September 19, 2022
Q: Does chain length matter for collagen? What does it mean?
A: Collagen is a type of protein in our body that is made of repeating units of 3 amino acids, Glycine, Proline, and Hydroxyproline. It is a ubiquitous, glue-like substance that is found in virtually all connective tissue, such as our skin, joints, muscle, cornea of our eyes, blood vessels, digestive tract, and even in our teeth. Although our bodies can make it, the breakdown of collagen surpasses the production of it as we age, so we have to source it from supplements in order to maintain collagen levels in our bodies. It is important to take a lower molecular weight (“kDa”), shorter collagen, or else you will not get full absorption. Each connective tissue responds to a different chain length and sequence, thus it is crucial to get the appropriate chain length of collagen for the intended therapeutic target and purpose. CanPrev uses an enzyme-based extraction process to cleave collagen chains from a pure collagen protein source, which leaves proline amino acids on the ends of the chains to assist in resisting heat and acid; the powder can be mixed easily into any hot or cold beverage. Check with an integrative pharmacist or physician to confirm whether supplementation is appropriate for your health.
