The nutritional benefits of gelatin containing bone broth are astounding, but I will try to make this [fairly] brief.
Gelatin is the protein extracted from connective tissue of an animal's bones, skin and cartilage. You can easily make your own gelatin at home (in the form of bone broth) by throwing chicken parts, bones, wings, feet, head, etc. into a crock pot with water and 2-4 tablespoons of vinegar left to stew for 12-48 hours. The vinegar pulls the nutrient rich gelatin out of the tissues (along with calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and sulfur). This is why Grandma's chicken soup has been attributed to helping a person heal (old school chicken soup was always made with gelatin rich bone broth). Traditionally, cultures around the world a focus on consuming the "whole" animal, muscle meats, organs and other tissues, creating a delicate balance of amino acids; the building blocks of protein in the body.
So why gelatin? Gelatin has a unique and very non-inflammatory amino acid profile, primarily consisting of glycine, glutamic acid, proline and alanine. These particular amino acids are lacking in the Standard American Diet, due to the heavy consumption of muscle meats and exclusion of the other 50% of the animal. Over time, this greater consumption can produce more inflammation when not balanced by non-inflammatory proteins like gelatin. Although gelatin is primarily made up of non-essential amino acids (meaning your body CAN make them), many over-stressed livers are not able to manufacture all the non-essential amino acids in the amounts demanded by the body. The liver needs an abundance of these proteins to keep the liver functioning optimally. Gelatin helps fuel your liver to help your body "take out the trash" in the toxic world!
Gelatin Benefits:
- Gelatin is rich in glycine, an amino acid needed to support neutralization of toxins in the liver. In today's über toxic world, often the body cannot make enough glycine to keep up with your detoxification needs (a toxin is anything from chemicals, food additives, alcohol, recreational drugs, RX drugs, BC pill, etc. You name it, the liver needs nutrients to deal with it, and find a way to get it out of the body).
- "It happens that gelatin is a protein which contains no tryptophan, and only small amounts of cysteine, methionine, and histidine. Using gelatin as a major dietary protein is an easy way to restrict the amino acids that are associated with many of the problems of aging." (Dr. Ray Peat, Gelatin, Stress & Longevity).
- Regular consumption of gelatin is very therapeutic for digestive disorders including food allergies, celiac disease, crohns, colitis, IBS, and lack of stomach acid.
- "Connective tissue is regenerated very slowly, so this is a remedy that requires some patience. However amazing results have been reported--healing of joints that had been completely stiff and frozen and the gradual disappearance of arthritis. Best of all is the improvement in skin quality, with wrinkles smoothing out and even disappearing completely" (WAPF, Why Broth is Beautiful, 2003).
- When consumed with dairy, gelatin can improve dairy digestion for those lactose intolerant individuals.
How to get it in your diet:
- Make bone broth (from this easy recipe) to use in soups, stews, when cooking vegetables, rice and more! It's a great way to add nutrients to any dish and I strongly recommend freezing bone broth in ice-cube trays for easy, frequent use.
- Order some traditional gelatin to make your own Jello, desserts, marshmallows, and gummy bears.
- Order some collagen protein to use as a protein powder. This is a form of gelatin that does not "gel" and is great for use in shakes, added to any beverage, yogurt, soup, or other liquids for an easy non-inflammatory protein boost.
Special dosage instructions:
Individual needs will largely vary, but most people can start off with about ½ -1 tablespoon per day of collagen (or 1 cup of bone broth), and increase every two weeks or so as tolerated. According to Dr. Ray Peat PhD, gelatin can make up about 30% of total protein intake, which for the typical person is about 3-6 tablespoons of powdered gelatin per day (1 tablespoon of gelatin is 6 grams of protein).
It's also important to remember not to get too carried away with gelatin, as it's pretty powerful stuff. Adding too much too quickly can cause digestive distress that you can read more about here.
A favorite protein shake/gelatin recipe (combine in blender):
- 1 cup raw goat/cow milk
- 1 tablespoon collagen protein (6 grams of protein per tablespoon)
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 pastured raw egg yolk
- 1-2 tablespoons maple syrup, simple syrup, or honey (ripe tropical fruit could be substituted here as well for increased digestibility)
- Vanilla extract to taste
More gelatin recipes:
Do you consume bone broth or powdered gelatin? Please share in the comments!
PIN IT:
![Drink this STRANGE drink every day and see what happens... [warning: it's highly addictive]](https://i2.wp.com/butternutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/bone-broth-and-gelatin-pin.jpg)
References:
Peat, Ray. Gelatin, stress, longevity. 2009. Retrieved March, 8, 20013 from http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/gelatin.shtml
Townsend Newsletter. Traditional Bone Broth in Modern Health and Disease. 2005. Retrieved March, 8, 20013 from http://www.townsendletter.com/FebMarch2005/broth0205.htm
Weed, Susun. Healthy Menopausal Years the Wise Woman Way. 2002 Retrieved May 20, 2012 from http://www.menopause-metamorphosis.com/An_Article-healthy.htm
Weston A Price Foundation. Why broth is beautiful. Retrieved March, 8, 20013 http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/why-broth-is-beautiful
Alyssa
That does not sound appealing the shake with gelatin. I think a better fit would be in a stew, soup, or sauce for the gelatin. I recently made an amazing turkey soup with the whole turkey carcass I used to make the broth. It turned a gelatin based after I refrigerated it. I am educated and happy to know that it's a a good thing and healthy benefits from the gelatin broth. Thank you!
Karen
How much water do you use to make the broth?
Stephanie Mckenzie
Would it be possible to sub homemade coconut milk with a little egg shell calcium for the milk? I seem not to be able to handle dairy too well right now.
Catherine
Of course!
Stephanie Mckenzie
That is great! Thanks so much for your quick response, I will be making it tomorrow! I am also enjoying your book Creating Wealth and am implementing the changes, so far so good!
Steph
Wendie
Hi, just put 9 ziplock bags with chicken bones in my freezer and the content of nr. 10 is slowly cooking on the stove. My only concern now is leaving it there the whole night. Is it okay to turn down the gas when I go to bed and turning it on again the next morning?
Catherine
Hi Wendie,
I would not leave it on the whole night. I use my slow cooker personally. Just turn it off and resume cooking the next morning.
Abundantly,
Catherine
Sybil
i normally detox very fast which makes me feel sick how will I detox with gelatin and can I use the gelatin I use to make desserts with is it the same.
thank you so much
sandra
I cannot find this answer anywhere. My husband is worried about unhealthy animals and using their bones in making broth. I know using grass fed is best but they can also be ill, so he said. He is from England and is freaked out about mad cow. What are your thoughts?
suzi
ok. i am struggling with this, as i have been vegan for over 20 years but know there are real benefits to this. is there a supplement that is available for those who don't want to bother with bones of animals? would it simply be collagen? what would be the closest i guess i am asking. thanks for your help on this one!!
Catherine
Hi Suzi,
You may find this post helpful: https://butternutrition.com/what-you-dont-know-about-gelatin-may-hurt-you-5-things-you-need-to-know/
Abundantly,
Catherine
Robbert M
Are there work arounds for gout issues? Broth and consomme on regular basis agitate the issue..
Darcy
Skimmed milk for some reason has a profound effect on gout. It's been a few years since I dug into the research but it was good quality (most isn't). The usual researched-quantity was 1 pint a day, IIRC.
Note that the researchers who tested it back-to-back with ordinary milk found that ordinary milk had ~no effect but that skim milk did.
Maggie
Is broth made with beef bones just as good? I love soups and make my own because I cannot eat salt. I did not know about using vinegar but do not object to using it in soups. Anything to mask the fact that there is no added salt. I have noticed that the beef broth firms up after cooling. I do usually cook it longer than chicken broth.
birgit
i don't believe that there would be any healthy effects out of the bones of animals totured in industrial livestock farming
i prefer vegetable broth
Olga
Just because you do not believe in organic chemistry does not mean organic chemistry does't exist. Proteins are organic matter, gelatin is a protein, human and animal bodies contain it. Vegetables don't. Vegetables contain vitamins and minerals which get destroyed by cooking. If you believe in vegetables so much better eat them raw and don't complain about joint pains, prematurely aging skin, protein deficiency, leaky gut and everything it implies.
By the way, who said a word about tortured animals? There's gelatin in wild and free range animals too. That's also a scientific fact. 🙂
albina
Where do you get the information that there is no ptoteins in vegetables? It's a scientific fact that there are. Not as much as you have in meat but certainly proteins.
brigitte
Hello' can you tell me if i can take hydrolised collagen' , because i havr scleroderma? Thanks
Elish
Is there any reason chicken broth is better than lamb or beef broth? The problem is that it's extremely difficult to find chickens not fed GMO feed.. Even most chicken sold as free range has been fed GMO grains..anything GMO also contains glyphosate, which is linked to infertility, kidney disease and everything else..
Catherine
Nope-- beef and lamb are great options (if not better)! I personally prefer the taste of chicken, and the smell is less offensive while cooking than beef/lamb bones. It all boils down to what works for you and your taste buds/lifestyle!
Abundantly,
Catherine
Kimberly
No, I don't and won't since I'm vegetarian
Nan wilson
Yuk ugh and other adjectives. I am squeemish about meat and entrails etc. I do know that Tumerick is amazing. Thanks for trying to educate us....ugh ugh ugh. Whatever!!
carole
What about canning broth for future use? Do you see any problems with the process?
I typically purchase a half a beef or a lamb or a pig and have lots of bones at one time. They freeze for a while, but become freezer burned eventually.
Beth C
I started taking hydrolyzed collagen some time back.. After about only a week or so I noticed that my skin looked better. Ah, just my imagination, I'm sure. The second week my husband looked at me and said, "you look good. What. Did you start wearing makeup again or what?" No, i've not worn any makeup in 5 years. It was the collagen. I stopped taking it and while I couldn't notice looking worse I waited for several months before starting back. Yes, in a week or two I noticed a difference in my skin. Definitely recommend.
Kathy W
Not only this, but taking gelatin (I use collagen powder) makes your skin look better.
Cara
It is disappointing that people don't start with " Hi Catherine, how are you?!!! "
Thanks so much for your time and contribution to greater good, finding time to post free information that helps us thrive and feel amazing in between running and operating a busu business.
Would lovr to know......
Have a great day X
Rosemary
Hi Catherine
I 've just started taking collagen since I learned that it' helps with aging and also with cellucellulite !!How long will it take for me to see an improvement on my skin and body?
Thanks
Rosemary
DEBBIE
” Hi Catherine, how are you?
Could you comment on whether Bone Broth - 0r Gelatin or Collagen come from the same process- Buying Collagen is rather expensive - Bone Broth - cost effective and now we have a third -Gelatin Powder which sounds like it would be more cost effective than Collagen - want to get the max out to help with thinning hair and skin needing a boost and just wondered if Gelatin can replace Collagen
Catherine
Hi Debbie,
Gelatin and collagen have the same benefits, they are just different in the way you use them. Read more here: https://butternutrition.com/what-you-dont-know-about-gelatin-may-hurt-you-5-things-you-need-to-know/ .
Abundantly,
Catherine