Collagen is one of the most abundant protein found in your body. It is mainly responsible for preservation of texture and provide a structure to the skin. It is a major structural component of the connective tissue of your body. Around 25 % of total body protein is represented by collagen.
It is a major structural protein which gives strength and support to body tissues including skin, bone, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, muscles and blood vessels.
There are at least 29 different forms of collagen in your body. The main four types are type I, II, III, IV, out of which type I is found in abundance. The production and the quality of this collagen in your body diminishes which can be seen on your skin as it becomes less firm, cartilage also weakens as we age. Hence collagen becomes important. Vitamin C, glycine, proline, and copper are important nutrients required for collagen production. Along with that all essential amino acids are needed to make new proteins. Dairy, meat, poultry, sea food, are all good sources of amino acids.
Collagen is extracted from dead mammalian skin, from livestock (for commercial purposes) and from fish skin.
Fish collagen, otherwise known as marine collagen, is superhuman of collagens sourced from animals. Marine collagen is mostly type I collagen, which makes up at least 80 % of your skin. Since it is similar in structure with human collagen, it is ideally suited to top up your body’s collagen needs.
- Fish collagen could do several things to your skin from reversing the ageing process, decreasing the onset of wrinkles to restoring the hydration, elasticity, and firmness of your skin.
- It is mainly extracted from the fish skin. It contains smaller peptides than the bovine collagen.
- It is absorbed up to 1.5 times more efficiently into the body which means it has enhanced bioavailability over bovine counterpart.
- It has better solubility which makes it more palatable with your favourite beverage as compared to the bovine or mammalian collagen.
- Fish skin is one of the unused parts that gets thrown away during processing, so using them for collagen production makes it environment friendly.
- It incorporates 8 of the 9 essential amino acids that make up a total protein including glycine and proline.
- It has shown to have antioxidant properties.
Overall fish collagen gives you more value for your money.
~ Siddhant Sule, Sports Nutritionist, Mind Your Fitness!