People who ate collagen kept more of their body’s protein instead of losing it, compared to those who ate whey.
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (2)
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Pigs fed broken-down protein (like collagen) kept more nitrogen in their bodies, meaning they didn’t break down as much of their own muscle — collagen-like proteins help the body hold onto protein.
When rats ate collagen, they grew stronger bones, which means their bodies were holding onto more protein instead of breaking it down — suggesting collagen helps keep protein in the body.
Contradicting (2)
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In a direct test, whey protein helped overweight women lose fat and improve metabolism better than collagen — suggesting collagen doesn’t help the body keep protein as well as other proteins do.
Even when scientists tried to stop the body from breaking down protein, it still happened — so just eating collagen might not be enough to stop your body from using up its own muscle.