Updated Sept 28th 2023
Fact Checked by Dr Mark Watson
Hydrolyzed Aminolock Collagen (Bovine Source) 1200 MG - Aminolock collagen comes from beef and is a source of Type I and Type III collagen peptides. While the human body's natural production of collagen is usually sufficient for maintaining joint health, some people, such as those with arthritis, do not produce collagen quickly enough to repair any damage.
As collagen plays a vital role in bone and joint health, people experiencing the joint pain associated with osteoarthritis and other inflammatory conditions may benefit from increasing their levels by consuming more of this concentrated protein complex from an external source.
This can offer a wide range of health benefits, including improving wound healing, skin health, intestine functions, blood clotting, and muscle maintenance, preventing premature cartilage wear and degradation, and producing a significant reduction in inflammation and visible cellulite.
Unfortunately, not only is hydrolyzed collagen required to be consumed in daily quantities of 10 grams per day, which is far more than the dose 3 capsules contains, but bovine collagen is also considered to be one of the less effective types (1).
This means it is highly unlikely that the hydrolyzed Aminolock collagen found in Genacol Plus helps maintain joint health, which is particularly worrying in a supplement that only contains 2 active ingredients.
Glucosamine Hydrochloride (Crab And Shrimp Exoskeleton) 1500 MG - Glucosamine is a natural compound and one of the essential elements of human cartilage, which are generally shapeless tissues found in the joints. It is most commonly found and extracted from shellfish, such as the crab and shrimp exoskeleton version seen here, while it can also be produced in a lab.
It is useful in joint supplements as it helps maintain healthy cartilage by either preventing or slowing the degradation of collagen, the primary substance that cartilage is made of.
This means it will provide joint pain relief, at the same time as restoring joint mobility and functions, boosting joint health, and treating osteoarthritis and preventing it from progressing.
Independent clinical studies support both the dosage and type of glucosamine used, as they say they are ideal to improve your cartilage health.
The issue is, as glucosamine is far more effective when combined with either chondroitin or MSM (methylsulfonylmethane), neither of which is present in Genacol Plus, it will only be able to do so much, despite the fact that the glucosamine itself has been correctly applied (2).
Other Ingredients
Gelatin - Gelatin is not used to enhance the joint health effectiveness of the supplement. Rather, it is there only to create the capsule the supplement's powder is housed in and make it smooth and easy to take. That said, it can also cause some side effects, such as bloating, diarrhoea, gas, heartburn, and nausea (3).
Vegetable Magnesium Stearate - Magnesium stearate is used only to boost the bulk, stability, and texture of the powder held within the capsules, and it will not benefit the health of your joints, inflammation levels, or physical well being in any way.
However, it can again lead to some people experiencing negative side effects, such as bloating, gas, depression, diarrhoea, forgetfulness, headaches, stomach pain, and low energy levels (4).
Genacol Original was the first joint supplement produced by Genacol. It features an identical dosage of hydrolyzed bovine Aminolock collagen, which we established earlier in our review is unlikely to produce results, and no other active ingredients.
The only reason anyone would even consider using this over Genacol Plus is because one dose costs marginally less. Even so, we would highly recommend you avoid buying this product as it is virtually guaranteed to do your joints no good at all.
Genacol Joint And Mobility again uses an identical dosage of hydrolyzed bovine Aminolock collagen to Genacol Plus, but replaces the glucosamine hydrochloride with a 450 mg dose of natural soluble eggshell membrane (from chicken eggs).
Natural eggshell membrane contains type V and type X collagen and glycosaminoglycans, which help keep the joints, eyes, and bones healthy, boost your natural collagen production, reduce joint pain and cartilage damage, improve sleep quality, restore joint mobility and function, and treat osteoarthritis (5).
However, as at least 500 mg of eggshell membrane is required to produce these effects, Genacol Joint And Mobility will be almost as useless as Genacol Original, despite being a fair bit more expensive.
Genacol Optimum contains the same things as Genacol Plus (although uses glucosamine sulfate instead of glucosamine hydrochloride), and adds a 500 mg dose of chondroitin sulfate (from bovine), and a 400 mg dose of MSM.
Chondroitin sulfate is a substance naturally produced by the body of humans and most mammals, and it is one of the main components of cartilage. It can reduce joint pain and stiffness and the symptoms of osteoarthritis, boost your natural production of collagen, help repair any damaged joints, and stop the bones from rubbing against each other (6).
MSM is a compound found in many green vegetables, fruits, and plants which has a very high sulphur content. It has potent anti inflammatory and antioxidant properties that can keep the joints healthy, treat the symptoms of osteoarthritis, and prevent inflammation and damage to the rest of the body (7).
All of the dosages are admittedly very good here and more than sufficient to allow Genacol Optimum to do its job. However, it also causes the cost of the product to skyrocket, which eliminates the only real selling point of Genacol Plus.
There is therefore no reason to purchase Genacol Optimum instead of a far more effective supplement, such as FlexAgain.
As is the trend with Genacol products, Genacol Turmeric Curcumin Aminolock Collagen contains the same dose of collagen as the rest of the range, while adding 180 mg of turmeric extract and 10 mg of black pepper fruit extract.
Turmeric contains a chemical called curcumin, which has potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that can neutralise free radicals, prevent oxidative damage and stress, reduce inflammation, repair any damaged joints, and help keep them generally healthy (8).
Black pepper fruit extract is then included as it makes turmeric easier for the body to absorb (9). However, as the dose of turmeric present is far too low to be of any use, the inclusion of both ingredients and the bump in price they cause are both absolutely pointless.
Genacol Bone And Joint uses the established dose of Genacol collagen, only this time combines it with a range of vitamins and minerals that includes boron, calcium, copper, magnesium, manganese, zinc, and vitamin d.
All of these can be beneficial for the joints, only they are really only needed to stop people from developing a deficiency or treating an already established one. This means, for most people, it will be just as useless as Genacol Original, despite the higher price.
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