Should Men Take Collagen? 8 Reasons Why the Answer is Yes
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Is Collagen Good for Men?
Although this is a site geared toward women, there surely are men in your life that you care about--fathers, sons, brothers, husbands, partners. You may be especially focused on their health. As such, you may have wondered, should men take collagen?
As men and women approach their 30s, both genders experience less collagen production compared to what they enjoyed in previous years.
Each year after that, collagen production continues to decrease by about 1% per year.
Hence, the signs of aging appear--wrinkles, fine lines and less skin elasticity, painful joints, cranky gut, weaker blood vessels, arteries, connective tissue and smaller muscles--just to name a few.
Not to deliver more discouraging news, but there are lifestyle choices that are considered collagen killers, including:
- Too much sun
- Smoking
- Poor diet
- Excess sugar
- Processed foods
- Stress
It's clear that once anyone reaches their 30s, 40s, 50s and beyond, they see their collagen levels drop.
Therefore, many have felt their age and gained benefits from collagen supplementation and upping their collagen intake (not only for the protein aspect, but also for the valuable amino acids, like glycine).
They found by increasing their collagen intake, they not only makes sense not only because of the collagen protein, but also for the valuable amino acids (like glycine) too.
A high-quality hydrolyzed collagen peptide supplement (though a powder, liquid or even collagen creamer for coffee), bone broth and a healthy diet rich in vitamin C (one of the nutrients that synthesizes collagen fibrils) can help your body support new collagen production and protect the collagen you already have.
Check out our review of the best collagen supplements for men for our top picks.
8 Reasons Why Men Should Take Collagen
There are 8 reasons that men (and women) would benefit from taking a high-quality collagen dietary supplement. Let's take a look at the compelling benefits why men should take collagen:
1. Hair thinning/loss
First, here is why collagen for men's hair is helpful.
Because collagen is heavily present in your skin, and scalp is skin, it makes sense that men would want help to strengthen their scalp as much as possible.
Not only that, collagen can also help beard growth and fill in sparse patches in facial hair.
After all, a strong scalp will allow hair follicles to stay put longer and provide a healthy environment to encourage new hair growth.
Also, red light therapy for the scalp is also a good way to help regrow hair or use a specially-formulated shampoo, conditioner and anti-hair loss serum.
2. Increase testosterone
Low testosterone can affect men’s mood, sex life and health. Many men use testosterone replacement therapy treatments with good results.
The challenge is those treatments come with serious potential side effects.
Recently, scientists discovered that human collagen was crucial in transforming stem cells into functioning Leydig cells (the cells in the testes that produce the male sex hormone.
3. Bone health and joint pain
Arthritis is the deterioration and/or inflammation of the cushioning (cartilage) between joints.
Although there are over 28 types of collagen in the body, it's type II collagen that's concentrated in the cartilage between bones.
Further, a research study concluded hydrolyzed collagen peptide was effective in reducing joint pain in older people.
Most importantly, no harmful side effects were revealed during the study.
4. Increased muscle mass, strength and recovery
Importantly, collagen includes vital amino acids, such as arginine. Arginine is important as it helps the body to increase muscle mass.
Because muscle tissue is made up of approximately 10% collagen protein, striving to keep enough collagen in muscles can help lead to improved muscle mass and strength.
5. Promotes heart health
If a man cares about heart health, he'll want to know that collagen provides structure to his blood vessels.
Actually, researchers found collagen helps to maintain the flexibility in arteries.
In addition, collagen is known as an anti-inflammatory, fighting off the effects of free radicals from the outside environment. Those free radicals can damage the heart.
Lastly, an amino acid that is in collagen comes to the forefront again: proline. Proline can help keep arteries clear from fat.
6. Supports a healthy gut and digestive tract
Collagen is present in the cells that line the gut. It's this lining that allows nutrients to pass through the intestines to nourish other parts of the body.
However, if the lining is damaged in some way, unwanted contents in the gut may leak out. This is often known as 'leaky gut'.
As you can imagine, this can cause big digestive problems ranging from constipation, IBS, diarrhea to gastrointestinal pain and discomfort.
Another amino acid in collagen is glutamine. Glutamine can assist with digestion and has been shown to support a strong gut barrier.
7. Improve skin
The first signs of aging appear as wrinkles, often on the forehead, crow's feet around the eyes and sagging jawlines. All these symptoms are a result of having less collagen in the skin.
Yes, it's true that topical collagen doesn't go further down than the epidermis (the first layer of skin).
However, adding collagen (especially marine) can boost the hydration and elasticity in the skin, which helps smooth out those wrinkles and fine lines.
Finally, a recent study showed improved skin appearance and better wound healing when taking collagen powder for men.
8. Helps manage weight
Last but not least, another research study showed gelatin (concentrated collagen and amino acids from bones and joints from animals) is approximately 40% more filling than other proteins.
Collagen can provide a consistent feeling of fullness and satisfaction that may to lead to eating less and weight loss/weight management.
Click on the image above to check out this popular gelatin supplement
How a Man Can Get More Collagen In His Diet
Now you understand why collagen is good for men.
A man can look and feel his youthful best by adding more collagen or collagen-creating amino acids, vitamin C, zinc and copper to his diet.
Here are four easy ways for a man to get more collagen into his body:
- Eat collagen-rich and other superfoods to help produce collagen
- Drink bone broth
- Take a high-quality collagen powder for men (or collagen liquid)
- Use skin-care products that contain collagen
A man can protect the collagen he does have through eating well, exercising, getting restful sleep and keeping stress levels in check.
SHOULD MEN TAKE COLLAGEN? FINAL THOUGHTS
To summarize, the most abundant protein in a human body is collagen.
Collagen appears everywhere in the body, especially in the skin and cartilage in the joints.
Both men and women need a sufficient amount of collagen to maintain a strong internal structure and to look youthful.
Admittedly, more studies are needed to continue to show that additional collagen is scientifically proven to benefit men.
However, several studies performed already have shown the strong benefits of collagen, not only for men but for women too.
In addition, those men who have added hydrolyzed collagen to their daily routines saw the benefits for themselves.
After a consult with a health provider, doesn't it make sense for a man to take collagen supplements, drink bone broth and eat collagen-rich foods?