COLLAGEN PROTEIN VERSUS WHEY PROTEIN: WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

As collagen becomes more and more popular, you may wonder what the difference is between collagen and whey protein. Should you eat them both or should you combine them? Can one be replaced by the other? Is one better for you than the other? What type of collagen are they?

To explain the difference, it's important to know that one isn't necessarily better for you than the other because they simply serve different purposes in your body. To understand these two types, let's look at a few key differences to understand their uses.

WHAT IS THE BEST COLLAGEN SUPPLEMENT?

The source

The main difference is that the proteins come from different sources. Whey protein comes from milk, while collagen comes from beef or fish skin. Every protein you eat contains different amino acids, the building blocks of proteins. Because collagen and whey protein come from different sources, they contain different amino acid profiles, giving them different functions in our bodies.

Functions

Whey protein is a quickly digestible and complete protein and is mainly used for building muscle and is often taken before or after exercise. This is because it is quickly absorbed by the body and contains branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs). BCAAs are important amino acids required for muscle synthesis in the human body. Proteins such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy are the best sources of BCAAs, so for most people who eat a balanced diet they already get enough of these amino acids and don't need whey protein supplements.

Collagen, on the other hand, is rich in three amino acids that are missing in vegetable protein, whey protein and muscle meat proteins. These amino acids are glycine, proline and hydroxyproline. Consuming collagen provides you with the amino acids your body needs to build collagen, the fibrous protein that gives our bodies strength and structure.

WHY COLLAGEN IS IMPORTANT

Collagen is the main protein that makes up our body. Our body naturally produces collagen; However, as we age, our collagen production decreases. This is why as we age we often experience less joint mobility, brittle bones and wrinkly skin, as well as weaker hair and nails. If our body is less efficient at producing collagen, then we need to get it through our diet. Unfortunately, collagen has mostly been eliminated from today's diets as we no longer consume all animal body parts through homemade bone broth or eat organ meats as our ancestors once did.

COLLAGEN, WHEY OR A COMBINATION OF BOTH?

Paleo Powders collagen supplements can be taken at any time of the day. The number one and two uses of our products are to add collagen to coffee/tea or smoothies, but since collagen is a stable protein it can be cooked to high temperatures without destroying the nutrients. This makes our collagen, especially our collagen peptides, an easy protein boost to add to any baking recipe without changing the flavor. Really, the sky is the limit!

THE ULTIMATE COMBINATION: WHEY AND COLLAGEN!

If you want to improve your training performance, build more lean mass and recover faster from your workouts, then combining whey proteins with collagen is a great option. This will both give you the BCAAs your body needs to help with muscle synthesis and provide your body with collagen to improve the health of your joints, hair, skin and nails.

However, new studies also show that collagen contains substances that - preferably in combination with a diet with sufficient complete proteins - are interesting for strength athletes and individuals who want to build more muscle! The focus is primarily on glycine and hydroxypropylglycine.

Hydroxyprolylglycine, which appears in the blood after you eat gelatin or collagen, probably has a muscle-enlarging and muscle-strengthening effect. It stimulates the formation of muscle fibers - making them bigger and stronger. The focus of collagen as a specific supplement for the skin, hair and nails is slowly but surely shifting to an all-rounder that is even suitable for strength athletes.