Rebuilding Your Collagen Stores Through Food and Safe Supplements

•Collagen makes up nearly one-third of your total protein — It’s found in your skin, joints, bones, tendons, ligaments, and even the lining of your blood vessels. There are around 28 types of collagen, but over 90% consists of Type I, Type II and Type III.

Type I is responsible for the strength and elasticity in skin and bones. Type II is found in cartilage, making joint movement smooth. Type III supports blood vessels and skin structure. Together, they operate like scaffolding to hold your body in shape.

•Collagen isn’t static — Your body constantly breaks it down and rebuilds it. For that to happen, you need to consume the raw materials, such as glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline, from your diet. These are amino acids, and without enough of them, your body can’t synthesize enough collagen of its own. Vitamin C plays a direct role here as well, as it acts as a cofactor for collagen synthesis.

When collagen levels drop, the body loses flexibility, which is easy to notice. The most immediate signs include wrinkly, sagging skin, but the deeper damage is silent and systemic — joint pain, slower tissue repair, and osteoarthritis.

•Proper collagen synthesis requires the necessary cofactors — One of the standout findings in my research is how much collagen turnover depends on signaling, not just raw material. In other words, your body needs more than just amino acids — it needs catalysts to build collagen, such as vitamin C, copper, and zinc. Without them, your body likely won’t produce enough collagen for its regular needs.

•Collagen plays a major role in gut lining integrity — Glycine and glutamine help maintain tight junctions in the intestinal wall to keep undigested food, toxins, and pathogens from leaking into the bloodstream. A compromised gut barrier, often called “leaky gut,” has been linked to autoimmune conditions, inflammation, and metabolic disorders.

•Your blood vessels are lined with collagen — It’s an important structural component of arterial walls. Without enough of it, your arteries can stiffen or even rupture, raising your risk for aneurysms, heart disease, and poor circulation.

•Collagen is not interchangeable with other proteins — Simply eating a steak or chicken breast won’t provide enough essential amino acids to create and maintain connective tissue. That’s why I stress the importance of consuming collagen-rich foods like bone broths and chicken skin in the following sections.

•There is a lack of collagen in today’s culinary preferences — Essentially, traditional collagen-rich foods were quietly phased out in favor of easy-prep, mass-marketed products that no longer contained connective tissue, skin, or bones that once made up the backbone of our ancestral diets.

Collagen-containing dishes are now replaced with easy-to-cook options like boneless, skinless chicken breasts and other cuts of collagen-lacking meat.

•Broths have disappeared from the dining table — Broth-based meals, once a staple in nearly every household, were sidelined in just a few decades.

Cartilage, tendons, and marrow-containing bones disappeared from recipes and restaurant menus. Instead of slow-cooking these parts to extract the nutrients, they were discarded or rendered for industrial purposes. And with them went the amino acids that allow your body to produce new collagen.

•Frozen meals and fast-food culture accelerated the change — The mass production of food made it impractical for businesses to include slow-cooked animal parts that required time to prepare. Instead, big industry players favored pre-cooked, flash-frozen items with extended shelf life. These meals rarely contain whole cuts with skin or bones, practically eliminating collagen access to the public.

•Retail trends played a major role in shaping eating habits — Grocery stores began favoring cuts of meat that were uniform in shape and easy to present to buyers. This meant removing bones, trimming off connective tissue, and packaging clean muscle meat, which is convenient to sell, but deficient in collagen.

Consumers now equate cleanliness and quality with the absence of skin, bone, and fat, highlighting how public perception was shaped more by marketing than scientific evidence. Basically, lean protein became synonymous with health, pushing consumers away from foods that supplied foundational proteins.

•The label isn’t telling the whole truth — Many collagen supplements sold in the market are not food-grade. Instead, they’re derived from “tannery-grade” animal hides, which are scraps originally intended for leather production, not human consumption. These materials undergo heavy chemical processing, including treatment with harsh acids and solvents, which leave behind residues that you’ll eventually swallow and digest.

•Manufacturers are painting a misleading picture — In one study that I reviewed, about 1 in 4 leading collagen products failed basic quality standards. Some were missing the amount of protein listed on the label. Many brands couldn’t even trace the origin of their collagen to any verified source. In other words, companies are selling mystery powders with no accountability.

•Products are teeming with toxins — Most collagen products are untested for heavy metals, bacteria, and solvent residues. While third-party testing is available, most brands don’t bother to undergo this process. A 2020 report by the Organic Consumers Association and Clean Label Project made headlines by revealing that many top-selling collagen peptide supplements contained measurable levels of heavy metals.¹

In their analysis of 28 popular collagen products (largely sourced from bovine and porcine materials), 64% of products tested positive for arsenic, 37% for lead, 34% for mercury, and 17% for cadmium in at least one sample. None of these exceeded federal safety limits, but some individual products had concerning concentrations. For example, a chocolate-flavored collagen powder had more than twice the California Proposition 65 limit for cadmium.²

•Adulteration with non-collagen proteins — Going deeper, one technique that manufacturers use to deceive consumers is manipulating the nitrogen levels. Companies spike their products with cheap nitrogen-containing additives to inflate protein readings on lab reports. So, even if your powder passes lab analysis, it could be little more than filler.

•The term “marine collagen” is widely misused — Many tested products display this label but offer no proof of fish origin or species. If you’re sensitive or prone to food allergies, this presents a hidden risk.

•There’s a misunderstanding about the form of collagen itself — High-quality supplements use hydrolyzed collagen because it’s easier to absorb. However, even hydrolyzed forms are not created equal. Without access to clean, raw materials, that means you’re not just paying for broken-down collagen made from slaughterhouses or tannery byproducts.

•Companies mask low-grade collagen further — Some brands add artificial flavors, dyes, and preservatives, introducing an unnecessary chemical load to a product that’s supposed to support optimal healing and repair.

•Boil your own bone broth — Don’t choose the boxed, flavored versions in grocery stores. Instead, make real broth by simmering bones and cartilage for 12 to 24 hours. This process pulls out the bioavailable amino acids and minerals your body needs. If you’re short on time, using a pressure cooker can give you finished bone broth in as little as two to four hours. For more details, see “The Ultimate Guide to Bone Broth: Nature’s Collagen Supplement.”

•Consider other cuts of meat — Beyond broth and skin-on meats, try incorporating often-overlooked cuts like oxtail, shank, and tendon into your meals. These are collagen goldmines. When slow-cooked, they release gelatin, a partially broken-down form of collagen that’s easy for your gut to absorb and repurpose. Including these foods a few times a week is enough to shift your nutrient profile back toward healing and repair.

•Snack recommendations — Modern snacks can also contribute to your collagen intake, such as gelatin desserts. For example, unflavored gelatin combined with homemade fruit juice or purees allow you to create collagen-rich gummies.

•Choose a reputable supplement manufacturer — If you decide to go with this route, start by reviewing brands with a reputation for transparency. A trustworthy product will always indicate where they get their exact collagen source, such as “marine collagen peptides from wild-caught fish skin.” Likewise, avoid products with vague descriptions.

•Check the collagen content per serving — Many products spread a low dose across multiple servings to make the label look appealing, when they underdeliver. Based on the published literature, the average intake required for health benefits is around 15 to 20 grams per day, so make sure your chosen product meets this range.

•Additional tips for picking a supplement — Aside from studying the practices of a company, carefully study the ingredient list — make sure it contains “hydrolyzed collagen peptides.” If you’re looking for flavored versions, that’s okay but make sure it uses natural flavors.

Be wary of sensational claims as well, such as “instant wrinkle remover,” or “miracle.” You must also check the reviews of any collagen product that catches your attention, both from users and consumer advocacy groups that lab-test products.

•Look for certifications — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not thoroughly test supplements, so it’s up to third parties to provide assurance to consumers. Look for trustworthy seals such as NSF (National Sanitation Foundation) Certified for Sport, USP (U.S. Pharmacopeia) Verified, and ConsumerLab Approved.

For example, look for a Certificate of Analysis (COA) on the company’s website, or directly contact them for test results.

Rebuilding Your Collagen Stores Through Food and Safe Supplements