What is collagen and do collagen supplements actually work?

Updated: Jan 15, 2025

  • Aishani Rajarai

    BSc, Biochemistry and Cell Biology

Why Avea?

Benefits

Case study

Why Avea?

Benefits

Case study

Collagen isn’t just another social media trend. It’s taking over the wellness and longevity space for a reason. Collagen isn’t just another social media trend. It’s taking over the wellness and longevity space for a reason.

What is collagen?

Collagen is a protein made up of 19 different building blocks called amino acids. The key ones are proline, glycine, and hydroxyproline. These amino acids work together, along with nutrients like Vitamin Czinc, copper, and manganese, to form strong, rope-like structures.

 

The collagen proteins provide structural integrity to your skin, bones, muscles, and connective tissues - essentially acting as the glue that holds your entire body together. A strong collagen structure helps your skin keep its hydration and elasticity in other words makes you look youthful and gives you a radiant glow.

Unfortunately, As you hit your 20s, collagen synthesis naturally declines by roughly 1-2% each year.  This eventually leads to the visible signs of ageing, such as wrinkles and sagging skin, and a decrease in joint flexibility. It's likely that 50% of your collagen will be depleted by in your 60s.

To make matters worse, premature collagen loss is also triggered by:

smoking

alcohol consumption

high sugar intake

UV exposure

lack of sleep

lack of physical activity

unresolved stress

micronutrient deficiencies

poor protein digestion

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Do collagen supplements actually work?

Collagen isn’t just another social media trend. It’s taking over the wellness and longevity space for a reason. While a lot of doctors and experts used to dismiss collagen supplements, various new studies show that collagen supplementation can enhance skin elasticity and even support joint health and accelerate muscle recovery[1][2][3][4].

 

Collagen supplements can actually help the skin combat some of the signs of ageing from within as opposed to most topical skincare products, like creams, lotions, and serums with struggle to penetrate deep enough to truly impact the process that make our skin lose its elasticity and glow over time. 

What to look out for in a Collagen supplement?

1. Highly absorbable and bioavailable collagen

Collagen is a very large molecule and can most likely not be directly absorbed into your cells. Instead, the body has to expend energy to take the collagen apart into its building blocks, the amino acids and then reuse these to synthesise collagen. This is also why marine collagen is considered more popular than collagen from bovine origin as it is a smaller molecule.

 

Avea has taken a new approach and worked with ETH Zurich scientists to develop Colgevity™. Instead of using whole collagen molecules—which are too large to be absorbed—we focus on highly bioavailable building blocks like proline, glycine, and hydroxyproline. These are directly used in the body to stimulate collagen turnover, making our blend 4x more effective than traditional collagen supplements.

2. Combination with other essential ingredients

Collagen synthesis requires Vitamin C and in our current busy lifestyle it's often hard to get enough through your diet. There are also quite a few other ingredients that can work synergistically to strengthen and rejuvenate your skin, so why not combine them all together for a stronger effect. 

 

Avea’s Collagen Activator formula integrates powerful natural Vitamin C from Acerola Cherry with Astaxanthin algae extract, a potent antioxidant known for its ability to protect the skin from sun damage. The last ingredient, Calcium - AKG, is a special form of mineral calcium that doesn’t just support collagen production, but also optimises energy pathways, reducing cellular damage at the DNA level.

3. No nasty additives

Most collagen is made of fish waste and often a lot of nasty additives are added. Especially chemical flavours and sugar can act inflammatory and actually counteract the effect of a collagen supplement.

 

Avea’s Collagen Activator is 100% vegan, it uses amino acids that can be synthesised from plant material. We use natural fruit essences and the plant based sweetener Stevia with 0 calories for a nice refreshing taste.

4. Scientifically tested

Many supplement manufacturers just create products without testing their efficacy. Clinical trials are considered the gold standard to show that a supplement actually works.

 

Our Collagen Activator has undergone rigorous testing at ETH Zurich university and was then tested in a clinical trial with the dermatology experts at Hautwerk Clinic in Zurich. We validated the efficacy of our ingredients and dosage in the Collagen Activator.

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Collagen Activator

Nur für kurze Zeit: Code TRYAVEA15 – jetzt 15 % Rabatt sichern!

Title

Klinisch erwiesen: Regt die körpereigene Kollagenproduktion 4x effektiver an – für straffere, hydratisierte und sichtbar gesündere Haut von innen heraus.

Patentierte Formel, die die natürliche Kollagenproduktion des Körpers 4x effektiver aktiviert als herkömmliche Kollagenpräparate

✔ Entwickelt von führenden Longevity-Expert*innen in der Schweiz

100 % vegan, sauber und transparent – frei von Toxinen, Zusatzstoffen und Füllstoffen. Mit Stevia gesüßt.

✔ Gestützt auf über 500 wissenschaftliche Studien. Klinisch nachgewiesen: verbessert Hautfeuchtigkeit & Hautstruktur bereits nach 30 Tagen.

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Wirkung

Erhöht deine körpereigene Kollagenproduktion

Unsere eigenen Forschungen an der ETH Zürich haben gezeigt, dass unsere Kollagenvorstufe Colgevity™ die Kollagensynthese in Modellorganismen und Mäusen deutlich effektiver steigert als herkömmliche Kollagensupplements.

Steigert die Hautfeuchtigkeit von innen

Erhöhe den Feuchtigkeitsgehalt deiner Haut mit unserem Collagen Activator. Es wurde klinisch nachgewiesen, dass er die Hautfeuchtigkeit um 95 % erhöht und den Teint tief durchfeuchtet und widerstandsfähig macht.

Verbessert die Textur und Glätte der Haut

Unser Collagen Activator verfeinert die Hautstruktur effektiv, indem er das Erscheinungsbild der Poren um 9 % reduziert und die Glätte um 21 % verbessert, was zu einem ebenmäßigerem und verjüngten Teint führt.*


Optimiert den Hautschutz vor UV-Schäden*

Studien legen nahe, dass eine Astaxanthin-Supplementierung dank ihrer entzündungshemmenden und antioxidativen Eigenschaften altersbedingte Hautschäden verlangsamen und die Haut vor umweltbedingten Belastungen schützen kann


Fördert gesunde Gelenke durch Unterstützung des Knochenwachstums

Alle Inhaltsstoffe in unserem Collagen Activator erhöhen oder schützen nachweislich den Kollagengehalt und verringern Entzündungen, was zur Gesundheit der Gelenke beiträgt, indem es den Knorpelverschleiß verlangsamt.


Kann das biologische Alter mit der Zeit umkehren

Zahlreiche Studien, darunter auch unsere eigenen, belegen, dass AKG die Lebensspanne verschiedener Organismen verlängern kann. Eine Humanstudie zeigte eine signifikante Verringerung des biologischen Alters nach einer 7-monatigen Supplementierung mit 1 g Kalzium-AKG.

Inhaltsstoffe

Aktive Inhaltsstoffe:

Colgevity™ 8.400 mg (L-Glycin 5.000 mg, L-Hydroxyprolin 1.700 mg, L-Prolin 1.700 mg), Calcium Alpha Ketoglutarat 1.000 mg, Algenpulver 200 mg (liefert Astaxanthin 4 mg), Acerola-Fruchtsaftextrakt 150 mg (liefert Vitamin C 48)

Weitere Inhaltsstoffe:

- Siliciumdioxid als Trennmittel, um die freie Fließfähigkeit des Pulvers sicherzustellen, den Herstellungsprozess zu verbessern, die Einheitlichkeit der Zutaten zu erhalten und die Stabilität des Endprodukts zu erhöhen


- Citronensäure als Säureregulator zur Stabilisierung des pH-Werts, Verbesserung des Geschmacks, Erhöhung der Löslichkeit, Verhinderung von Mikrobenwachstum und Schutz der aktiven Zutaten, um ein hochwertiges und angenehmes Endprodukt zu gewährleisten


- Steviolglykoside aus Stevia als Süßungsmittel, der als natürlicher, kalorienfreier Süßstoff dient, den Geschmack verbessert, unangenehme Aromen maskiert und die Trinkbarkeit verbessert, während er für verschiedene diätetische Vorlieben und Einschränkungen geeignet ist


- Natürliche Himbeeraromen als Aroma zur Verbesserung des Geschmacks, Maskierung unangenehmer Noten, Steigerung der Verbraucherattraktivität und Förderung der regelmäßigen Einnahme des Produkts (nur in Collagen Activator Himbeere enthalten)


- Pfefferminzölpulver als Aroma zur Verbesserung des Geschmacks, Maskierung unerwünschter Aromen, Bereitstellung eines erfrischenden Kühleffekts und Verbesserung des sensorischen Erlebnisses (nur in Collagen Activator Himbeere enthalten)


- Saflorkonzentrat (Carthamus) als färbendes Lebensmittel zur Verbesserung der visuellen Attraktivität, Standardisierung des Produkterscheinungsbilds und Anpassung an die Verbraucherpräferenzen für pflanzliche clean-label Zutaten (nur in Collagen Activator Zitrone enthalten)

- Natürliches Zitronenaroma als Aroma zur Verbesserung des Geschmacks, Maskierung unangenehmer Noten, Steigerung der Verbraucherattraktivität und Förderung der regelmäßigen Einnahme des Produkts (nur in Collagen Activator Zitrone enthalten)

Herkunft

Bei Avea legen wir Wert auf Transparenz und Qualität. Wir beziehen unsere Zutaten global und konzentrieren uns auf Inhaltsstoffe mit ausgezeichneter Bioverfügbarkeit oder hoher Aktivität durch standardisierte Pflanzenextrakte. Jede Charge wird streng doppelt auf Reinheit durch ein unabhängiges Schweizer Labor getestet. Wir gehen über die Standardkennzeichnung hinaus, um detaillierte Informationen bereitzustellen und unser Kundenservice-Team steht für alle Fragen oder Anfragen zu Testergebnissen zur Verfügung.

Einnahme-empfehlung

Nimm täglich ein Sachet des Collagen Activators in einem Glas Wasser aufgelöst ein, am besten nach einer Mahlzeit. Alternativ kannst du es auch  1-2 Stunden vor dem Schlafengehen zu dir nehmen, um die Hautverjüngung zu fördern. Dank des Glycingehalts unterstützt du dadurch zusätzlich einen erholsamen Schlaf.

Why Choose AVEA?

Competitor 1

Competitor 2

Boosts the bodys natural ability to produce collagen

Plant based, 100% vegan

Fish-based

Beef-based

Natural flavour, no sugar

Artificial flavouring

Added sugar

Key support factors for collagen production (Vitamin C, Ca-AKG).

Vitamin C only

Clinically tested 

Why Choose AVEA?

Competitor 1

Competitor 2

Boosts the bodys natural ability to produce collagen

Plant based, 100% vegan

Fish-based

Beef-based

Natural flavour, no sugar

Artificial flavouring

Added sugar

Key support factors for collagen production (Vitamin C, Ca-AKG)

Vitamin C only

Clinically tested

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How to get the optimal effects?

Once you choose the ideal collagen supplement for yourself it's essential to use the supplement regularly for a continuous period. Your cells need some time to renew their collagen structure to show the full effects.

 

First results can be expected after 6-8 weeks. A recent clinical study with AVEA Collagen activator has shown first significant effects on skin texture and moisture after 4 weeks of use. After 3 months over 60% of users doubled the improvement of their skin texture compared to the first month. This shows how consistent use over extended time really pays off.

Save up to 25% with 
Avea's Collagen Activator annual Subscription

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Customer case study: Real results with Avea’s Collagen Activator

Still wondering whether you should get the Collagen Activator? Isabel’s story might just convince you.  

 

As a wellness professional, Isabel has dedicated her life to exploring holistic approaches to health and longevity. When given the opportunity to participate in Avea’s 6-month clinical study, she was eager to see if our Collagen Activator could make a difference. 

 

“All-around changes were noticeable - improved hydration, elasticity, and a more even skin tone, with fine lines visibly reduced. I was surprised at how quickly I saw these changes.” - Isabel

Isabel’s skin transformation after 3 months on Avea’s Collagen Activator

Hydration: Skin hydration levels surged by 18.6%, especially on her cheeks and arms.

Spots & hyperpigmentation: Saw a dramatic 144.4% improvement, leading to a more even skin tone and reduced dark spots.

Wrinkles: Initial increase, then smoothed out to a 7.1% decrease, giving her skin a more youthful look.

Texture: Rapid enhancement of 73.9% within the first month, stabilising at 39.1%, leaving her skin smoother and more refined.

Sun damage (UV spots): Reduced by 42.9% in the first month, settling at a 14.3% improvement after three months.

Brown spots: Minor but steady reduction of 4.3% in the first month and 2.2% by the third month.

Red areas (Inflammation): Reduced inflammation by 11.8% initially, with continued improvement to 4.4% by three months.

Skin microbiome: No change in porphyrins, suggesting a stable, healthy skin balance.

Not only did she experience enhanced hydration and reduced wrinkles, but her biological age also dropped by over 8 years. Isabel’s results prove that Avea’s Collagen Activator goes beyond surface-level benefits, supporting cellular vitality from the inside out.

References

The Avea Promise

Supplements crafted to support lasting energy and health. Developed with leading longevity experts. Clinicially tested. Swiss made.

made in switzerland

We manufacture in state-of-the-art, GMP-certified facilities that are regularly audited by Swiss authorities. Each product batch is sent to an independent Swiss laboratory for additional purity testing, ensuring the highest quality and safety.

backed by science

Our formulations are based on cutting-edge Longevity research. Led by Chief Science Officer Sophie Chabloz, our team collaborates with longevity experts from top institutions to create highly effective, science-backed products.

transparent ingredients

We carefully select the purest and most bioavailable plant extracts and compounds available. Our product descriptions clearly outline the production methods and origins of each ingredient.

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Collagen Activator

£67.00