The Best Nutritionist-Approved Collagen Supplements for Healthy Skin and Hair

If you're looking to create healthier-looking hair and skin, you've probably come across collagen supplements at some point. These supplements are a popular (and buzzy way) to get some of the major nutrients you need for healthy hair, nails, skin, and joints.

Collagen supplements, which usually come in powder form, can help add the nutrient to your diet, which your body makes naturally but may be deficient in—especially as you get older. If you're interested in taking a collagen supplement, it's only natural to have questions about what, exactly, this is and what it can do for you. Nutritionists break it all down.

What is collagen?

Collagen is the most abundant protein in your body, according to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. It has a fiber-like structure that's used to make connective tissue. That connective tissue is a big component of your strengthening your bones, skin, muscles, tendons, and cartilage, and allowing them to stretch.

"Collagen are types of proteins that make up the structure of everything from hair, skin, and nails to tendons, ligaments, and muscles," says nutritionist Scott Keatley, R.D. and co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy.

Collagen is found naturally in animal flesh like meat and fish, and some plant foods have materials for collagen production that can happen in your body, explains Jessica Cording, R.D., C.D.N., a dietitian and health coach, and author of The Little Book of Game-Changers. As you get older, your body naturally makes less collagen.

What can collagen supplements do?

Collagen supplements "do exactly what they say—they supplement your diet to make sure you're getting all 28 types of collagen," Keatley says. If you're deficient in collagen, supplements "may improve your skin, prevent bone loss, lessen joint pain, increase muscle mass, and protect your heart," Keatley says.

There is some research to support this. "Studies show some benefit to skin elasticity and hair, joint, and nail health," says Cording.

What should people look for in a collagen supplement?

While experts recommend trying to get your collagen from food sources like meat and bone broth, they suggest looking for the following if you need or want to try a collagen supplement:

• Hydrolyzed proteins. "Being hydrolyzed means that the collagen proteins are broken down into amino acids and are easier to absorb," Keatley says.
• Vitamin C. "Vitamin C is important because it is a major player in collagen synthesis in the body," Keatley says.
• Different classes of collagen. These are broken down into Type I, Type II, Type III, Type IV, and Type V, Keatley explains.
• Third-party testing. This ensures that an outside group has taken a look at the product and ensured it does what it claims to do, Cording explains.

Does it matter how you take a collagen supplement?

You can take collagen in a capsule form, but it's most commonly sold as a powder. "When I have a patient who is interested in taking collagen, I tend to recommend the powder because you get more protein in that form," Cording says. "Anecdotally for people that I've worked with, it's more satiating and I've observed people responding to it better."

These are the best collagen supplements out there.