Have you tried taking collagen? Next time you are in the beauty aisle of your local grocery store pay attention to the number of products that contain collagen. There is an abundance of products that rely on this essential protein due to its capability to help optimize the smoothness and suppleness of your skin, support strong, beautiful nails, and sustain luxurious hair.
Though, it is not common knowledge that these are just some of the benefits when you take collagen. There are many more health benefits of collagen that are more than just its beauty-enhancing capabilities that aid heart, gut, and joint health. These days, it is not only on beauty aisles that collagen can be found. Items with collagen can now also be found in products such as coffee, tea, and even protein bars.
So what exactly is this powerful ingredient? Collagen plays a vital role in building and maintaining healthy connective tissue all through your digestive tract. So, if you’re looking to take collagen for gut health, you’re right on track. We’ll dive a little deeper into collagen and what it can do for your gut in this guide.
The Digestive System And Leaky Gut
Sustaining a sturdy digestive tract and stomach lining is vital for the prevention of a digestive condition known as leaky gut syndrome. This happens when the barrier lining of your intestine is damaged. The leaky gut syndrome causes food and waste particles to go through your bloodstream, causing inflammation.Â
This digestive system condition can cause several problems such as gas, bloating, gas, Irritable Bowel System aka IBS, also an increase in sensitivity to wheat-based, containing gluten, and sugar-rich foods. There are many studies that show the positive relationship between adding collagen to your diet and healing from your leaky gut issues.
Gut Health and Your Overall Well-Being
Your gut health is directly associated with other parts of your overall well-being so having a healthy gut means you have a healthy body. This makes it crucial to keep your gut health in check and where collagen comes into play.
It is the most abundant protein in the human body. Made through chains of amino acids, these are the building blocks for our bodies. We start to produce less collagen in our bodies as we grow older. This is the reason why we begin seeing signs of aging, like face and body wrinkles, joint pain, and weak bones.Â
But you don’t have to worry, there are lots of types of collagen that come with many health benefits. And improved gut health is one of these benefits that you can experience.
What Is Collagen?
In an easy-to-understand explanation, the glue that holds your body together is collagen. The etymology of collagen is derived from the Greek word kolla that means “glue.” Collagen is the tough protein found all over your body, in your skin, teeth, bones, tendons, joints, organs, muscles, cartilage, hair, nails, blood vessels, and digestive system.Â
As stated above, the production of collagen in our body naturally begins to slow as we age. This starts when you reach around the age of 35 and it can cause many kinds of negative effects on your body. At 40 years old, collagen starts to decrease sooner than your body can reproduce it. Then by the age of 60, the amount of collagen that has been depleted is over ½ of your body’s.Â
On top of aging, other factors have an impact on your body’s collagen levels. Some of these factors are smoking, genetics, nutritional deficiencies, pollution, and too much sun exposure. Fortunately, there are several types of collagen that you can add to your diet and daily regimen to help you maintain reaping the benefits of collagen as you age.
6 Types Of Collagen For Gut Health
The main factor that affects both your gut health and overall health is what you eat. Collagen is broken down by sugar-filled and highly-processed foods and it contributes to diabetes, excess body fat, high cholesterol, and can cause skin problems like acne and dull, dehydrated skin.Â
The easiest method to eat for a healthier gut is to make sure that you don’t consume processed foods. Having a diet that is predominantly composed of fruits and vegetables, and adding seafood and lean meats, or other sources of protein if you are vegetarian will greatly benefit your gut health.
Drinking collagen can provide many benefits and bone broth is one of the top things you can consume for a healthier gut. It is comparable to collagen because it works to heal your intestinal wall and also the function of your gastrointestinal tract is improved.
Smoothies are another great addition to your daily regimen for a healthy gut. Given that the food is already broken down, but still containing fiber, digestion is easier for your stomach while keeping you full and giving you lots of nutrients. The best way to have a smoothie is to make it on your own as you can be sure of its contents. You may add collagen powder for more benefits and include leafy greens and fruits so it is balanced.
An easily digestible, bioavailable form of protein is collagen peptides aka hydrolyzed collagen. It is exceptionally helpful for those who have gut problems. When you have unhealthy guts, there is often a struggle to absorb nutrients well from various food sources, particularly proteins. The good thing about this type of collagen is these are already broken down to their tiniest molecular structure and are all set to be used by your body.
Glycine and glutamine, two of the amino acids that are contained in collagen, might be mainly useful for gut health. There are a lot of promising studies surrounding these two amino acids. They are vital elements for reconstructing the tissue that lines our digestive tracts. One of these two, which is Glycine, aids in taming inflammation. It is especially significant for people who suffer from inflammatory gut conditions such as IBS.
Another one is if you don’t want to take a supplement or don’t have time to make a smoothie, there are many food bars available in the market that is a great way to increase your collagen intake. They are usually made with easy-to-digest hydrolyzed collagen and other good-for-the-gut ingredients.
Top Collagen Supplements for Gut Health
There are many different benefits of collagen supplements, so depending on what benefits you’re looking for, you can choose a specific collagen supplement.
Great Lakes Collagen Hydrolysate
Many different types of collagen supplements include a variety of ingredients that can range in health benefits. Great Lakes Collagen Hydrolysate only uses one ingredient, Bovine Collagen Hydrolysate Collagen Types 1 & 3, which is one of its main benefits.
This brand in particular is great if you experience gut health issues, it can help strengthen your gut biome, leaky gut, amino acids, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), and general GI Tract problems.
GET THE BEST PRICE ON GREAT LAKES COLLAGEN HYDROLYSATELiveWell Collagen
LiveWell Collagen is all-natural hydrolyzed protein that is hormone-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, and keto-friendly. This supplement is similar to Great Lakes Collagen Hydrolysate and is made with type 1 and type 3 collagen sourced from grass-fed, pasture-raised, and Grade-A bovine.
Collagen supplementation can help treat intestinal permeability and increase overall digestive function. If you have gut issues, it is worth giving a supplement a try. LiveWell Collagen is also great for your skin health, improves your good and bad gut bacteria, and potentially your immune system, according to recent studies.
USE CODE “SHARE10” FOR 10% OFF LIVEWELL COLLAGENYouTonics Collagen Renewal
YouTonics Collagen Renewal is unique as they include hydrolyzed collagen protein, oil-soluble vitamins A & E, and amino acids.
If you have skin issues or skin conditions, your body may be having a negative response due to gut health issues. This can range from gut lining to sensitivity to foods, to leaky gut and the side effects from that, and even other underlying health conditions.
GET THE BEST PRICE ON YOUTONICS COLLAGEN RENEWALVitauthority Multi Collagen Protein
Vitauthority Multi Collagen Protein is a supplement that totes a variety of benefits like youthful skin, strong hair and nails, healthy weight, and even stronger bones and joints.
This supplement choice is moderately priced and well-loved, as you can see through all of the reviews on their site.
GET 20% OFF A VITAUTHORITY BUNDLEOrgain Collagen Peptides
One of the more popular collagen supplements on the market, Orgain Collagen Peptides is a great option if you are wanting to give collagen a try. Each serving size of Orgain Collagen includes 20 grams of grass-fed, pasture-raised collagen with only 0 grams of sugar.
GET THE BEST PRICE ON ORGAIN COLLAGEN PEPTIDESDoes Collagen Heal The Gut?
Amino acids are essential when it comes to a leaky gut. In particular, the amino acids glutamine and amino acids glycine are necessary to mend and heal the gut wall. As stated above, both of these amino acids are found in collagen.
Collagen is surrounded by water and stomach acid when ingested. It draws water molecules and acidic molecules as it is a hydrophilic molecule. It helps with breaking down proteins and carbohydrates as it goes through the gastrointestinal tract and consequently aiding food move through it more efficiently.
Collagen synthesis is a key aspect of healing and repairing your intestinal lining. New muscle cells are prepared if there is harm done to the lining. When new muscle cells are generated, collagen production is increased. Proving that collagen is vital for damage repair.Â
Also, when it comes to a leaky gut, the permeability of the stomach is weak, allowing food particles, bacteria, and pathogens to enter your body’s bloodstream. This is problematic because not only does it irritate your gut, but it can lead to long-term issues as well. This is one of the benefits of collagen to your diet, as it can slowly help aid the effects of a leaky gut.
How to Use Collagen for Gut Health
Aside from the many health benefits, collagen is great because it’s easy to add to various foods. One easy way to add it to your day-to-day is by adding it to your smoothies or beverages. Collagen peptides are particularly easy to dissolve.
Can Collagen Cause Digestive Problems like Leaky Gut?
As of now, there are no known risks related to consuming collagen supplements. Though, there are supplements that contain common food allergens. You must make sure that you check the ingredients list of the labels to avoid having allergic reactions.Â
Furthermore, collagen supplements can cause digestive side effects, like feelings of fullness and heartburn. Despite these, collagen supplements appear to be harmless for most people generally.
Collagen has been proven to improve and heal stomach issues. That’s why it’s greatly unlikely that it would be the reason to cause problems instead. The only time it could cause problems is if you get and consume a supplement that has additives in it. An example is if you purchase a product that contains added sugar and doesn’t use organic or non-GMO collagen. That is when your stomach could get upset, you experience stomach cramps, or can even appear to experience weight gain from bloating.
On the other hand, there is no reason that you’ll have stomach issues if you are buying high-quality supplements that have no additives and are purely natural.
In conclusion, make sure that before you take any kind of supplements, consult your doctor first. This is very important because it could have a reaction with a medication you are currently taking or it might have a different reaction on your body.
Even though collagen is commonly safe, easy-to-use, and undeniably worth trying for its many benefits, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
