Collagen
Another ingredient with science to support its joint health potential is collagen. Some companies have specialty ingredients for joint health, including InterHealth Nutraceuticals undenatured type II collagen UC-II, Rousselot's Peptan, and Biocell Collagen.
UC-II was the subject of a poster presentation by Jay Udani, MD, CEO of Medicus Research at the 2013 Scripps Natural Supplement Conference earlier this year. This study, which supported 2009 findings published in International Journal of Medical Sciences (Vol. 6, pp. 312-321), found that supplements containing the ingredient may improve joint flexibility as assessed by knee extension, compared to placebo.
Rousselot's hydrolysed collagen ingredient Peptan has been linked to both bone and joint health. A study from France found that the collagen was associated with an increase in the activity osteoblasts – cells responsible for cell formation.
A study by AIBMR’s Dr Alex Schauss found that daily supplements of BioCell Collagen reduced pain and other symptoms of osteoarthritis. Results published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (2012, Vol. 60, pp 4096–4101) indicated that 70 days of supplementation produced significant pain reductions in 35% of the study participants, compared with only 16% in the placebo group.
