What is Collagen Good For?

Collagen blends are beginning to take the world by storm, but how much do you actually know about this protein, or what it does? Here, we discuss what each of the three main types of collagen are, and how they target the body.

What Does Collagen Do?

Our natural collagen levels start depleting from our early 20s, as much as 1% per year. For this reason, it’s important to know how to supplement this if we want to increase and maintain the health of our skin, joints, immune systems and more.

There are 28 types of identified collagen, but the most common ones in the human body are types I, II, and III. In the body, these types make up specific tissues.

Together, these three types make up 80-90% of the body’s collagen, and each one carries out a slightly different function. Keep reading to see what they do, and how Pura Collagen goes one step further.

Type I

Type I collagen should be your go-to source for strengthening your hair, skin, and nails, as well as your bones and ligaments, making it a great supplement for addressing overall health. It’s the most common type of collagen and is the main collagen we use in our glow+ product, which focuses on rejuvenating the skin and helping you to, well, glow!

Type II

Type II collagen helps us maintain the lining of our guts and build cartilage, tendons and joints, while also supporting our digestive health and immune system. This type is only currently available from land mammal sources. That is why, at Pura Collagen, we don’t offer a marine source for our flex+ product, which specifically targets joints and cartilage.

Type III

Type III collagen is typically found alongside type I for skin elasticity and hydration. Known as fibrillar collagen, this type is most important for the healthy function of the cardiovascular system. It’s also crucial for wound healing and tissue formulation, and is the second most abundant type of collagen found in the human body.

What is Collagen Powder?

Collagen is a naturally occurring protein, most known for providing various sources and forms of structure in the body, and which makes up about 30% of all the protein in your body. The molecules are made of three polypeptides, in a repeat pattern of glycine, proline, and an amino acid, which makes a particularly strong triple helix.

We source our collagen from gelatine, which is further broken down to tiny molecules called peptides, via hydrolysis. Peptides are compounds of two or more connected amino acids. It’s easier for your body to absorb the collagen in this form because it breaks down the molecular bonds between collagen molecules.

How is Pura Collagen Different?

At Pura Collagen, this hydrolysed collagen then undergoes an additional patented enzymatic process that further specifies the collagen into bioactive collagen peptides®. This is what we then use to create our targeted collagen powders.

This means that each peptide (tendoforte®, fortigel®, verisol® and fortibone®) can only target and activate collagen production in very specific areas. For example, taking glow+ will only stimulate fibroblasts in the epidermal layer to produce collagen for hair, skin and nails, making it much more targeted than taking general type I, II, or III collagen.

How Does Collagen Work?

1. Mix your collagen powder into your smoothie, coffee, or however else you incorporate it into your routine.

2. When it’s ingested, collagen is broken down by the digestive system into amino acids. It’s easier for the body to do this when the collagen has already been hydrolysed, and our patented process ensures even further structural strength for the digestion process, therefore giving a more effective result.

3. These amino acids are then absorbed into the bloodstream and distributed to where the body most needs that particular protein. Whether that be targeting fibroblast for skin and hair or chondrocytes in tendons and ligaments, Pura Collagen peptides can and will only target specific collagen producing cells depending on the product.

Collagen peptide molecules are too large to be absorbed directly from the skin, so applying creams and serums are not going to be as effective as ingesting collagen directly. Through ingestion, your body can break down the protein to absorb as much as it possibly can.

Read more: How is collagen absorbed into the body?

Which Collagen Type Do You Need?

Keeping on top of your collagen levels and taking supplements as your natural amount decreases can be paramount for maintaining strong skin, joints, and general health as we naturally age.

Whether it be your skin, hair and nails, joints, sleep, or your immune system and general health, our products at Pura Collagen are filtered, hydrolysed, and then undergo an additional enzymatic process to ensure you’re only getting 100% of the collagen type you need. Browse our range of collagen peptide supplements to see which one could be right for your routine.