Your Cart is Empty
Would you be surprised if I told you that collagen peptides are the hottest natural health product on the market today? In fact, they’ve been one of the top selling natural health products for the past few years running.
People are coming to know how collagen peptides benefit them, but a lot of people don’t actually know what a peptide is. So, let’s take a look at that.
First let’s start by saying that collagen is a type of protein and we have more collagen protein in our body than any other single protein. Since proteins are involved in every part of cellular life, they’re vital for our body’s proper functioning and good health.
Proteins are made up of hundreds to thousands of amino acids and those amino acids are held together in chains by bonds called peptide bonds. Peptides and proteins are related in that when you break a protein into smaller pieces, you get “peptides”. We use water molecules to break collagen proteins into smaller peptides; that’s how we get the full term “hydrolyzed collagen peptides”.
All of the collagen powders, pills and drinks that we’re buying to make our skin look better and get rid of joint pain are hydrolyzed collagen peptides. Some peptides are extremely small, having only 2 or 3 amino acids (dipeptides and tripeptides), while others might have dozens of amino acids. Smaller peptides are easier for your body to digest and absorb.
Different types of peptides have different functions in the body. Some peptides are made from soybeans, others from canola, eggs and more. Depending on the protein source, the peptide will do different things in the body. Some peptides help with the function of your blood vessels, others can improve certain liver functions, and some help with memory and cognitive function. Actually, peptide research is a significant area of medical research.
A collagen peptide is like a special food for the cells in your body that produce collagen in your tissues. We have those collage-producing cells in our skin tissue, our cartilage, ligaments, muscles, bones and more. When we eat collagen peptides, they help those collagen-producing cells increase the production of our body’s own collagen.
This is the reason that we see improvements in the quality and health of so many different tissues in our body. Collagen peptides help to boost the strength and integrity of our cells and tissues. Visually they make our skin look and feel better, but they also help our joint tissues (cartilage and bones) by making them stronger and function more smoothly.
