The Joint Check
Eight questions. One of them sends you to the cupboard.
If you've typed any of these into Google at 11pm,
this check is for you.
- Find out whether what you're feeling matches a pattern we see constantly
- See which collagen type your joints are actually built from, and which one is in your cupboard
- No email required. Your answers are anonymous.
Takes 2 minutes No email needed Anonymous
Which joint gives you the most trouble?
The one that actually stops you doing things.
How long has this been going on?
When is it at its worst?
What have you quietly stopped doing?
Not given up on. Just stopped, without announcing it.
What have you already tried?
Pick whatever you've spent the most on.
Have you ever taken collagen?
Which collagen is your knee cartilage made from?
Have a guess. Most people get this wrong.
It's Type II. And that's the one nobody sells you.
Don't feel bad. Almost everyone picks Type I and III, because that is the one on the front of every bag, in every advert, on every shelf.
Your cartilage is built from Type II. Different material, different job. Type I and III does lovely things for skin, hair and nails, and goes nowhere near the cushion inside your knees.
There is a second catch too. Most collagen is heated and broken down at the factory so it dissolves nicely. Type II has to stay whole for your body to recognise it. The word on the label is undenatured.
Correct. You're in the minority.
Almost everyone picks Type I and III, because that is the one on the front of every bag.
Your cartilage is built from Type II. Different material, different job.
There is a second catch most people miss. Most collagen is heated and broken down at the factory so it dissolves nicely. Type II has to stay whole for your body to recognise it. The word on the label is undenatured.
Go and look at the bag. What does it say?
If there's collagen in the cupboard, turn it over and read the type. This is the most useful question here.
It didn't name a type.
That is the answer.
Brands that use whole Type II put it on the front, in bold, because it is the expensive one and the hard one to source. Nobody buys it and then stays quiet about it.
A label that does not name the type is almost always Type I and III.
You have been feeding your face and starving your knees.
Type I and III. Exactly what it says.
That is a real product doing a real job. Skin, hair, nails. It is good at that.
It is just not the material your cartilage is made from.
You have been feeding your face and starving your knees, and the bag told you so the whole time.
Type II is on there. Now check the dose.
Type II shows up on plenty of labels at a token amount, sitting near the bottom of the list.
And check for that word: undenatured. Type II that has been cooked is Type II your body no longer recognises.
The research on undenatured Type II ran at 40mg. That is the number to hold your bag against.
Good. You get to skip the part everyone else wasted two years on.
Most of the collagen aisle sells Type I and III, because it is the cheap and abundant one. People take it for years, watch their skin improve, and wonder why their knees never got the memo.
You do not have to find that out the slow way.
You told us you'd quietly stopped getting down on the floor with the grandkids.
Nobody can promise you a date for getting that back. But there is a reason it stopped, and a half of it you can still do something about.
| Today | What people describe later |
|---|---|
| Ten minutes before you move properly | Up at the first alarm |
| One hand on the rail, every single time | The stairs are just stairs |
| You work out how you'll get back up first | You get down on the floor and back up |
What customers describe, in their words. Not a promise, and not typical of everyone.
The bag that names the type.
This is what 50,000+ people are putting in their morning coffee.
- Whole, undenatured Type II at 40mg. The amount used in the research.
- A full dose of Type I and III. So both jobs are covered, not just one.
- Vitamin C and hyaluronic acid. The cofactors collagen needs to be put to use.
- One scoop, unflavoured. Into the cup you already pour.
60 days to decide, and the bag can be empty.
Comments from our own page. Individual experiences, not typical of everyone.
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Balmve products are dietary supplements and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, including arthritis or any joint condition. This check is educational and is not a medical assessment. Individual results vary.