High collagen, often from supplements or conditions like scleroderma, causes symptoms like skin hardening/thickening, tightness, joint pain, digestive issues (bloating, diarrhea, constipation), fatigue, muscle weakness, numbness, and potentially mood changes or organ issues if severe, stemming from excess fibrous tissue buildup. While mild issues can resolve, persistent symptoms warrant medical attention to rule out serious autoimmune conditions involving excessive collagen production, notes a blog post on OstroVit and an article from Siloam Hospitals.
When an immune response tricks tissues into thinking they are injured, it causes inflammation, and the body makes too much collagen, leading to scleroderma. Too much collagen in your skin and other tissues causes areas of tight, hard skin. Scleroderma may involve many systems in your body.
The excess collagen gets deposited in the skin and internal organs, such as the lungs, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tract, where it causes the buildup of fibrous, scar-like tissue. Affected areas of skin become thickened, tight, and shiny, and affected organs may no longer be able to function properly.
Some users have reported skin changes such as a mild rash, hives, or even acne after starting collagen peptide supplements. One of the causes for this could be an allergic reaction to collagen or other ingredients used in the supplement. Allergy to the collagen itself is a rare event, but it may occur.
How to treat excess collagen?
Avoid collagen saboteurs: Sugar and ultra-processed foods (they trigger glycation, damaging existing collagen) Smoking + pollution (oxidative stress = collagen breakdown) Unprotected sun exposure (UVA rays are collagen's worst enemy)
Shiny and Tight Skin: Overproduction can lead to taut, shiny skin that restricts movement in severe cases. Color Changes: Affected areas might change in appearance, becoming lighter, darker, or even yellowish in some conditions.
Allergic Reactions
Because some types of collagen are made of fish scales, collagen often triggers allergic reactions, particularly in a person who is sensitive to seafood. The allergic reactions include wheezing, itching on the skin, shortness of breath, headache, and fainting.
Symptoms of Collagen Vascular Disease
Collagen is naturally high in histamine so it is possible that taking a collagen supplement can lead to an increase in histamine levels. This in itself is not an issue for most people, however, individuals that already have a high histamine intolerance may suffer an adverse reaction from taking a collagen supplement.
Symptoms of CREST syndrome
They look like firm, white or yellow bumps and often appear on your joints, fingertips and face. Raynaud's phenomenon: This means you have occasional spasms in your small blood vessels in places like your fingers and toes. They're painful and make your digits turn blue.
Scleroderma happens when the body produces too much collagen and it builds up in body tissues. Collagen is a fibrous type of protein that makes up the body's connective tissues, including the skin. Experts don't know exactly what causes this process to begin, but the body's immune system appears to play a role.
Symptoms of sensitive skin, especially itching, are also common in some autoimmune connective tissue diseases, including dermatomyositis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjogren syndrome, systemic sclerosis, as well as mixed connective tissue disease.
There is no treatment that can cure or stop the overproduction of collagen that happens in scleroderma. But a variety of treatments can help control symptoms and prevent complications.
Two examples of supplements associated with fatigue are tryptophan and collagen. Collagen (derived from the Greek words kola [“gum”] and gen [“producing”]) is found throughout the human body.
Collagen provides structure to your arteries, which keep blood flowing to and from your heart. Studies have shown that taking collagen supplements can reduce artery stiffness and increase levels of “good” HDL cholesterol in the body. This means it can help reduce your risk of developing heart conditions.
These diseases include osteogenesis imperfecta, many chondrodysplasias, several subtypes of the Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Alport syndrome, Bethlem myopathy, certain subtypes of epidermolysis bullosa, Knobloch syndrome and also some cases of osteoporosis, arterial aneurysms, osteoarthrosis, and intervertebral disc disease ...
The first signs collagen is working are often subtle skin improvements like better hydration, increased suppleness, and softer fine lines, along with stronger, faster-growing nails, usually noticed within 4-8 weeks of consistent daily use, with joint flexibility and hair changes appearing later. These early signs include skin feeling plumper, eyes/mouth area fine lines softening, and nails becoming more resilient, setting the stage for longer-term benefits.
Factors which can lead to collagen degradation include ageing (this is the main cause), disease, exposure to UV radiation and smoking. A typical form of collagen degradation associated with smoking is the loss of collagen in the skin, leading to premature ageing of the epidermis (i.e. wrinkles).
However, the answer is no, collagen does not cause weight gain. The only way to gain weight is to consume more calories than you burn, and collagen is not high in calories. In fact, each serving of Absolute Collagen contains only 32 calories per 10ml serving.
Side effects from bovine collagen are rare and most studies show no adverse effects. That said, some people who take collagen have reported minor gastrointestinal side effects like nausea flatulence indigestion symptoms (like heartburn and bloating).
Collagen Overload is a premium supplement designed to support various aspects of overall health. It contains 20g of hydrolyzed type 1 & 3 collagen, derived from grass-fed and pasture-raised bovine collagen.
Strong collagen explains why a baby's skin is firm, supple and silky. By the time a person reaches the age of 35, collagen has reached its peak. A good indicator of strong collagen is when the contour of your face is still defined and has good elasticity, meaning it bounces back when you pinch it.
Collagen vascular diseases are conditions that cause chronic inflammation. Many autoimmune diseases are collagen vascular diseases. Some rare types of collagen vascular diseases are genetic. Collagen vascular diseases may cause fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain or skin rashes.