Collagen recommendations

[nfg2000]

Menopause beckons and I'm full of aches and pains. Wondering if collagen is a good idea. Ancient and Brave keeps popping up on my feed. Has anyone tried it? It seems to be bovine only and someone has mentioned it should contain fish as well?

Absolute Collagen is a rip off. It’s £34 for 14 days supply and they are just very good at marketing their product. You can get Swedish Nutra hydrolysed marine collagen from Amazon for £18 for 20 days supply. AC has 8,000 mg per serving, SN has 10,000. I don’t take either of them as I’m not convinced but I would definitely not jump on any bandwagons with this.

And absolute Collagen it's disgusting...

I also use Willpowders and recommend

Will powders for me! Great stuff

Those saying great…. Why? I’m considering purely for cosmetic benefits!

Every time I’m tempted to succumb to collagen supplements, I have to remind myself that a) there’s little to no proof it actually works and b) overall it’s pretty shit for the environment:

”But while collagen’s most evangelical users claim the protein can improve hair, skin, nails and joints, slowing the ageing process, it has a dubious effect on the health of the planet. Collagen can be extracted from fish, pig and cattle skin, but behind the wildly popular “bovine” variety in particular lies an opaque industry driving the destruction of tropical forests and fuelling violence and human rights abuses in the Brazilian Amazon.”

I’ve had my eye on a company that uses beef from organic, grass fed UK farms. But I’m still thinking it’s a bit of a waste of money! The poster upthread saying just eat more protein I think probably has it right…

I will add that I did product testing for Good Housekeeping a while back for Absolute Collagen - 3 months taking it made zero difference to me & I found the wasteful packaging horrifying. A plastic sachet into landfill for every single dose!!

Chuckling goat do sustainable marine collagen - 30 days in big packet so not bad for environment. I do think it helps bones joints hair skin etc - but only along side everything else like yoga, eating well etc. it's been over a year since I started and do think it is worthwhile.

@Bestthriller I'm still taking it - I'm 4 months in and I think it is helping. I'm loosing far less hair than I was. I also take biotin and I've loads of new growth.

I do wonder about the ‘sustainable’ label..marine collagen is essentially a waste product from fishing, which in itself is unsustainable (especially if you take ‘bycatch’ into account, so dolphins, turtles, seabirds caught in nets used by industrial trawlers). Presumably the collagen is mechanically extracted from skin, bone etc - and then given a premium pricetag.

It’s the same with palm oil - it’s often labelled ‘sustainable’ but that just means the deforestation and damage has already been done!

And the bigger the demand for collagen, the bigger the demand for industrial-scale fishing. It’s a vicious circle…and all for something that’s not even proven in testing? I’m still minded to just stick to focusing on protein…

'Experience the exceptional quality of our Pure Fish Collagen, a sustainable by-product of wild-caught North Atlantic cod. With a 95% protein content and 20 essential amino acids, it offers unparalleled bioavailability and purity. This hydrolysed type-1 collagen is sustainably sourced, ensuring both quality and environmental responsibility'

If you email Chuckling goat, I'm sure they'd be happy to discuss it with you.

I know, nothing is perfect, I do feel it helps though

I’ll look into it 👍🏻

Are any of these good ones in pill form? I can’t stomach the idea of drinking it, but could wash it down in one go.

For aches and pains, if you are not already I would try Omega-3, Turmeric, and perhaps Magnesium, Vit D+K2 - before trying collagen.

Also consider HRT if you are not already on it. Dropping estrogen levels really affect your joints and helps with longer term bone health. I started in January (2 year post meno) and it has helped me.

I'm using the clear collagen 360 from the protein works. I haven't been using it long enough to know if it's doing anything yet, but it tastes good.

One scoop of powder mixed in to 250ml cold water is 53calories and 13g protein. It's usually on sale for 14.99 for 30 days supply.