Collagen Recommendations

Collagen supplements from Health Leads, alongside related ingredients including vitamin C, silica, hyaluronic acid and MSM. Vitamin C contributes to normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin, cartilage and bones — an authorised EU health claim. Available as capsules and powders.

9 products

Frequently asked questions

What does vitamin C have to do with collagen? Popular
Vitamin C contributes to normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin, bones, cartilage, gums, teeth and blood vessels. This is an authorised EU health claim. The body uses vitamin C as part of the process by which it assembles collagen, so adequate vitamin C is necessary for collagen to form normally.

This is why vitamin C is so often found alongside collagen products, and why it is worth ensuring good vitamin C intake if collagen is your reason for looking at this range.
What is collagen?
Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body and the main structural component of connective tissue. It is found in skin, bones, cartilage, tendons, ligaments and the walls of blood vessels, where it provides strength and structure. The body produces collagen continuously from amino acids.

Collagen supplements typically provide collagen peptides derived from animal sources such as bovine or marine collagen. There are no authorised health claims for collagen supplements, so we describe what they are rather than making claims for them.
What are silica, hyaluronic acid and MSM?
These are ingredients often found alongside collagen. Silica is a form of the mineral silicon. Hyaluronic acid occurs naturally in the body, including in skin and connective tissue. MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) is an organic compound and a source of sulphur.

There are no authorised health claims for silica, hyaluronic acid or MSM, so we describe what they are and where they are found rather than what they do. Each is supplied individually so it can be taken on its own.
Does taking a collagen supplement work?
This is a fair question, and an honest answer is that the evidence for oral collagen supplements is mixed and still debated. Importantly, no health claims for collagen supplements have been authorised, which is why neither we nor any UK retailer can legally state that they produce a particular effect.

What is well established is vitamin C's authorised role in normal collagen formation. If your interest is collagen for skin, cartilage or bone, adequate vitamin C intake is the part with an authorised claim behind it.
What is the difference between the collagen products in this range?
Health Leads supplies collagen as straightforward collagen capsules, and as Collagen Plus, a complex combining collagen with additional ingredients. The plain capsules suit people who want collagen on its own; the complex suits those who want it alongside related ingredients in a single product.

Both provide collagen peptides. The product pages list the full composition and intake for each.

Vitamin C, Collagen and the Body's Connective Tissue

Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body. It forms the structural framework of skin, and is a major component of bones, cartilage, tendons, ligaments and blood vessel walls — the connective tissue that holds the body together. The body makes its own collagen continuously, assembling it from amino acids.

Vitamin C has a specific and well-established role in this process. Vitamin C contributes to normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin, bones, cartilage, gums, teeth and blood vessels — this is an authorised EU health claim, and it is the reason vitamin C appears so often alongside collagen products. Without adequate vitamin C, the body cannot form collagen normally.

This is worth understanding when choosing products. The authorised claim relating to collagen belongs to vitamin C, not to collagen supplements themselves — there are no authorised health claims for oral collagen, silica, hyaluronic acid, MSM or glucosamine, so for those ingredients we describe what they are rather than what they do. Collagen supplements provide collagen peptides derived from animal sources; silica and hyaluronic acid occur naturally in connective tissue; MSM is a source of sulphur; and glucosamine and chondroitin are components of cartilage.

The range spans collagen capsules, a collagen complex, vitamin C in capsule and powder form, and the connective-tissue ingredients above. For skin, cartilage and bone specifically, vitamin C is the ingredient with the authorised role, and ensuring adequate vitamin C intake is the evidence-backed foundation.

If you have joint pain, skin conditions or connective tissue concerns that persist, these are worth discussing with a GP rather than self-treating, as they can have causes that supplements will not address.