Research
Discussion
Collagen is the body’s main structural protein. Collagen makes up
70% of skin and gives skin both strength and elasticity. Collagen
forms 30% of bone and gives bones the fl exibility they need to
withstand impact. The collagen fi bers in bone are the binding sites
for calcium as well as all bone minerals.
[1]
Collagen is the majorcomponent of fascia, cartilage, ligaments, and tendons. But collagen
production begins decreasing at age 18. By the age of 40, the
decrease is about 1% per year.
[2]
For women, the decline equates toa loss of 7% of skin thickness every 10 years. Following menopause, the decline in thickness accelerates to as much as 1.13% annually,
while skin elasticity degrades 0.55% per year.
[3]
Adequate collagenproduction correlates with healthy bones and strong hair and nails.*
[2-4]
For years, orthosilicic acid was the focus of intense research because
it was viewed as a potential collagen generator. As a result of that
research, the molecular complex known as choline-stabilized
orthosilicic acid (ch-OSA®) was created. Choline not only has the
positively charged nitrogen atom that forms the vital bond with OSA,
but according to leading collagen researchers, choline transports
the orthosilicic acid into target cells where it activates the pathways
involved in collagen production. Clinical trials also suggest that beyond
its ability to generate collagen, ch-OSA promotes keratin and elastin
formation—two proteins that assist in skin elasticity and hair tensile
strength.*
[5-7]
In a 20-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of
50 women with photo-damaged facial skin, oral intake of two ch-OSA
capsules resulted in significantly improved skin, visco-elasticity
properties, and a 30% reduction in micro-wrinkle depth compared
to placebo.
[5]
In the same clinical trial, the women’s hair and nails
showed significant improvements in strength. In a nine-month,
randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with 48 healthy
Caucasian women with fine hair (average age 43.3 years), ch-OSA (in
daily capsules) significantly improved hair thickness and hair tensile
strength.
[6]
In a 12-month clinical trial conducted at St. Thomas’
Hospital in London, women already taking 1000 mg of calcium and
800 IU of vitamin D to which they added ch-OSA saw thigh bone
mineral density at the hip increase by 2.00% over the placebo as a
result of an increase in actual bone formation, not just a decrease in
loss.
[7]
The pro-collagen marker P1NP (pro-collagen type-1 N-terminal
propeptide) increased significantly after 12 months in women who
took ch-OSA compared to women in the placebo group. P1NP is
known as the most sensitive marker for bone collagen formation
and an early marker of bone formation.
[7]
Animal studies support the
human clinical fi ndings for ch-OSA with respect to collagen formation
and bone mineral density.*
[8-10]
References
1.
Viguet-Carrin S, Garnero P, Delmas PD. The role of collagen in bone strength.
Osteoporos Int.
2006;17:319-336. [PMID: 16341622]
2.
Shuster S. Osteoporosis, a unitary hypothesis of collagen loss in skin and bone.
Med Hypotheses.
2005;65(3):426-432. [PMID: 15951132]
3.
Calleja-Agius J, Muscat-Baron Y, Brincat MP. Skin ageing.
Menopause Int
. 2007
June;13(2):60-4. [PMID: 17540135]
4.
Sumino H, Ichikawa S, Abe M, et al. (2004). Effects of aging and
postmenopausal hypoestrogenism on skin elasticity and bone mineral density in
Japanese women.
Endocr J
. 2004 Apr;51(2):159-164. [PMID: 15118265]
5.
Barel A, Calomme M, Timchenko A, et al. Effect of oral intake of choline-
stabilized orthosilicic acid on skin, nails and hair in women with photodamaged
skin.
Arch Dermatol Res.
2005 Oct;297(4):147-153. [PMID: 16205932]
6.
Wickett RR, Kossmann E, Barel A, et al. Effect of oral intake of choline-stabilized
orthosilicic acid on hair tensile strength and morphology in women with fi ne
hair.
Arch Dermatol Res
. 2007 Dec;299(10):499-505. [PMID: 17960402]
7.
Spector TD, Calomme MR, Anderson SH, et al. Choline-stabilized orthosilicic
acid supplementation as an adjunct to calcium/vitamin D3 stimulates markers
of bone formation in osteopenic females: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial.
BMC Musculoskelet Disord
. 2008 Jun 11;9:85. [PMID: 18547426]
8.
Calomme MR, Vanden Berghe DA. Supplementation of calves with stabilized
orthosilicic acid. Effect on the Si, Ca, Mg, and P concentrations in serum and
the collagen concentration in skin and cartilage.
Biol Trace Elem Res
. 1997
Feb;56(2):153-165. [PMID: 9164661]
9.
Calomme MR, Wijnen P, Sindambiwe JB, et al. Effect of choline-stabilized
orthosilicic acid on bone density in chicks.
Calcif Tissue Int
. 2002, 70:292.
Presented at: 29th European Symposium on Calcifi ed Tissues; May 25-29,
2002; Zagreb, Croatia.
10.
Calomme MR, Geusens P, Demeester N, et al. Partial prevention of long-term
femoral bone loss in aged ovariectomized rats supplemented with choline-
stabilized orthosilicic acid.
Calcif Tissue Int
. 2006, Apr;78(4): 227-232. [PCID 16604283]