Collagen has become one of the most popular raw materials. According to the Grand View Research report, the market size of collagen in China is expected to exceed 10 billion yuan in 2027. Only in the first half of 2022, there are four domestic collagen-related enterprises have hit the market. Searching for "collagen" in Little Red Book also yields 125w+ notes. Collagen has become another popular ingredient after hyaluronic acid. However, whether it is the impact of listed raw material companies or the notes in the small red book, people's claims for the efficacy of collagen mostly stay in the perspective of beauty, medical beauty, skin care and beauty. In fact, collagen's ability is much more than that, and collagen has a unique effect in the field of joint health. Compared with the fierce medical beauty skin care market, can the collagen that is good for joint health become the next focus of attention?

Collagen 01 has become a new power point in joint health

Following medical beauty and skin care, joint health has become the second largest segment of the collagen market. Innova Market Insights 2022 data shows that the number of new collagen products for joint health increased by 85% between 2017 and 2021. According to Grand View Research, new joint health products containing collagen increased by 30% between 2019 and 2020, making them one of the fastest growing categories in the current nutritional supplement market. Among them, the best is non-degenerative type II collagen. In 2016, 52-week IRI multi-outlet data (MULO) provided by InterHealth Nutraceuticals showed that sales momentum for glucosamine and chondroitin products declined, Non-denatured Type II collagen (UC-II) products increased 61% in 52 weeks, generating an average of $15% more in performance and 13% more sales per UC-II product SKU. The world's leading joint health brands are adopting non-denaturing type II collagen as a new growth engine.

However, what exactly is non-denaturing type II collagen and why does it have a joint protective effect? What are the similarities and differences between it and the collagen commonly used in our doctors and Chinese?

02 More than 50 years of development, why is this collagen popular around the world?

1, medical beauty collagen ≠ Collagen in joint health Collagen is the most abundant protein in the human body, with different functions. At present, there are at least 16 kinds of collagen forms that have been confirmed, and the common types are type I, type II, type III, type IV and type V, mostly distributed in skin and tendons and other tissues. Among them, 80%-90% of collagen in the human body is composed of type I, type II and type III collagen, which are the three most widely used types in the medical and beauty industry [1]. Type II collagen is the main protein in cartilage. The matrix of articular cartilage consists of approximately 60% type II collagen and 40% other matrix elements. There are about 350 joints in the human body, made up of two moving parts. The bones where these two moving parts meet are covered with hyaline cartilage. These hyaline cartilages provide joint cushioning and reduce friction between the joints. Therefore, type II collagen has become an effective nutritional raw material to support joint health [2]. 2. Undenatured Type II collagen, undenatured type II collagen, which is the guardian of joint health and strength, was discovered in the early 1970s, using chicken breast cartilage as raw material and adopting low temperature extraction technology. Type II collagen retains the complete triple helix structure and biological activity. It is the type II collagen that is most similar to human articular cartilage structure in nature. Unlike denatured or hydrolyzed collagen, non-denatured type II collagen is not broken down by stomach acid and digestive enzymes in the gut. Unlike glucosamine, chondroitin, collagen and other components that maintain joints by supplementing the nutrients needed by cartilage, non-denaturing type II collagen takes a new approach to support joint health, namely "oral immune tolerance" [3,4]. This method works by sending signals to the body's immune system to promote the growth of joint cartilage. The combination of non-denatured type II collagen with specific immune cells in the gut can stimulate the immune response, and the resulting T-regulatory cells move to the articular cartilage and release cytokines that act as immune regulators, thus activating the activity of chondrocytes, triggering the repair and reconstruction of articular cartilage, and enabling the growth of new articular cartilage. Compared with other joint health components, the performance of non-denature-type II collagen is also quite impressive, supported by a total of 11 clinical studies, and clinically demonstrated to be better than glucosamine and chondroitin in reducing joint discomfort [5,6]. Compared to methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), although MSM has anti-inflammatory and anti-joint discomfort effects, it does not help repair damaged articular cartilage. Secondly, due to the unique mechanism of action of non-denatured type II collagen, its effective dose is as low as 40mg/ day, which can be applied to smaller and more user-friendly products [7,8]. The use of small doses can improve patients' daily administration compliance and increase the buyback rate. At the same time, it has a wider application range and is suitable for "multi-in-one" innovative dosage form [9]. In addition, non-denatured type II collagen was not found to have side effects commonly seen in other joint health components, such as nausea, diarrhea, and other gastrointestinal symptoms.

03 End

According to the World Health Organization, by 2030, about 1.4 billion people worldwide will be over 60 years old. The population with rheumatoid arthritis is growing at a considerable rate, mainly due to the increase in life expectancy, which in turn increases the demand for bone and joint health products. Under the current situation that joint discomfort has become a social common, the elderly are no longer the only audience in the field of joint health, and the younger age of joint discomfort has become a trend, which also requires the market to develop more targeted and more focused professional products for specific groups of people with The Times. Driven by this trend, effective ingredients will become a strong undercard in this blue ocean market, and collagen for joint health is bound to become a strong rookie in this segment, becoming the second growth curve of the collagen industry!