The trend has Japanese women believing that eating copious² amounts of collagen - the structural³ protein of connective tissues - will lead to beautiful, younger-looking skin. The seemingly innocuous trend has caught on rapidly - stores are filled collagen-laced beauty products, and women are willing to gulp⁴ spoonfuls of powdered collagen mixed into protein shakes. They also flock to restaurants that serve foods naturally high in collagen - pig trotters, chicken skin and shark fin⁵.

 

But the collagen-infused beer, called ‘Precious', is a stroke of marketing⁶ genius - now women can get drunk and beautiful at the same time! Suntory announced the new product on April 7 - it is a light beer, containing 2 grams of collagen and 5% alcohol per can. Their tag declares: "Guys can tell if a girl is taking collagen or not."

 

Unfortunately, experts disagree. They say that eating the protein has no proven anti-aging benefits. According to Dr. Ariel Ostad, collagen expert and Clinical Assistant Professor of Dermatology at New York University Medical Center, two grams "isn't enough collagen to make a remarkable⁷ difference for your skin's complexion⁸."

 

He also explained that the idea of a beautifying beer is an oxymoron, because alcohol is actually bad for the skin - it results in inflammation, puffiness, and irritation⁹. "The advertisement claiming that ‘guys can tell if a girl is taking collagen or not' is totally misleading," he added.

 

Surprisingly, according to a Forbes news report, Suntory accepted that they can't vouch¹⁰ for the beers anti-aging effects. Public relations representative Taito Mikami said that they simply made the product because there are "findings that Japanese women wanted to take collagen."

 

"So we created this regionally-marketed product to meet their needs," he revealed.

 

Well, collagen-infused beer sounds like a rip off, but maybe this astaxanthin-infused chocolate will do the trick?

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