Collagen Benefits for Women: Improving Sex Life After Menopause
Collagen Benefits for Women: Improving Your Sex Life After Menopause
Popular collagen benefits for women include improving the health of your skin, hair and nails. But those benefits run deeper and can be rather unexpected. Perimenopause and menopause bring about some of the biggest changes a woman will experience in her body. Some of these changes are quite unwelcome. With women expected to live at least 2-3 decades after menopause, these uncomfortable changes need to be addressed to maintain quality of life.
What Is Vaginal Dryness and Vaginal Atrophy?
Vaginal dryness is an uncomfortable symptom that can affect women at different points in their lives. It is usually caused by changes in hormone levels, so it is commonly linked to menopause. The inner lining of a healthy vagina is thick and moist. When oestrogen levels decline, blood flow to the lining can decrease and the tissues become thin and dry. This can lead to pain during sexual intercourse. Beyond this, it can also cause discomfort when sitting, exercising or going to the toilet.
Symptoms of Vaginal Atrophy
- Burning or itching sensations in the vaginal area
- Soreness in the vulva and external tissues
- Bleeding after sex due to damage to vaginal wall tissues
- An increase in urinary tract infections
- A decreased libido or discomfort that affects desire
- Dryness extending to the external vulvar area
The dryness can make it uncomfortable when putting on underwear or even just walking. This is not something women should have to tolerate silently.
How Collagen Supports Vaginal Tissue Health
Many people are aware of the importance of collagen in skin. It provides structure to the cellular matrix and gives skin its plump, firm, elastic properties. It helps with healing and facilitates the healthy flow of blood and nutrients to the cells. When our collagen levels decline with age, our skin becomes loose and wrinkled.
What you might not know is that collagen is in many, many other tissues in the body - including bones, the gut, tendons, cartilage and the vaginal wall. Perimenopause can cause a woman's collagen levels to decrease by as much as 30%. The consequences of this in the vagina include:
- Loss of tightness and elasticity in the vaginal walls
- Thinning of vaginal tissues
- Loss of function in the mucosa cells that produce natural lubrication
- Changes in the external appearance of the vulva
- Reduced blood flow to vaginal tissues
This can be a substantial contributing factor to vaginal dryness. Even without severe dryness, these tissue changes can make a woman experience reduced pleasure from intercourse and may even make a woman feel more self-conscious about how she looks.
Medical Treatments for Vaginal Atrophy
| Treatment | How It Works | Considerations |
|---|---|---|
| Vaginal oestrogen | Restores tissue thickness and moisture | Prescription required, ongoing use needed |
| Lubricants | Temporary moisture during intercourse | Symptom management only, not treatment |
| Vaginal moisturisers | Regular hydration of tissues | Requires consistent application |
| Laser therapy | Stimulates collagen production | Multiple sessions, can be expensive |
| Collagen supplementation | Supports tissue structure from within | Complementary approach, takes 8-12 weeks |
The problem with lubricants and moisturisers is that they are only temporary measures. If you don't keep using them, the problem can resurface. Vaginal rejuvenation treatments using laser or radiofrequency are a fast-growing medical field that can improve health and comfort, but they require multiple sessions and can be costly.
How Collagen Supplementation May Help
A good collagen supplement provides your body with potent collagen fuel in the form of collagen peptides. These are chains of amino acids that originate from marine or bovine collagen. Wealthy in glycine, proline and hydroxyproline, these supplements give your body exactly what it needs to stimulate and fuel increased collagen production throughout the body.
There are many benefits of increased collagen production. With supplements, there is no way of selecting which tissues will benefit most - your body directs the collagen where it's needed. But by taking a high dosage every day for a long period of time, you will feed your body the fuel it needs to:
- Improve skin health and condition throughout the body
- Support tissue thickness and elasticity in mucous membranes
- Reduce pain and swelling in joints
- Build greater bone density
- Strengthen your hair and nails
- Support natural moisture production in tissues
Over time, the collagen boost throughout your body may help increase tissue thickness and improve natural lubrication in the vagina. This means less discomfort and, ultimately, an improved sex life.
Building a Pro-Collagen Lifestyle
At Kollo, we advocate a pro-collagen lifestyle built around our supplement. We provide the daily dosage of premium-grade marine collagen peptides to consistently fuel your collagen production. But you can build on this with certain lifestyle changes that help boost collagen production and reduce the rate of collagen decline.
Things You Should Be Doing
- Eating lots of vitamins, minerals, proteins and antioxidants
- Drinking adequate water throughout the day
- Exercising regularly (cardiovascular and weight-bearing exercise)
- Getting 7-8 hours of sleep every night for tissue repair
- Managing stress through mindfulness, yoga or therapy
Things You Should Avoid
- Smoking, which accelerates collagen breakdown
- Spending lots of time in the sun without sunscreen
- Chronic high stress levels
- Drinking alcohol to excess
- Eating lots of sugar and refined carbohydrates
What to Expect from Collagen Supplementation
Collagen begins working from your first dose, but visible and felt results in vaginal tissue typically take around 8-12 weeks of consistent daily use. The timeline for experiencing benefits varies by individual, but most women report improvements in skin hydration and joint comfort before noticing changes in vaginal tissue thickness or lubrication.
The single biggest predictor of success is consistency. Taking 10,000mg of marine collagen daily without missing days ensures your body has a constant supply of the building blocks it needs for tissue repair and maintenance.
When to See Your GP
If you're experiencing vaginal dryness, pain during intercourse, or other symptoms of vaginal atrophy, speak with your GP or gynaecologist. They can assess whether vaginal oestrogen therapy, HRT, or other medical treatments would be appropriate for your situation.
Collagen supplementation works best as a complementary approach alongside medical treatment, not as a replacement. Your doctor can help you build a comprehensive plan that addresses your symptoms effectively.
Kollo Premium Liquid Marine Collagen delivers 10,000mg of premium Naticol marine collagen peptides plus vitamins C, B1, B5, B6, B12 and l-lysine to support overall tissue health. Our liquid format ensures maximum bioavailability, and thousands of women have experienced improvements in skin, hair, joints and overall wellbeing.
Kollo Health was co-founded by Jenni Falconer - TV presenter, Smooth Radio breakfast host, ten-time London Marathon runner and host of the RunPod podcast. Jenni is passionate about supporting women through every life stage with evidence-based nutrition. Kollo's formulation is designed to support women's health holistically, from skin and joints to the less-discussed aspects of wellbeing that matter just as much.
