What Vitamin Helps Absorb Collagen?

When your body makes collagen, it combines amino acids — nutrients you get from eating protein-rich foods, like beef, chicken, fish, beans, eggs and dairy products. The process also requires vitamin C, zinc and copper. You can get vitamin C by eating citrus fruits, red and green peppers, tomatoes, broccoli and greens.

Do you need vitamin C to absorb collagen?

Collagen with vitamin C? You often hear that collagen should be taken with vitamin C to maximise its benefits and this is true to an extent. Vitamin C is most definitely required by the body in order to manufacture collagen.

What vitamin activates collagen?

Vitamin C is absolutely essential for synthesis of collagen. Vitamin C is the essential cofactor for the two enzymes required for collagen synthesis: prolyl hydroxylase (to stabilize the collagen molecule) and lysyl hydroxylase (to give structural strength cross-linking).