New Japanese Beer Claims To Make Your Skin Glow

For Americans, collagen tends to mean one thing: an injectable substance used to make our most famous stars look even better. But in Japan, collagen isn’t injected – it’s consumed – and a Japanese beer maker is trying to capitalize on that.

PopSci reports on a new beer, made by Suntory, the Japanese alcohol megabrand, to be called “Precious.” The beer will have two grams of collagen per can.

Collagen is a protein found in abundance in our bodies, a structural element that makes up connective tissue. You can find collagen in your skin, your tendons, your teeth, and even your blood. It can be synthesized from other animals, especially cattle, and we have come up with a remarkable number of ways to use the stuff: versions of it become gelatin, found in Jell-O; it’s used for sausage casings; it’s used in cosmetic surgery, both for lip injections and for treatment of severe burns.

In Japan, though, it’s believed that drinking collagen can keep skin, especially women’s skin, taut and youthful, as well as provide other health benefits. Some health claims are somewhat dubious. Proponents often state that it has a positive effect on joint health, but a 2011 study found that ingesting collagen is of little benefit to joints. But a 2014 study found that collagen does have a distinct, noticeable improvement on “skin elasticity level,” which is sort of a creepy way to put it, but sure! For what it’s worth, the women in that 2014 study took either 2.5 or 5 grams of collagen per week, so the amount of collagen in Suntory’s new beer seems to be right on target.

So, drink a couple beers per week, and keep your skin looking fine! At least, that’s what we assume the ad above, for the beer, is saying.

Image via Flickr user Azchael