Collagen plays an important role in reducing inflammation to protect your joints. It is also rich in amino acids that are necessary for building joint cartilage.

It has recently been discovered that in order for collagen to be truly effective, it must be undenatured.

Undenatured type II collagen, or UC-II, is a natural form of collagen found in chicken, and it is a highly effective and more beneficial version.

Why You Need Type II Collagen

Collagen found naturally in chickens is ideal for promoting joint health and reducing the dangerous effects of inflammation. Typically, it is taken from the breast cartilage of the chicken and can be made into an injectable solution or obtained directly from chicken bone broth.

Type II (undenatured) collagen contains vital nutrients for your health, specifically the amino acids arginine, glutamine, glycine, and proline.

Under normal and healthy circumstances, these are amino acids that your body produces. However, when you are stressed, sick, or battling an autoimmune or inflammation-related disease, production of these amino acids ceases.

When this happens, you need to seek joint support from outside sources, such as chicken bone broth or type II collagen supplements. You can even get collagen powders that can easily be mixed into smoothies, soups, and baked goods.

Apart from getting undenatured collagen from outside sources, you can naturally enhance your body’s ability to produce collagen. Vitamin C, manganese, and copper are all essential minerals that support the formation of collagen in your body.

Foods high in anthocyanidins, like blackberries, cherries, and blueberries, are also a terrific way to boost collagen production.

To activate collagen in your body, you need to take your supplements with an additional source of amino acids and vitamin C. Without these activating ingredients, collagen cannot be absorbed properly and used in your body.

Even when taking a collagen supplement or adding chicken bone broth to your diet, you want to make sure you also include the supporting compounds to get the most from your collagen.

Collagen and Inflammation

Inflammation can wreak havoc throughout your whole body, and your joints take quite a beating. The good news is that by changing your diet and adding natural or undenatured collagen to the mix, you can control inflammation and reverse its damaging effects.

The benefits of collagen in controlling inflammation stem from the role it plays in your gut. A healthy and balanced microbiome in your gut can reduce inflammation across your entire body.

Undenatured collagen works by causing your body to produce substances that fight inflammation. It also contains chondroitin and glucosamine, which are essential for rebuilding damaged cartilage.

It is important to use undenatured collagen directly obtained from chicken when taking a joint health supplement to make sure you can access its full benefits. UC-II has not been affected by heat or chemical processing and contains active immune modulators that stop inflammation.

Arthritis is the blanket term for joint pain or degenerative joint disease and there are over 100 different types of arthritis or related conditions. Undenatured collagen from chicken has been found to decrease the swelling and tenderness associated with inflamed joints.

This type of collagen is able to retrain your immune system to correctly recognize exposed cartilage proteins, rather than see them as foreign. In doing this, the inflammatory attack on your joints is prevented.

UC-II also helps prevent inflammation by promoting a healthier gut. Widespread inflammation in the body is caused by autoimmune diseases, which stem from an unhealthy gut.

| Related: Treating Inflammation Key to Autoimmune Recovery |

This type of collagen helps support gut bacterial balance. When your gut is out of balance, bad bacteria are in control and your risk for disease and inflammation increases.

Unbalanced guts have been shown to contain lower amounts of collagen,and without the essential amino acids in collagen, your digestive system will not function efficiently.

Inflammation and Joint Pain

Arthritis is a common health problem that millions of Americans suffer with daily. The number one cause of serious joint pain is widespread inflammation.

While inflammation can be a natural part of your immune system, it can get out of hand and cause serious pain. When it comes to joint pain, the exact causes can be numerous:

Synovitis: The synovium, the thin membrane that lines your joints, becomes inflamed and releases chemicals that irritate nearby nerves and increases the amount of fluid attracted to the joint area.

Swollen Joint Capsule: When fluid rushes to the area and collects, pressure, stiffness, and pain will increase as a result of the collected fluid.

Ligament Damage: Inflammation can damage the ligaments, which are bands of flexible tissue that support the joint.

Joint Fusion: In certain cases, the small bones that form your backbone can become fused together, which makes movement more painful and difficult.

Muscle Weakness: As muscles get weaker due to lack of movement, more stress is placed on the joints, increasing the pain felt.

Centralized Pain: Pain from chronic inflammation is long-lasting, and in many cases it can cause you to become more sensitive to pain in general.

Rheumatoid arthritis is the most common form of joint inflammation and it can affect multiple joints within the body. With this disease, the body’s immune system attacks its own tissue such as your joints.

While the joint lining is the most affected part, leaving arthritis untreated can cause bone erosion and joint deformity. Autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis are almost always characterized by inflammation.

The Bottom Line

Your joints contain cartilage, which can only be maintained with collagen. Even when your body produces collagen, this may not always be enough.

To prevent inflammatory diseases such as arthritis and terrible joint pain associated with it, add undenatured collagen to your diet. If you already suffer from arthritis and joint pain, you will have a new ally with collagen.

Just be sure to provide support with amino acids and vitamin C, along with a fast-acting supplement, and your joints will be as good as new in no time.

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