A specific blend of collagen peptides, marketed as Bodybalance by Gelita, was shown in a recent clinical study to have body composition and muscle strength benefits in middle-aged, untrained men at risk of developing sarcopenia, compared to both whey protein and placebo when combined with a resistance training program.
 
Sarcopenia, an age-related loss of muscle mass strength, and functionality, begins to present in people as early as the age of 40, and is often accompanied by orthopedic complaints, and possible heart health-related risk factors due to adverse metabolic and body composition changes.
 
In the study, researchers recruited 97 participants between the ages of 30 and 60 years old, who were administered either a placebo, a daily supplement containing 15 grams of whey protein, or 15 grams of the specific collagen peptides – all three groups also engaged in a resistance training program throughout the course of the study, which lasted 12 weeks. The participants were selected based on certain criteria, such as being overweight and having a sedentary lifestyle.
 
Following the study period, the collagen peptides group had the greatest significant improvement in anthropometric measures which included fat free body mass and fat mass, as well as leg strength. While improvements were significant in the whey protein group and the placebo group, those who took collagen peptides still had the most pronounced benefits from the resistance training program.
 
“Current evidence suggests that an average gain in fat free mass of 1.1 kg can be obtained by a training intervention lasting at least 10 weeks,” the authors of the study wrote. “Taking the placebo as a reference, the effect of whey protein in this trail was an additional increase in fat free mass of 0.5 kg, while the administration of the applied specific collagen peptide resulted in a 1.6 kg greater gain in fat free mass.”
 
The authors suggested that the amount of whey protein consumed among the participants, which was the same amount as present in the collagen peptides, was insufficient to confer equivalent effects on the muscle health benefits measured. “By contrast, the sufficient dose of collagen peptides to increase the fat free mass seems to be 10-15. The disparity of the results might be related to the different composition and the mode of action of the protein supplements used.”