Bridget Moroney  00:04

Welcome to the performance RX podcast where the conversations are about health, nutrition and mindset for anyone who considers themselves an athlete from the most elite competitors to those who are simply seeking to improve their athletic performance. We hope the knowledge shared on this show will empower you to reach your physical potential. Thank you so much for tuning in. Now for today's episode. Hey, everyone, welcome to the show. I'm your host, Bridget Moroney. And today, I'm going to do a little deep dive on collagen. So collagen is one of those supplements that has gotten really popular in the past couple of years. And more likely than not, you probably know someone who puts collagen in their coffee or smoothies every morning and they swear by its effects on their skin, their nails, their gut health, their joints, whatever it may be. But is collagen that effective? And should you be taking collagen, so I'm going to talk about that. But first, just a little reminder, if you haven't listened to it already, I highly recommend you go back to the performance RX Podcast, episode 11, with Christina Hackett. And in that conversation, she and I talk about all different types of supplements for health, performance, longevity. And we also get into college and a little bit there. And that'll give you a little insight into what collagen is, along with a whole other bunch of supplements that you may want to consider taking for your health performance and longevity, or going back to college and so on to talk a little bit about what it is the different types of forms of it. So taking a collagen powder versus taking it in gelatin form. And then I'll kind of break down some of the science and reviews around its benefits or claimed benefits. So joint pain, skin health, hair growth, gut health, and then talk about a little bit of its protein content, and should you even be taking it in the first place, starting off with what collagen is in the first place, it's a protein and it's a pretty important protein because it's found all over in our body. It's found in our skin, our bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and as we age, we produce less collagen. So this is why people get really excited about it. And it's supposed claims around skin elasticity and wrinkle reduction. And just a little side note, there are at least 16 different types of collagen, but types one, two, and three make up 80 to 90% of collagen in our bodies. So when you get a collagen protein powder, that's basically what you're getting, talking about collagen supplements really quick. So when you buy a supplement off the shelf, it's usually from bovine hide how hide basically and that you'll see right there on the label, it'll say bovine collagen. Or another alternative is you'll see fish and again, you'll see on the label marine collagen, most of the time, they're flavorless unless you get something like a chocolate flavor, but those are other added flavors in there, like collagen itself is flavorless. So if you just get natural powdered collagen, it's not going to have any flavor. And it's pretty easily dissolved in liquid, which is why a lot of people like to put it in their smoothies or coffee in the morning. Another way people get collagen is through their food. So Bone broth has gotten really popular over the last couple of years where people will take the bones of beef and other types of meat and basically render it down into a stock for many, many hours. We're talking 24 to 48 hours there so that the collagen and all the minerals from those bones come out into this broth or stock can also get it from different cuts of meat and poultry. And again, fish skin there. That's a great source of collagen. And then on the vegan side, there are some brands that promote vegan or vegetarian collagen options. But as I mentioned, these are proteins from living organisms. So these products actually don't contain any sort of collagen. What they do contain is nutrients that could promote collagen production in your body like vitamin C, which by the way, whether you're vegan or vegetarian or an omnivore vitamin C plays a critical role in collagen absorption. So we'll get into that a little bit later. What about hydrolyzed collagen collagen peptides and gelatin go to the store you pick up a bottle of collagen protein powder, it says hydrolyzed collagen or it says collagen peptides. It's actually the same thing. hydrolyzed just means that it's processed a certain way using heat enzymes or acid to break down protein chains into shorter chains or peptide. So if you pick up a bottle of collagen, it says hydrolyzed collagen or it says peptides there's basically no difference between the two and the whole idea behind hydrolyzed protein or peptides in general whether we're talking about whey or collagen or anything else like that is the idea is that it's easier to absorb than longer chain proteins. What about gelatin? Well, this is the old school way of getting your collagen in. It's basically jello. If you think about what jello is, it's a cooked form of collagen. So it's a liquid at high temperature and then it gels at low temperature. And I remember my grandpa growing up, he would swear by taking jello as a way for his hair and his fingernails to be strong. But from a nutritional standpoint, collagen and gelatin are basically the same thing. The difference is gelatin is a whole lot cheaper. I mean, if you think about jello specifically, it's like what 89 cents for a box of jello versus $40 for an collagen peptides. And here's another fun fact, a lot of the research that is used to support collagen has potential benefits, such as muscle and tendon regeneration, the research was actually used in gelatin, not collagen protein powders. So now that we've talked about the different types of collagen, let's talk about the benefits that many people claim they get from taking collagen supplements. So let's start off with joint pain because this is actually one of the most well studied benefits when it comes to taking collagen. So yes, there is some research that suggests that type two collagen could potentially support joint health when taken with vitamin C. So going back to what I said a few seconds ago, whether you're vegan or vegetarian, omnivore carnivore, you do need to have vitamin C in your diet in order for collagen to be absorbed and produced by your body. What about Collagen For Skin Health. So like I said earlier in this episode, collagen is what makes our skin plump and elastic. And so as we age, this is the reason why we get wrinkles in our skin and on our faces because collagen production decreases as we age. So this is why when you go to the beauty section of a store, you see a lot of collagen and collagen enhancing ingredients in the skincare products. But beyond skincare products, a lot of people will take a collagen supplement because they're of the mindset they can increase skin elasticity from the inside out. And so what does the research say? So while collagen does have the potential to improve your skin, the evidence isn't definitive. So basically, taking collagen may stimulate hyaluronic acid production in the skin, which keeps your skin moisturize and plump. And one review did find that collagen supplements increase skin elasticity, hydration and dermal collagen density. But collagen supplements do nothing to reduce collagen ace an enzyme we all produce that degrades our collagen stores over time. So the positive effects from taking collagen supplements can only be maintained if you continue taking those supplements indefinitely, which for a lot of people who enjoy taking it every day, that may not be an issue. Also, many of the studies on collagen for skin health as well as other areas of health have been funded and run by the companies who created the products. Something to keep in mind when you look at any sort of research is the biases that come up. Of course, we want to give someone the benefit of the doubt that an industry funded study isn't 100% biased, but it is something to consider and it is a risk when you take these studies and their results into account. And again, just like anything in health and nutrition, is the supplement really the thing you need, or is there just basic care and health measures that you can take so for example, maybe using skincare products with vitamin C, retinol, glycolic acid or hyaluronic acid and using sunscreen could have a better effect on your skin looking younger and less wrinkly than just taking a collagen supplement. Basically bottom line is more research is needed. But collagen supplements may help minimally with skin health. Again, wear your sunscreen, take vitamin C use these other products out there and you'll see a much better result. What about collagen for hair growth? So like I said, my grandpa swore by jello making his hair and fingernails grow. So collagen contains some of the amino acids needed to produce keratin which is the protein you find in our hair. Currently, there's no evidence that taking collagen will make your hair grow faster, thicker or stimulate hair regrowth so I wouldn't rely on that for hair growth. What about collagen as a protein supplement so there's a lot of people out there who don't like to take whey protein supplements or other types of protein powders but they enjoy it collagen in their coffee or in smoothies, their stomachs tolerate it, whatever personal choice. Is this a good idea to take as a whole protein source? The answer is no. So even though collagen is claimed to be superior and highly absorbable, it's not an ideal protein source, because Couple reasons one, it's an incomplete protein. So it doesn't contain all nine essential amino acids, it's missing tryptophan. And since your body can't make essential amino acids, it has to get them for food. So if you are relying solely on collagen protein for your protein source, which hopefully you aren't, you would be deficient in some of those amino acids. Now, don't get me wrong, there are plenty of incomplete proteins that we consume on a daily basis. And of course, they have a place in a well balanced and healthy diet. But as far as investing your money in a protein supplements to get more protein in your diet, it's not worth it. In my opinion. Let me put it to you this way. If you had $40 to spend on a protein powder, and you had the choice between a high quality whey protein, which is a complete protein or collagen, you should definitely go with the weight if getting more protein into your diet is your end goal. Well, Bridgette, you do get some of the amino acids from collagen, yes, but even when tryptophan is added back in college and still scores low in terms of quality compared to other proteins, like whey casein or soy, in other words, even though collagen has other essential amino acids, it's still pretty low in them. And going back to the whole idea of taking collagen as a protein supplement. Most people take protein supplements because they want more protein in their diet so that they can recover from their workouts, gain muscle or keep muscle so collagen just isn't ideal for it. muscle protein synthesis requires the amino acid leucine and collagen has very very little of it. At the end of the day. It's just not a good quality protein supplement. What about Collagen For gut health. So collagen is rich in the amino acids glycine and proline and has some glutamine all which are great for your gut health. Some people say that this has the potential to help heal the gut lining and promote digestive health, especially if you have leaky gut. But just like the tendon, ligament and skin research, there's still robust evidence that's lacking. So even though research shows that glutamine and glycine are helpful for intestinal health, there's still a lot that needs to be done as far as finding conclusive evidence. Speaking of glycine, what about collagen in pregnancy and post natal recovery? So there's some new research out there around glycine showing that it's conditionally essential. So typically, glycine is not essential, which means that your body can make it but there's some new research out there that shows its conditionally essential, meaning that you might need to get it from some food. In the later stages of pregnancy, we're talking 35 plus weeks. So this is due to the increased demand from the baby's collagen stores. This has led to some prenatal experts to suggest supplementing with collagen during pregnancy, especially in the later days. And while it's not a bad idea, it's not going to cause any harm per se. Always check with your medical doctor for specific advice around your health. It's just not necessary if you're getting adequate and complete proteins in your diet. So remember a few minutes ago, what I said about collagen being an incomplete protein, and also just not having very high levels of amino acids. In general, getting enough protein from whole foods like meat, fish protein powders is going to give you more than enough glycine to meet your needs. And again, talk with your doctor talk with a registered dietitian who specializes in pregnancy or specific guidance for your health. But in general, your protein needs in late pregnancy are about 1.52 grams per kilogram of body weight per day. So with all that said and done, should you take collagen supplements if you aren't already, or should you continue taking them? Well, the answer just like a lot of things when it comes to empowering you to make your own decisions for your health performance and wellness is it's up to you. So just a kind of quick overview of why people take collagen supplements and what the research says so joint health there's some evidence that shows it could help with joint pain but vitamin C was a key role in it skin and hair health. Same idea. Some evidence shows that it can help with skin factors like elasticity, hydration and collagen density. There's no evidence that affects Your Hair Health protein supplementation, it's not a great idea to take it purely as a protein supplement. It's a low quality protein and not really recommended. For that reason, gut health, there's not really any evidence that says it supports with leaky gut or other concerns. And then for pregnancy and postnatal recovery has not shown to help, but it is safe to consume if that is something that you want to try. Also, keep in mind that just because collagen is used for a variety of different things, it doesn't mean that it's guaranteed to work for what you want it to. So it's kind of like fat reduction, you can do cardio, you can go into a calorie deficit, but your body is going to lose weight where it loses weight. So eating more collagen doesn't mean you're going to have more collagen, where you want it your body is going to determine where the amino acids from collagen or any protein source you ingest will go. So in other words, amino acids are more likely to be used to build your enzymes, hormones and neurotransmitters or build and maintain lean tissue than they are to smooth out your skin. So just because the collagen brand says it's for skin, or it's for your gut health, or it's for your achy joints, doesn't mean that it's going to be used for that purpose. Also something very important to bring up with collagen supplements or any protein supplements. And that is concerns about heavy metal contamination. So make sure that when you're buying a collagen protein supplement, or any protein supplement for that matter, you look for third party tested options, so that you have a product that has been tested for purity and quality. And again, it's worth repeating. But a lot of the research on collagen is done with gelatin. And gelatin is a safe, cheap alternative. And one final note to mention. And that if you do want to take a collagen protein supplement, you want to make sure that you're covering two bases, otherwise, you're wasting your money. So the two things that you want to make sure that you're getting are enough protein in your diet overall. And then taking vitamin C. So again, collagen is not a complete protein. So you need to make sure that you're getting complete protein and a complete spectrum of amino acids from a variety of sources. A good amount of protein for athletes and active people is 1.2 to 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, or basically 0.55 to one gram per pound. And for people who want to change their weight and body composition 1.6 to 3.3 grams per kilogram of body weight, or 0.75 to 1.5 grams per pound. And again for vitamin C adult females need 75 milligrams a day, while adult males need 90 milligrams. And because vitamin C is water soluble, you could safely supplement up to 2000 milligrams a day. Keep in mind that research on collagen and vitamin C used about 48 grams of supplemental vitamin C. So you don't need to take a mega dose of vitamin C to stimulate collagen production. But you do need to make sure that you have adequate vitamin C in your diet. That's basically it. Collagen gets a lot of hype. And it is exactly that. It is hype, if you're taking it because you enjoy it and it works for you and you feel like it makes a difference in your life. Keep going for it. If you feel like you should be taking it, give it a shot. Keep in mind that there could be better cheaper alternatives out there. Also, keep in mind that getting adequate protein in your diet overall and adequate vitamin C are going to be very, very important to you whether you take collagen protein or not. So that's it a little deep dive into collagen. I hope this helps answer some of your questions. And we'll see you next time. All right, that's all for today's show. Thank you so much again for listening. And be sure to head over to aspire to coaching.com backslash podcast to check out the show notes for today's episode. There you'll find some of the links we've mentioned on today's podcast, as well as some of the previous episodes we've done. And while you're there, please make sure you sign up for our show updates. I am always updating the show and bringing in bonus content. So you do not want to miss out on any of that. One last thing. 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