Vitamin C and Collagen

Sep 28th 2021 The Perfect Supplements Team

What is the link between Vitamin C & Collagen?

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By pairing Collagen with Vitamin C, the body is able to make the most of its own internal Collagen production.

Perhaps you’ve seen information like this floating around…

“It is best to take Collagen and VItamin C together”

“Your body can’t make Collagen without Vitamin C”

“For beautiful, healthy skin, you need to take Collagen and Vitamin C”

Collagen production is strongly dependent on Vitamin C. Without the presence of it, Collagen production will halt. To better understand why, below we go over the physiology to separate fact from fiction when it comes to Collagen and Vitamin C. But first, let’s introduce you to the basics of Collagen and Vitamin C on their own.

The Role of Collagen in the Body

What is Collagen?

Collagen is a protein that is found in pretty much every part of our body – in our bones, tendons, ligaments, skin, muscles, cartilage, lining of digestive organs, and more!

The only thing our body has more of than collagen is water!

Collagen has gained a lot of press for rejuvenation of mature skin, hair, and nails and for good reason...

Collagen gives your skin strength and elasticity. 70% of your skin is actually collagen protein. Collagen helps to keep cellulite at bay by pushing overstretched, no-longer-elastic skin fibers (cellulite) down and stop them from showing on the surface of your skin. Beautiful skin from the inside out.

Having plenty of Collagen is key to nutrient-rich, thick, shiny, and healthy hair. Each bulb of hair on your head is surrounded by a sheath of Collagen with tiny micro vessels that deliver nutrients.

Collagen doesn’t end with just beauty boosting, it has positive influence on almost every system in your body. To dive further on the rest of the physiologic benefits of Collagen, check out our full length exposé on Collagen here.

Doesn’t My Body Have Enough Collagen?

We know that the body has plenty of Collagen...until it doesn’t. Fact is, you produce less as you age.

You see, Collagen levels start to decline in the body around age 20 and when body runs low on Collagen, things tend to not go so well. As Collagen plays a role in most major bodily functions, a shortage of it can have negative effects overall as you age, particularly noticeable in skin, nail, and hair health.

If I Need More Collagen, How do I Get It?

We believe there are two main choices if you want to increase Collagen in your diet.

The first is: make/buy bone broth from pasture-raised animals that are pesticide and hormone free. When boiled, the Collagen in connective tissue is broken down into gelatin and various other health promoting amino acids. Be sure to include skin, tendon, and bone in your broth for full benefits.

The second choice is: buy a high quality Collagen or gelatin supplement, that is made from pasture raised animals that are pesticide and hormone free.

We completely support getting the majority of nutrients from whole foods, like homemade bone broths. If you can have bone broth from grass-fed, organic cows everyday, that is optimal. If this isn’t in your daily flow (and for most of us it isn’t), taking a collagen supplement can be an option for additional collagen into your diet. Try ours for starters.

Perfect Hydrolyzed Collagen is great, but there are also ways to help your body make more Collagen, that is where Vitamin C comes in…

The Role of Vitamin C in the Body

What is Vitamin C and What Does It Do For Me?

Vitamin C is a water-soluble nutrient that acts as an antioxidant in our body. While Vitamin C plays many roles in our body, here are some of the main functions:

Antioxidant: Protects Cells from/Repairs Free-Radical Damage
Strengthens and Repairs Skin to Shorten Wound Healing*
Catalyzes Collagen Formation*
Boosts Immune Function*
Increases Absorption of Iron and Nutrients from Foods*

Can I get enough Vitamin C in my diet?

Actually, yes you can, I hope you do get Vitamin C through whole food dietary choices. Specifically: citrus fruit, peppers, strawberries, broccoli, brussels sprouts, and potatoes. That is exactly how nature has intended it to be. The NIH recommends Vitamin C >>> 65 to 90mg daily for adults.

If you do not feel that you can get your full Vitamin C intake through your diet, however (i.e. seasonality of foods - citrus season comes and goes, travel can make fresh food accessibility difficult; illness or stress on the system taxing more of everything including Vitamin C, which is not held in reserves within the body since it is a water soluble vitamin)… then, in instances like these, you might want to consider a whole food Vitamin C supplement that can boost your daily intake back up to a level where you can radiate.

Collagen + Vitamin C :: the Yin + Yang of Beauty

When Collagen is paired with Vitamin C, the benefit is literally manifested on your skin for you to see. You’ll find less free-radical damage done to skin fibers and instead more Collagen. This Collagen then repairs, and in effect, pushes cellulite down and stops it from showing on your skin. Beautiful skin from the inside out.

Why Take Both Collagen and Vitamin C?

By pairing Collagen with Vitamin C, the body is able to make the most of its own internal Collagen production.

Vitamin C exposure has been shown to increase Collagen and decrease elastin. Healthy skin contains high concentrations of Vitamin C, which stimulates Collagen synthesis and assists in antioxidant protection against UV damage to epithelial cells.

Vitamin C acts as a co-factor that stabilizes the Collagen molecule, and it also promotes Collagen gene expression. In particular, wound healing (associated with Collagen formation), thickening of the top layer of the skin, and development of connective tissue morphology.

In the skin, Collagen formation is carried out mostly by fibroblasts in the dermis, resulting in the generation the dermal-Collagen-matrix. In addition to stabilizing the Collagen molecule, Vitamin C also stimulates Collagen cellular production by fibroblasts. (1)

So Without Vitamin C, I Can’t Make Collagen?

this is correct, without Vitamin C, the body can't form Collagen. This antioxidant is an essential co-factor in Collagen production. Research shows Vitamin C directly triggers DNA to regulate and maintain the intercellular amount of Collagen, having a direct effect on anti-aging.

Vitamin C is needed for the synthesis and maintenance of Collagen, as it has an active role in Collagen production.

Is Taking Collagen + Vitamin C Just For Beauty?

Nope! Both Collagen and Vitamin C have many benefits beyond skin, hair, and nail health. So, while they make a perfect pair for helping with external beauty, they are also playing important roles across all systems of your body.

How Much of Each Should I Take?

At least 10 grams of Collagen a day is generally recommended.

Vitamin C levels should generally be between 240–1,000mg a day. The NIH deems 2,000mg/day the Upper Limit dose of Vitamin C daily.

Could I Take One Without the Other?

Sure. You do not need to take both, it is just a great combo if you are looking to see the best results in the shortest time period.

How to Pick the Best Collagen and Vitamin C Supplement

Can I Just Get the Cheapest Collagen Supplement?
LOL, Nope. Need to check things like: is it grass-fed? is lab tested? is it glyphosate free? Of course we love our Perfect Hydrolyzed Collagen and if you visit that page you will see a 9 Point Test on how to find the best Collagen.

What About The Vitamin C – Aren’t they All the Same?

LOL, Nope. Most Vitamin C supplements on the market are synthetic forms of Vitamin C. Only a few companies sell true Vitamin C that comes from berries.

Acerola cherries, camu camu, and rose hips are some of the few food sources that naturally contain very high amounts of naturally occurring Vitamin C. Synthetic Vitamin C in the form of ascorbic acid can over time tax your organs, as much of it gets eliminated through the urine.

Most Vitamin C and multivitamin supplements contain ascorbic acid or ascorbate, which is the outer ring that surrounds the real Vitamin C complex. Real Vitamin C is a complex of several different factors, all of which must work together to get Vitamin Cs' health benefits.

Whole food Vitamin C, like our Perfect Acerola Vitamin C, is ascorbic acid “grown” into a food medium, which creates a final product that provides all of the cofactors needed for the body to fully assimilate the nutrients. Similarly, food-based vitamins include a food complex that may consist of fruit and vegetable phytonutrients combined with Vitamin C.

Conclusion:

The science shows that Collagen and Vitamin C work well together to help increase Collagen levels in the body. While either can be taken alone and still be effective, those looking to maximize their Collagen levels in the shortest period of time would be best served by combining Collagen and Vitamin C.

reference:
(1) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5579...