Do you need vitamin C with collagen?
You need vitamin C for your body to build collagen, but you do not need to buy a special product. A normal diet with fruit and vegetables usually supplies enough, and megadoses add nothing. The small tendon studies pairing collagen with vitamin C used about 50 mg alongside 15 g of gelatine, roughly the amount in a small orange.
- Vitamin C is a required co-factor for collagen formation in the body, but extra beyond adequate intake does not increase collagen synthesis.
- Shaw 2017 used about 48 mg vitamin C with 15 g gelatine; a small orange provides roughly that.
- Adult recommended vitamin C intakes are roughly 75 to 110 mg a day; high doses above about 2 000 mg often cause diarrhoea.
- A 10 g collagen dose plus fruit costs about R10.44 with ATP's 910 g tub (October 2026).
Why is vitamin C linked to collagen?
Vitamin C is a required co-factor for the enzymes that stabilise your body's own collagen (the hydroxylation of proline and lysine). Without it, collagen is weak; severe deficiency causes scurvy. That is the rationale for pairing the two. It does not mean that more vitamin C makes extra collagen: once your levels are adequate, additional vitamin C does not speed up collagen production.
What did the research use?
In Shaw and colleagues (2017), eight men took 15 g of gelatine with about 48 mg of vitamin C one hour before six minutes of skipping, and a collagen-synthesis marker roughly doubled versus placebo. A later study by Lis and Baar (2019) in ten people used vitamin C-enriched gelatine and collagen and saw a smaller trend that was not statistically significant. Neither study compared collagen with and without vitamin C head to head in the long term, so we cannot say exactly how much of the effect comes from the vitamin. The Australian Institute of Sport classes collagen as Group B (emerging evidence).
How much vitamin C is enough?
Adult recommended intakes sit around 75 to 110 mg a day depending on country and sex. The trial dose of about 50 mg is well within a normal diet:
| Food | Approximate vitamin C |
|---|---|
| Half a medium orange | about 35 mg |
| One naartjie | about 25 to 30 mg |
| A few slices of red pepper | 50 mg or more |
| A guava | well above 100 mg |
These are approximate figures; fresh produce varies. The US upper limit for adults is 2 000 mg a day, set because larger doses commonly cause diarrhoea, so there is no reason to megadose.
Do you need a collagen product that includes vitamin C?
Not necessarily. Some South African products bundle it: My Wellness Collagen Peptides (90 capsules, R185 at Faithful to Nature, October 2026) is a capsule with vitamin C, and Collagen Cafe liquid lists vitamin C and magnesium. But capsule doses of collagen are small, and combined products cost more per gram of collagen (capsules vs powder). A single-ingredient powder plus fruit is cheaper: as of October 2026 a 10 g dose costs R10.44 with ATP Fitness Hydrolysed Collagen (910 g, R950, ATP shop) or R11.36 with The Harvest Table 800 g refill (R909, Faithful to Nature). The ATP trade-off is that it contains collagen only, so you add your own vitamin C, and it is unflavoured with no third-party certificate published.
A simple routine
- Stir 10 g of collagen into a glass of diluted orange juice or eat a naartjie with it.
- For the tendon protocol, do this 30 to 60 minutes before a short bout of loading (details).
- Otherwise, take it whenever suits you (best time to take collagen).
Who should be careful?
Very high-dose vitamin C supplements can contribute to kidney stones in susceptible people and can interfere with some laboratory tests. If you have kidney disease, a history of kidney stones, are under 18, pregnant or breastfeeding, or take regular medication, ask your doctor before taking supplements. See also how much collagen per day.
Products mentioned, with dated prices
| Product | Size | Price | Servings | R per 10 g | R per serving | Sweeteners |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATP Fitness Hydrolysed Collagen | 910 g | R950ATP Fitness shop, Oct 2026 | 91 | R10.44 | — | None |
| The Harvest Table Bovine Collagen Powder 800 g refill | 800 g | R909Faithful to Nature, Oct 2026 | 50 | R11.36 | — | none |
| My Wellness Collagen Peptides 90 capsules | 90 capsules | R185Faithful to Nature, Oct 2026 | 30 | — | R6.17 | none |
ATP Fitness is a commercial partner of Healthnews24 and its products are featured on this site. Rankings follow our published method, and every pick, including ATP Fitness, shows its price maths and trade-offs. Read our disclosure.
Compare the options
Related questions
- What is the best time of day to take collagen?
- Does collagen help joint pain and tendons?
- How much collagen should you take per day?
- Collagen powder vs capsules vs liquid: which is best?
- Does collagen actually work?
Sources
- Shaw G et al. (2017) Vitamin C-enriched gelatin supplementation before intermittent activity augments collagen synthesis. Am J Clin Nutr 105:136
- Lis DM & Baar K (2019) Effects of different vitamin C-enriched collagen derivatives on collagen synthesis. IJSNEM
- Australian Institute of Sport Supplement Framework: Group B (emerging evidence)
- Faithful to Nature: collagen category (prices, October 2026)
Educational information only, not medical advice. Speak to a doctor, pharmacist or registered dietitian before using supplements if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, under 18, taking medication, or living with kidney, liver or heart disease.
Cite this page: Healthnews24, “Do you need vitamin C with collagen?”, updated 27 October 2026, https://www.healthnews24.co.za/answers/collagen-with-vitamin-c-do-you-need-it/. Plain-text version: /answers/collagen-with-vitamin-c-do-you-need-it.md