Does collagen make you gain weight? Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body. It is naturally found in animal flesh like meat and fish that has connective tissue. Even though it is abundant in the body it is still a very popular selling supplement. And it is marketed to improve the health of your skin, nails, hair, and all components of the fountain of youth.
Collagen supplements will not make you gain weight but eating lots of bad food will though. Most of the studies on collagen supplements are related to joint and skin health. Human studies regarding this are limited but randomized controlled trials have found that collagen supplements improve elasticity.
Does collagen make you gain weight? Photo credit: iStock-Yulia Lisitsa
Some of the other randomized trials have found that collagen supplements can improve joint mobility and decrease joint pain in athletes. Some of the foods that boost collagen production are fish, meats, nuts, seeds, chicken, eggs, dairy, legumes, soy, etc.
The benefits of collagen supplements are that it contains essential amino acids, and it contains additional nutrients like vitamin c, zinc, and biotin. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein which are important for building and preserving lean muscle mass.
Collagen peptides has been used for:
- Improving skin hydration and skin elasticity in older people.
- Improving pain and joint function in people that have knee osteoarthritis. But this can take up to 5 months of daily treatment for it to work.
A 2015 study found that collagen peptides can manage osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis occurs when your joint cartilage wears down and causes joint pain and stiffness.
The types of collagen supplements are:
- Gelatin
- Hydrolyzed
- Undernatured
Some of the things that collagen supplements can help with are increasing satiety and increasing the effectiveness of resistance training on muscle mass. So, it can help with weight loss indirectly, but it isn’t a magic pill or bullet. And it shouldn’t replace healthy habits like exercising and eating right. It should assist with what you are doing.
There was a 2015 study on older adults who did 12 weeks of weight-training. Half of the people took collagen peptide supplements and the other took a placebo. The people that took collagen peptides experienced great improvement in muscle mass and strength.
One of the reasons why collagen can increase satiety and fullness is because of the protein in it.
“Collagen supplements will not make you gain weight but eating lots of bad food will though.”- Celebrity Fitness & Nutrition Expert Obi Obadike
The Bottom Line taking a collagen supplement will not make you gain weight. But it can increase satiety and fullness, making you eat less food and lose weight. It can also help you increase muscle mass, improve your skin, hair, nails, etc.
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References
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https://doi.org/10.1139/apnm-2016-0390
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