just personal; it was undeniable evidence. And thus, Vinita's mission to share these remarkable results with others was born—an authentic journey from beneficiary to advocate for the power of collagen.
When taking consumers like Vinita into account it is no surprise that collagen has quite a lucrative market. In 2020 the U.S. spent $293 million on collagen supplements. The spend is predicted to grow to $6.5 billion by 2025. It was interesting to hear Laura and Vinita’s perspective on the collagen industry and how it’s helped
them. Needless to say, the advantages of collagen are no secret to the beauty industry, however there are many other benefits collagen offers.
What is collagen anyway?
Collagen is the most abundant protein in our body. It’s a major component of our hair, nails, bones, skin, muscles, tendons, and cartilage and assists muscle and joint mobility and is responsible for skin-elasticity.
As early as our mid-to-late 20s our bodies naturally make less collagen. This slow-down starts the aging process, such as wrinkled skin and stiff joints, leaving us searching for this miracle protein from other sources in our quest to age gracefully both aesthetically and physically.
As a result, people are searching for supplements anywhere they can. Collagen can be consumed in a myriad of different ways with the principal manners being via pills, liquids, or powders. These supplements are sourced from animals, sea life and eggshells. The skin and bones of cows (bovine), chickens, and pigs (porcine) are the sources for animal collagen and marine collagen is sourced from fish and other sea life.
The Challenge - Not all collagen is rooted in quality
Many established beauty and wellness brands are already capitalizing on this growing market but as consumers it’s important to understand that not all collagen is the same.
According to research done by the Clean Label Project Investigation around 86% of collagen consumers were at risk of using a supplement that contained heavy metals. These metals include lead, cadmium, and arsenic. The idea that we may be consuming heavy metals along with the so-called ‘clean’ supplements is alarming to say the least.
In fact, many of the so-called clean food and products we consume contain these heavy metals simply due to how the animals in our agricultural system are fed. Many of these useful animal byproducts come from animals raised on industrial factory farms or Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) - where among other things, the animals are exposed to heavy metals. Unfortunately, the presence of heavy metals in America and collagen products is almost impossible to avoid.
Photo Credit Liubov Ilchuk