Type II Collagen

Collagen is a complex protein present only in animals and humans, with a triple helical structure. The joint cartilage is made up of type II collagen synthesized by chondrocytes. The undenatured form of type II collagen (UC-II), is derived from chicken sternum cartilage using little or no heat, consisting of powdered, glycosylated and shelf-resistant components. This limiting processing is just enough to concentrate the collagen and make it soluble ¹.

Published Health Benefits

1. Joint health

Undenatured type II collagen can be used to enhance joint health, promote joint flexibility, prevent osteoarthritis symptoms, relieve joint pain, thus improve the quality of life in osteoarthritis patients. Study has proved that consuming type II collagen can reduce the pain score in arthritis patients ².

2. Rheumatoid arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system acts against the body’s own type II collagen, causing inflammation and cartilage erosion. Research found that taking native type II collagen can help turn off the immune response against endogenous type II collagen, thus helping to prevent joint inflammation and cartilage degradation ³.

3. Skin health

Oral supplementation of collagen type II together with hyaluronic acid and chondroitin sulphate has shown to reduce facial lines and wrinkles as well as skin dryness and scaling problems ⁴. 

References:

1. Narayanan, V. & Gandhi, R. (2019). Understanding Collagen Supplements in Arthritis – Immunomodulation with Undenatured Collagen II Versus Cartilage Building with Hydrolysed Collagen II. Archives of Orthopedics and Rheumatology, 2 (2): 4-11.

2. Crowley, D. C., Lau, F. C., Sharma, P., Evans, M., Guthrie, N., Bagchi, M., Bagchi, D., Dey, D. K. & Raychaudhuri, S. P. (2009). Safety and efficacy of undenatured type II collagen in the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee: a clinical trial. Int J Med Sci, 6 (6): 312-321. https://doi.org/10.7150/ijms.6.312

3. Park, K. S., Park, M. J., Cho, M. L., Kwok, S. K., Ju, J. H., Ko, H. J., Park, S. H. & Kim, H. Y. (2009). Type II collagen oral tolerance; mechanism and role in collagen-induced arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Mod Rheumatoid, 19 (6): 581-589. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10165-009-0210-0

4. Aguirre-Cruz, G., León-López, A., Cruz-Gómez, V., Jiménez-Alvarado, R. & Aguirre-Álvarez, G. (2020). Collagen hydrolysate for skin protection: Oral administration and topical formulation. Antioxidants, 9: 181. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox9020181