Is Collagen a Good Protein Source?

From protein, we get amino acids. Adults need 20 different amino acids, 9 of which are considered essential because we must obtain them from the diet. Animal sources of protein are usually called "complete" protein sources because they contain all the essential amino acids in the proper amounts needed for growth and development.

While collagen is derived from an animal source, it is NOT a complete protein (it is missing the essential amino acid tryptophan). And of the essential amino acids it does have, they are in pretty low quantities. When you see 10 grams of protein in a scoop of collagen powder, it is very high in the NON-essential amino acids glycine and proline. These amino acids are found in, no surprise, the collagen in us (skin, hair, nails). This means don’t make collagen your predominant source of protein. If you have a bar with collagen, or maybe a serving of powder in coffee or a smoothie, great! But trying to skew the majority of your protein to collagen will only leave you needing to eat more total protein to meet your essential amino acid needs.

While it will contribute to your daily total protein intake — when it comes to supplementing with protein either to help support muscle protein synthesis pre/post workout or across the day what we want is a SOLID whey, casein, pea or soy/pea/plant blends that get us to a higher amino acid content. Specifically leucine. We typically want at least ~2.5 g of this. This specific amino acid plays an important role in helping stimulate the pathways that signal muscle protein metabolism in our muscles!

Collagen is made up of proteins, but it is not a protein supplement.