production. However, supplementing Collagen is still the most effective way to see the benefits Collagen has on your body.
6. The Time to Supplement
I think when I hit my early 30’s the aches and pains got very real… and consistent. The question is – when should you start supplementing Collagen? Ideally, it’s in your mid-to-late 20’s, but anytime is a good time to start using Collagen. I didn’t start supplementing until I was in my mid-30’s, but that didn’t hurt my opportunity to reap the benefits.
7. There are 29 Different Types of Collagen
This is not meant to confuse you, but there are 16-types of Collagen. Type I, II and III make up 80-90% of the Collagen in your body and that is what you should be focusing on. All Collagen comes from animals – sorry vegetarians – the majority of Collagen is from bovine and marine. Zammex Nutrition has great Collagen products sourced from Bovine, Marine and Multi Collagen that includes Avian Collagen as well!