Until recently, collagen supplementation has mainly been used as an anti-aging skin treatment. However, there is growing evidence it can stimulate the growth of new cartilage in joints and reduce joint pain.
With this evidence more and more people are turning to collagen supplements. But not all collagen is the same. We want to share some more information on how hydrolyzed collagen can help your joints.
Related: Discover the Best Hydrolyzed Collagen Formula
What is Hydrolyzed Collagen?
Collagen is a major structural protein that makes up roughly 30% of the protein in your body. Some of that collagen makes up the connective tissues in your joints. Collagen is rich in amino acids that help to build joint cartilage.
As a nutritional supplement, collagen is made from animal or fish materials and can be found in gelatin or a hydrolyzed form. In the hydrolyzed form, collagen is processed more intensively than gelatin, and breaks up the proteins into smaller pieces. (The collagen that will be discussed in this article is in the hydrolyzed collagen.)
The claim that hydrolzyed collagen can stimulate the growth of new cartilage in joints is due to recent medical studies which state patients with arthritic or damaged joints showed improvement in mobility and pain relief when taking the supplement. Collagen supplements seem to perform a similar role to natural collagen in keeping the tissue in joints healthy and supple to reduce pain and inflammation.
Dr Stefan Oesser, of Kiel University in Germany, published research which demonstrated that by adding collagen to cartilage tissue, it was possible to encourage extra cells to grow. “This is the first time anyone has demonstrated that collagen has this effect on cartilage and backs up anectdotal evidence and patient trials,” he says. “We are still trying to unravel why collagen works this way. That might be difficult to establish because there is a series of complex interactions. But we have at last established that it happens.”
Research by Roland Moskowtiz, a professor of orthopaedics at Case Western University in the US, looked at 400 patients with arthritic knees from the U.S., Britain and Germany. Some received a placebo while the others were treated with collagen. The latter group showed significant reduction in pain and an improvement in joint mobility, with 93 per cent achieving positive results, some after only two weeks.
Researchers at Harvard Medical school and Tufts Medical Centre in Boston, evaluated 30 patients over the age of 48 with arthritis in their knees. The patients were divided into two groups with half of them taking collagen and the other half a placebo. The patients underwent multiple MRI scans spanning one year. The trial reported that while the cartilage in the placebo group deteriorated over the weeks, as expected, the groups taking collagen experienced a growth in cartilage. Laboratory studies suggested the supplement “’stimulates the renewed synthesis of the cartilage”, said the researchers.
Hydrolyzed collagen has been shown to stimulate the growth of new cartilage, allow greater joint mobility and reduce joint pain.
Discover the Best Hydrolyzed Collagen Supplement Available
Ideal Collagen has been developed with more hydrolyzed collagen than typical hydrolyzed collagen supplements. With 10,000mg of hydrolyzed collagen in each serving, combined with key amino acids, chondroitin, glucosamine and key enzymes, nothing compares to the results you can receive with Ideal Collagen.
If you’re looking for a way to boost your collagen naturally, check out more information on Ideal Collagen.
