Collagen for Men: Muscle, Tendon, Joint and Skin Trials

Men can take collagen, and most of the collagen trials that measured muscle, tendon and strength recruited men: a 2024 meta-analysis of 19 trials in 768 people found daily collagen peptides with resistance training increased fat-free mass more than training alone, and a 2026 network analysis of 78 trials in 4,755 adults ranked collagen first of 13 protein supplements for strength gains with training.^{1, 2} The skin trials were 95% women, so the skin data in men are thin.³ No trial has measured testosterone after collagen, which is a food protein with no hormonal activity. Trial doses ran from 2.5 to 15 g a day, 15 g with training.⁸ This is the men's chapter of the Wellgard collagen guide.

Can men take collagen?

Yes: every muscle and tendon trial below recruited men, and the joint trials covered both sexes. A 2024 analysis of 35 randomised trials in 3,165 adults with osteoarthritis found collagen reduced pain and improved function compared with the control groups, with no increase in adverse events or withdrawals.⁴ Most trials below used collagen peptides, hydrolysed collagen cut into short chains; the exceptions are named where they appear, and the osteoarthritis analysis pooled hydrolysed with undenatured collagen.

What did the muscle trials in men find?

Three trials gave 15 g of collagen peptides a day through twelve weeks of resistance training to men of three ages.

• Older men with sarcopenia. In 53 men averaging 72, fat-free mass rose 4.2 kg with collagen against 2.9 kg with placebo, and quadriceps strength 16.5 Nm against 7.3 Nm.⁵
• Untrained middle-aged men. In 97 men, fat-free mass rose 3.42 kg against 1.83 kg; an exploratory whey arm (2.27 kg) did not differ significantly from either.⁶
• Young recreationally active men. In 57 men, fat-free mass rose more with collagen, strength rose in both groups, and muscle-fibre area grew equally in both, so the authors suggested the extra mass was connective tissue.⁷

Pooled across 19 trials, the fat-free mass effect was moderate (0.48, moderate certainty) and the strength effect small (0.19); in the 2026 network analysis collagen's strength effect was 0.41 (95% CI 0.09 to 0.73) and whey's 0.15.^{1, 2} Collagen lacks tryptophan, so it counts towards daily protein but adds to meat, fish, dairy, eggs, pulses or a whey shake rather than replacing them.⁸ And the gains came with training: in 208 adults over 65 who took 20 g of collagen or whey twice a day for a year without training, neither changed muscle size, strength or function.⁹

Does collagen help tendons and training in men?

The "take it with vitamin C an hour before training" advice comes from men. In eight men, 15 g of vitamin C-enriched gelatine an hour before six minutes of rope skipping doubled a blood marker of collagen synthesis; 5 g did not.¹⁰ In ten resistance-trained men, 30 g of collagen peptides with 50 mg of vitamin C before heavy squats raised the same marker more than 15 g or none; 15 g did not differ from none.¹¹ Three training trials then measured the tendon.

Read together: positive at 5 g and at 30 g with vitamin C, null at 15 g in the 39-man trial. The samples are small, eight to 50 men, and the outcomes are tendon measurements, not injuries, which no trial has counted. The best type of collagen for joints covers the knee trials, which included men without reporting them separately.

Does collagen do anything for men's skin?

The skin evidence is favourable and almost entirely from women. A 2021 meta-analysis of 19 randomised trials in 1,125 people aged 20 to 70, 95% of them women, found hydrolysed collagen improved hydration, elasticity and wrinkles against placebo; a 2023 meta-analysis of 26 trials in 1,721 people agreed on hydration and elasticity.^{3, 15} What we don't know is whether the gains are the same size in men: no skin trial has recruited men alone.

Does collagen affect testosterone?

No trial has measured testosterone after a collagen supplement, and there is no mechanism by which it would change. Collagen is a protein, digested into amino acids and short peptides; in the gelatine study these peaked in the blood an hour after the drink, and what rose afterwards was a marker of collagen synthesis, not a signal to any gland.¹⁰ The one study pairing the two words ran the other way: in 96 athletes given growth hormone or placebo, the men with or without testosterone, blood markers of collagen turnover rose with the hormones, and testosterone alone modestly increased them.¹⁶ Hormones move collagen; nothing shows collagen moving hormones. A man worried about his testosterone should talk to his GP.

How much collagen should a man take?

Across the literature the effective amounts ran from 2.5 to 15 g a day, and the outcome you want sets the figure.⁸ In the trials on this page it was 15 g a day in every muscle trial, and 5 g or 30 g with vitamin C in the positive tendon trials, taken every day for twelve weeks or longer.^{5, 6, 7, 12, 14} How much collagen to take a day has the skin and joint doses and how to read a label.

Which collagen is best for men?

The same as for anyone: hydrolysed collagen peptides at a daily dose that matches the outcome you want. No trial used a men-specific product. Source is a matter of diet and allergy rather than result: the 2023 skin meta-analysis found no difference by source for elasticity, and no trial has compared sources on a muscle or tendon outcome.¹⁵ Check grams of collagen per serving against the trial dose, the declared source and origin, and a molecular weight stated as a range.

Frequently asked questions

Does collagen help men's hair loss or beard growth?

No trial has tested collagen on its own for hair loss or beard growth in men; the hair studies that exist were in women, covered in collagen for hair and nails. The NHS says "some types of hair loss are permanent, like male and female pattern baldness. This type of hair loss usually runs in the family", that finasteride and minoxidil are the main treatments for male pattern baldness and "do not work for everyone", and to see a GP if you are worried about your hair loss.¹⁷

Can men take collagen with creatine?

Yes. Collagen is a protein and creatine an amino-acid compound stored in muscle, taken for different reasons; collagen and creatine together covers timing and doses.

Should men over 50 take collagen?

The two clearest results were in men averaging 72 with sarcopenia and men averaging 47, both training: more fat-free mass and strength at 15 g a day in the first, larger tendon adaptations at 30 g with vitamin C in the second.^{5, 14} Without training, 20 g twice a day did not change muscle in adults over 65, so the results belong to training with collagen, not collagen alone.⁹

What are the side effects of collagen for men?

None specific to men: in the 35 osteoarthritis trials, collagen did not increase adverse events or withdrawals.⁴ It counts as protein, so a man on a protein-restricted diet for kidney disease should count it and ask his GP first; is there a downside to taking collagen covers who should check.

Sources

1. Bischof K, et al. Impact of collagen peptide supplementation in combination with long-term physical training on strength, musculotendinous remodeling, functional recovery, and body composition in healthy adults. Sports Medicine, 2024. PubMed 39060741.
2. Drummond MDM, et al. Which protein-based dietary supplements most effectively enhance fat-free mass and strength gains in healthy adults undergoing resistance training? A network meta-analysis. Translational Sports Medicine, 2026. PubMed 41635649.
3. de Miranda RB, et al. Effects of hydrolyzed collagen supplementation on skin aging: a systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Dermatology, 2021. PubMed 33742704.
4. Liang CW, et al. Efficacy and safety of collagen derivatives for osteoarthritis: a trial sequential meta-analysis. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage, 2024. PubMed 38218227.
5. Zdzieblik D, et al. Collagen peptide supplementation in combination with resistance training improves body composition and increases muscle strength in elderly sarcopenic men. British Journal of Nutrition, 2015. PubMed 26353786.
6. Zdzieblik D, et al. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2021. PubMed 33946565.
7. Kirmse M, et al. Prolonged collagen peptide supplementation and resistance exercise training affects body composition in recreationally active men. Nutrients, 2019. PubMed 31126103.
8. Paul C, Leser S, Oesser S. Significant amounts of functional collagen peptides can be incorporated in the diet while maintaining indispensable amino acid balance. Nutrients, 2019. PubMed 31096622.
9. Mertz KH, et al. The effect of daily protein supplementation, with or without resistance training for 1 year, on muscle size, strength, and function in healthy older adults. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2021. PubMed 33564844.
10. Shaw G, et al. Vitamin C-enriched gelatin supplementation before intermittent activity augments collagen synthesis. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2017. PubMed 27852613.
11. Lee J, et al. The collagen synthesis response to an acute bout of resistance exercise is greater when ingesting 30 g hydrolyzed collagen compared with 15 g and 0 g in resistance-trained young men. The Journal of Nutrition, 2024. PubMed 38007183.
12. Jerger S, et al. European Journal of Sport Science, 2023. PubMed 37424319.
13. Balshaw TG, et al. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 2023. PubMed 37436929.
14. Nulty CD, Phelan K, Erskine RM. Hydrolysed collagen supplementation enhances patellar tendon adaptations to 12 weeks' resistance training in middle-aged men. European Journal of Sport Science, 2025. PubMed 40100255.
15. Pu SY, et al. Effects of oral collagen for skin anti-aging: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutrients, 2023. PubMed 37432180.
16. Nelson AE, et al. Pharmacodynamics of growth hormone abuse biomarkers and the influence of gender and testosterone. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 2008. PubMed 18381573.
17. NHS. Hair loss. nhs.uk/conditions/hair-loss, reviewed 24 January 2024.

This article is general information, not medical advice. If you have kidney disease or a diagnosed joint or tendon condition, speak to your GP first.