Woman shares before and after of taking collagen for entire year
Thinking about taking collagen, but want to learn more about the potential benefits?
Look no further, as one woman has shared all the changes she's seen in her body after taking the supplement for a year.
Marketed as a 'fountain of youth' in a bottle (or tub), it's highly likely that you've seen various health, wellness and cosmetic products boast about containing collagen or collagen boosters.
But what exactly does collagen do – and will taking it magically transform my appearance?
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One person who was keen to share her experience using the supplement was Sara Anderson, who posted a one-year collagen check-in to reveal all the changes she'd noticed.
Collagen is marketed as a supplement which improves your skin, joints and bones, as well as hair and nail strength.
Although Sara admitted that she couldn't credit any positive changes in her hair to collagen, with that being down to changes in her haircare routine, she did notice improvements to her joints, skin, and nails.
When it came to her skin, Sara noted that while she still developed pimples, she had managed to get rid of the 'roughness' and 'bumps' on her face.
"Before, sometimes if I didn't have any sort of foundation on, my face was just kind of blotchy and pinky - it just wasn't like one colour, and I think that since I started taking this, that has improved.
She added that this was among her biggest positive changes, as well as her nails. Sara also shared some 'before and after' photos, which you can view below:
Is taking collagen worth it?
While Sara, and many other people who've added collagen to their diets, have noticed positive benefits, it's worth noting that it's not some miracle, fix-all supplement.
This is backed up by a recent study published by the University of Anglia Ruskin, which concluded that people can taking collagen can see improvements to their skin, with menopausal women or those with UV-damaged skin seeing the most benefit, but cautioned that this was over a long period of time.
"Collagen is not a cure-all, but it does have credible benefits when used consistently over time, particularly for skin and osteoarthritis," Professor Lee Smith said of the study.
"Our findings show clear benefits in key areas of healthy ageing, while also dispelling some of the myths surrounding its use."
As for Sara's collagen journey, she revealed in a later video that she'd taken the supplement for around a year and a half, later switching to collagen boosters to see if they were any more beneficial.
She did, however, notice some changes to her skin after coming off the supplement, noting that her complexion appeared 'dull' and 'drab' after stopping collagen.
Brenna Cooper