Five simple mistakes that lead to you wasting your time, energy and money on an overhyped supplement
- “My cream contains collagen.”
- “My serum has collagen peptides in it.”
- “My facial mask is collagen-based.”
- “Eye patches with collagen…mmm, sounds great!"
- “How about the muesli bars with collagen?”
- “Collagen peptides are the only thing that works!”
- “I switched to collagen protein after my training sessions.”
- “Of course, I am using collagen every day.”
- “I tried a new liquid collagen. And it tastes great.”
- “I just mix collagen in my morning coffee.”
What is next?... Collagen socks? Oh, sorry, there are already collagen socks on the market!
Do you believe the hype?
The world of the 2020s feels like it has gone crazy. Everywhere we turn, two subjects seem to crop up time and time again: the probability of nuclear war and the labelling of more and more products with the magical word “Collagen”.
Every other new supplement appearing in magazines and on billboards these days seems to have the word "collagen" emblazoned across it. Big brand names have adopted it, with their endless promises of transforming our health and fitness. Lots of your friends consume collagen products and report that they are happy. And then there are the smiley, picture-perfect Instagram influencers and our favourite TV personalities who tell us their glowing, youthful skin is all thanks to them taking “collagen every morning”.
Congratulations, you have bought into the most overhyped thing since wearing a flimsy surgical mask was all the rage during the peak of the Covid pandemic.
You bought a collagen supplement, but you didn't notice any benefits. What happened?
Hype is always an opportunity to make money - a lot of it - from thin air. Businesses frantically label their new products with the new magic word of the day and lose interest in everything else they are doing. Exaggerated claims generate huge profits. And everyone rides the wave. Some entrepreneurs can't quite believe their luck: the hype around the latest 'must have' is like a money printing machine. And so, it continues until something 'new and even better' emerges for everyone to switch their attention towards.
None of this, of course, is fair to customers. If you genuinely value and care about the people who buy your products, then you want them to understand the real benefits of collagen and how to realise these.
Five mistakes to avoid when purchasing collagen
If you want to get the most out of collagen, you must use it correctly. Millions of people from Florida to Frankfurt take collagen supplements but are unfortunately making mistakes that mean they are not benefiting as they should be from its many properties. Here are the five most common mistakes people make when using collagen:
Rule number 1: Understand the numbers and take the correct dosage
Imagine yourself in a pharmacy, where your attention is distracted to the shiny shelves where collagen enjoys pride of place as the current 'must have'. You buy a pack that reads: 80 pills, 500 mg of collagen.
When it comes to the so-called “best collagen solution”, it's vital that we understand how to interpret the numbers. Let's start with a simple fact:
One gram = 1000 mg.
Now, let's think about the dosage on that new package you've bought from the pharmacy or health shop and, naturally, can't wait to start using:
The package contains 80 pills with 500mg of collagen in each.
80 x 500 = 40000 mg
It sounds a lot, doesn’t it? However, this equates to just 40 grams, which is only enough for approximately eight days of the suggested optimum dosage. What's even worse is that you'd need to take 10 of your new collagen pills each and every day to hit that ideal dosage.
Sadly, it's the same story when it comes to cosmetics. Most of the creams and serums barely contain a gram of collagen. Many brands add embarrassingly small quantities to their product for labelling and 'marketing' purposes.
Liquid solutions: 9 grams of collagen peptides x 14 bottles or 7750 mg x 10 ampoules. The numbers already sound better!! We now multiply 9000mg x 14x = 126000 mg or 7750 mg x 10x = 77500 mg. What an improvement!
Powders: How about the 150000 mg or 200000 mg of collagen in one jar or box? It looks a bit more realistic, doesn’t it? It is easy to see the difference the numbers make. Could less than one gram of collagen in your serum, mask or eye patch genuinely bring long-lasting benefits?
The golden rule for collagen intake is as follows:
Consume 2.5 g to 15 g of collagen a day. The safe and optimum dose is 5 grams a day. And how long you use collagen is more important than the daily dosage.
Rule number 2: Low molecular weight is vital
Aware that the correct dosage matters, it would be tempting to find and purchase the highest-content collagen product on the market. If only everything in life were that easy!
To educate ourselves further, we need to understand what peptides are. Peptides are short chains of amino acids linked by peptide bonds. If a protein has 50 amino acids, peptides have 2 to 20. It makes a big difference, as we will explain.
What is the difference between collagen powder and beef steak?
Try to answer this simple question: What is the difference between a beef steak and collagen powder? They both contain protein, consist of amino acids and are of animal origin. And medium-rare steak tastes better and does not cost as much as the powder.
Time for another insight:
- Collagen is a protein consisting of three principal amino acids – proline, glycine and hydroxyproline. These amino acids form a protein fibril in a triple helix matrix in the body. Thanks to a controlled enzymatic hydrolysis process, peptides contain these three amino acids in their highest concentration, promoting the bioactive properties of collagen.
- Peptides can only have bioactive properties if they have a low molecular weight (2-4 kDa (kilodaltons)), which enables them to directly affect the cells in the body by stimulation to produce fibroblasts, which are responsible for natural collagen synthesis in our bodies.
In conclusion, if your collagen does not contain peptides with low molecular weight, then all you are getting is just another protein. Be it in a shiny package and with a much higher price tag.
Rule number 3: Make a conscious choice between different origins
Before you start taking collagen, ask yourself the following questions:
- What benefits am I looking for?
- Do I feel tension and moderate pain in my joints?
- Does my skin glow as naturally as it should?
- Am I ageing faster than I should be?
The answers to these questions will help you in your choices.
Which type of collagen should I choose?
Marine or Bovine? Porcine or Chicken collagen?
The answer is easy: They all work. They are all beneficial to our health.
Marine collagen is the most superior form of collagen. It is more expensive due to its superior bioavailability (up to 1.5 times faster than any other source of collagen). It also has the highest concentration of Type I collagen. Type I collagen promotes the beauty-related properties of the ingredient, which helps explain why most cosmetics come from marine collagen.
Marine collagen is also great for the joints and tendons. But marine collagen is less effective in sports nutrition, where Bovine and Porcine collagens deliver more benefits.
Again though, let's repeat: The thing that makes the magic happen is the low molecular weight of the peptides.
Rule number 4: Taking collagen must be uncomplicated, pleasant, and with no hidden foul-smelling properties
Seven out of every ten people who begin to take collagen stop doing so after some time. What are the reasons for this?
- Smell and taste. If your collagen product comes with a “fishy smell” or a “cured meat taste” and you try to take it for 90 days, it's pretty obvious what happens next! Most people who consume a collagen product with an unpleasant taste or smell quit!
- Artificial flavours and sweeteners. Anybody who has ever used sports nutrition knows it is impossible to keep consuming the same protein flavour and taste seven days per week. Understandably, the same applies to collagen. It's not natural for humans to eat or drink anything with an artificial flavour for a long time. We might be able to bear the same artificial taste for two or even three weeks, but eventually, it simply becomes too unpleasant to continue.
If you want to make collagen work for you, your daily dose of collagen must be neutral tasting, easy to add to any drink or food recipe, 100% soluble (with no clumps) and come in convenient packaging that doesn’t require you carrying a supplement jar to your work or on a business trip.
Rule number 5: No shortcuts! Complete the recommended usage period!
“I took collagen for 30 days, I didn't miss a single day, but nothing happened!”
Let's recall common-mistake number two:
Peptides only have bioactive properties if their molecular weight is low.
2-4 kDa (kilodaltons) directly affects the cells in the body by stimulation to produce fibroblasts, which are responsible for natural collagen synthesis.
It is not the quantity of the collagen that matters but the quality in terms of how low the molecular weight of the peptides is and for how long you take the collagen.
Now, we come to our final golden rule:
The minimum course needed for visible and tangible results cannot be two, three or even six weeks. If you want to get the results you are looking for, researchers have concluded you must follow these three simple rules:
- Only consume high-quality, low molecular-weight collagen
- Consume a dosage of 5 grams per day
- The minimum length of the course is 90 days
Can you repeat the course? Or should you take a break after 90+ days? The answer is simple: it's totally up to you!
Following the golden rules is a recipe for success
Understanding the basic principles you need to know when choosing your collagen supplement will likely prevent you from wasting lots of hard-earned money on the wrong 'magic product ' and instead enable you to follow the golden rules that will lead to success.
The world now knows that collagen is a “must-have” ingredient in the diet of every person wishing to enjoy a healthy lifestyle. But of course, Collagen is not a panacea you can take while living an unhealthy lifestyle and expect the optimum results. There are very expensive superheroes with medical needles always at your service if you want immediate results through surgery!
Success with collagen follows a simple ancient rule: You are what you eat!
“The mission of Col Du Marine™ – is to give as many people as possible the opportunity to improve their health and longevity through pure marine collagen peptides intake.”
