Description

Common Collagen Claims (taken from actual websites selling collagen supplements):

• “improves skin elasticity,”
• “support bone and joint health,”
• “strengthen hair, skin, and nails,”
•  “may benefit the bodies cellular structure,”
• “support healthy skin, bone, and joints.”
• “will feed your skin health”
• “will improve nail appearance and strength”
• “lead to a noticeable hair thickness”

Collagen as a supplement is not regulated by the Drug division of The Food and Drug Administration

If you look at the bottom of the websites, or on the bottles, you will see a disclaimer that the claims “have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. ” More telling is “these products are not intended to treat, diagnose, cure, or prevent any disease.” Such a disclaimer is provided by the lawyers because if one claims to cure, treat, or diagnose an actual medical condition then it must have passed a rigorous FDA approval. To be clear, there have been no FDA studies that show collagen as a supplement treats any disease.

Supplements commonly will use “support xyz health” – where you can fill in the blank with hair, nails, joints, skin – in the case of collagen.

One of the main issues with supplements is “If the composition and quality of ingredients cannot be reliably ensured, the validity of research on dietary supplements is questionable. Moreover, the health of the US public is put at risk.”

Starr RR. Too little, too late: ineffective regulation of dietary supplements in the United States. Am J Public Health. 2015;105(3):478-485. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2014.302348

As such, even when you look at the studies which promote collagen, or collagen byproducts, they do not meet the most basic of studies which are done to evaluate pharmaceuticals. In order to have an evaluation of a pharmaceutical you must have three phases in the trial:

• phase one is determining the dose for safety. While the supplement industry is happy if you think all supplements are good and all pharmaceuticals are evil – everything, every drug, every chemical from water to salt to formaldehyde has a toxic dose
• phase two is to test the drug for efficacy and side effects. Some people will react poorly to a supplement just as they will a drug. WE need to know what those side effects are. With a supplement people who don’t feel well often just stop it – or, like my cousin, die (yes, I had a cousin who died from a supplement).
• phase three testing is to determine if there is truly efficacy, what is the effectiveness and what is the safety.
• phase four is post-marketing surveillance in the public because even though you have gone through trials with a number of phases and under strict supervision when a drug is released to the public you have the chance to see millions of reactions.

Thalidomide, for example, was released in Europe and even had two drug trials in the United States but was NEVER approved in the United States by the FDA because of insufficient data.

Vioxx was a drug used worldwide and was taken off the market in 2004 because of the risk of a fatal heart attack, but was taken off after it had passed multiple drug tests previously.

FDA testing is rigorous and specific, with the highest standards in the world. Collagen has NEVER had such rigorous testing performed. These tests have not risen to the level and in 2022 one report noted “More research is needed to establish knowledge of the effects and physiologic mechanism of collagen supplementation. Dermatologists should be aware of the unsubstantiated proclamations of collagen made by companies and in social media, as well as what evidence is established thus far, to be equipped to discuss collagen supplementation with patients.”

Rustad AM, Nickles MA,...