Everything You Need To Know About Taking Collagen?

We’re seeing collagen more and more in the market, at retail and in advertising, so there’s no question that collagen supplements have become the latest beauty addition for women ( and men) over the last few years, to support their skin, hair, nails, but also their muscles, ligaments, joints and tendons and to help with the degradation we will experience as we age.

We can google it, ask our friends, trust retailers offering variations of collagen supplements and we can trial different brands, but the biggest questions are which collagen should you take, in what format and how much collagen should I be taking per day? Is there such a thing as too much collagen? Or, how much collagen is too much?
There’s a myriad of research being done globally on the scientific studies of the benefits and gains of ingesting collagen, and there’s a heap of research that you can access, but we thought we’d break it down for you – so if you’re considering adding collagen to your daily wellness and beauty routine, and want to know what the benefits of collagen are, we’ve compiled the following questions to help you out!

What is Collagen?

Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body, and is also the major structural component of skin, hair, nails, bones, ligaments, joints, tendons, bones and so much more! It's like the ‘glue’ that holds everything together. Our skin is affected by so many various factors including ageing, diet, sleep, stress, smoking, ultraviolet radiation, hormones, pollutants, nutrition, genetics and other environmental forces.

What Is Collagen Used For?

As the most abundant protein in the human body, collagen provides the ‘building blocks’ for good health and is essential for our connective tissues (ligaments, joints, muscles), our bone health, helping scar and wound healing, helping to prevent joint pain, our ability to maintain muscle mass, our gut health, stronger nails and healthy, thicker hair and of course, our skin health. In fact, collagen is responsible not only for supporting skin texture and quality, and our skin elasticity, but it also helps our skin to be more hydrated, looking plump, ageless and radiant.

While our bodies naturally produce collagen—our ability to do so significantly reduces as we age! Did you know, we start to lose between 1% to 2% of our natural collagen production every year from our mid 20’s - which is why it’s so important to support our body’s’ collagen stores, which we can do in two ways. Firstly, we need to consume enough of the essential antioxidants and nutrients - such as Vitamin C and zinc - which allow our body to synthesize collagen of its own accord, and secondly, we also need to ensure our diet is rich in all of the essential amino acids (such as proline and glycine), required to actually build and maintain collagen. Given many of us don’t have perfect, balanced diets focused on these, and given how important our collagen is to our body’s ageing process – this is why it’s so important to add a collagen supplement to your daily routine as it has so many potential positive health and beauty benefits.

The Different Types Of Collagen Supplements

Before choosing a collagen supplement, it’s wise to educate yourself on the different types of collagen found in all the supplements available on the market.  As the industry is flooded with choices, it can be completely overwhelming and confusing to research and decide what the differences are between collagen powder, liquid collagen, hydrolyzed collagen, collagen peptides, bone broth and even gelatin.

Put simply, the most common form of collagen is hydrolyzed… this refers to the process used to obtain the collagen. In the case of bovine collagen, for example, the hydrolysis process simply breaks down the larger collagen compounds into smaller units known as peptides. These hydrolyzed collagen peptides have a lower molecular weight and can therefore be more easily digested, absorbed and assimilated by the body.

The other factor to consider when purchasing a collagen supplement is its’ source as bovine collagen derives from the hides and hooves of cattle—whereas marine collagen derives from the skin of fish. At Fusspot Collagen Beauty Tea, we’ve chosen to infuse all of our beauty teas with concentrated, premium Type I and Type III bovine, hydrolyzed collagen peptides, as we believe bovine collagen has no flavour, odour, or colour and the choice of collagen we use is a premium, high-quality and concentrated collagen supplement which you need much less of daily to gain the same benefits.

How Much Collagen Should I Take?

When it comes to how much collagen you should take per day, there aren’t really any set guidelines—it mainly depends on what quality collagen you’re buying, which form you chose, what the instructions are, and your intended purpose. As hydrolyzed collagen peptides are one of the most common forms and are more easily absorbed than some other types, studies have shown that a daily dose as small as 2.5 grams a day can be beneficial in terms of supporting skin health, hair and nails, gut health, joint health and more. Depending on the collagen you’ve purchased and looking at other medical studies, it is safe to say that you can consume a recommended dosage of 2.5 grams to 15 grams of collagen per day which may be safely incorporated into your daily routine and diet. 

If improving your skin health is your goal, look at high-quality hydrolyzed collagen peptides, bovine collagen and marine collagen both provide the same benefits, however bovine collagen may be better for gut health and intestinal problems. If joint health, muscle mass or bone density are your goals, there is some research that suggests you can increase your collagen intake by 5 grams per day to be most beneficial.  

We recommend taking two cups of Fusspot Collagen Beauty Tea loose leaf range for your collagen supplementation. Drinking two cups daily of our loose leaf blends provides as close to the minimum collagen daily requirement of 2.5 grams per day, supplemented with your diet for you to gain the benefits of collagen supplementation as well as antioxidants and polyphenols found in our beauty teas.

If you want to supercharge your collagen intake, add a cup of our Chai or Matcha blends to your daily routine to add further collagen supplementation and give you a further boost.
Don’t forget, you’ll also be gaining the powerful benefits of formulated beauty teas and the benefits of each blend’s herbs, botanicals and tisanes. Each can be found on our website, in the drop-down menus – as each blend has specific benefits to help restore, rejuvenate or repair skin health, circulation, immunity, blood flow, free radicals, boost antioxidants, promote relaxation or improve energy, as well as support improved hair and nail growth, complexion health and of course your overall wellbeing.

How Much Collagen Is Too Much?

If we’re honest, the jury’s still out on this one. In general, research agrees that collagen tends to be a safe supplement to add to your daily routine, with very few reported side effects—and it’s something we should be getting through our diet as well in foods like bone broth, meat and egg whites. But we always recommend consulting with your doctor or medical advisor before making any changes to your diet or lifestyle and to determine the amount of collagen that's right for you.

Keen to experience the beauty benefits of collagen for yourself? We’ve got you covered with our range of Collagen infused Loose Leaf Teas! Click here!