Hyaluronic Acid 500mg | 120 | Vit4ever

Hyaluronic Acid 500mg by Vit4ever

Hyaluronic acid is a substance that occurs naturally in the body; in these capsules it is in the form of sodium hyaluronate. These capsules by Vit4ever contain 500 mg of sodium hyaluronate each, made through the plant-based fermentation of corn. No animal-derived ingredients, no synthetic additives. The bottle contains 120 capsules, enough for about four months at one capsule per day.

What hyaluronic acid exactly is

Hyaluronic acid is not an acid in the aggressive sense of the word. It is a long sugar chain, built up from repeatedly repeating building blocks, that occurs naturally in your body. The special thing is the structure: due to the many oxygen groups in the chain, a single molecule can hold thousands of times its own weight in water. Compare it to a spongy net that stores moisture between the meshes. The longer the chain, the more of that network is created. In these capsules, the substance is in the form of sodium hyaluronate, the salt of hyaluronic acid. That is the same sugar chain, but in a form that is more stable and easier to process into a capsule. The molecular weight is between 500 and 700 kDa (kilodalton, a measure of the size of the molecule). That is considered medium: not the shortest fragments, but also not the longest chains that are used in some applications. The heavier the chain in kDa, the larger the molecule and the more viscous the substance behaves in water. With short chains, it is quite the opposite: they dissolve more easily.

From corn fermentation to capsule

In the past, hyaluronic acid was often extracted from rooster combs, an animal source. Nowadays, it can also be plant-based, through the fermentation of corn. Bacteria convert sugars from corn into the same sugar chain that your body also produces itself. The result is chemically identical to the animal variant, but without an animal being involved. For Vit4ever, that was the reason to choose this method: the capsule is therefore completely vegan. The fermentation process itself resembles what happens when making yogurt or sourdough, only with a different bacterial strain and a different end product. After fermentation, the sugar chain is purified and converted into the salt sodium hyaluronate, in powder form, before it ends up in the capsule. The capsule shell of the hyaluronic acid capsule is also plant-based, made of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (a cellulose derivative that is naturally found in plant cells). Those who prefer not to take gelatin inside do not have to look for an alternative. By the way, that plant-based shell has now become the standard for many manufacturers, also outside this product.

A bottle with 120 capsules

The product is available in a bottle with 120 capsules. At one capsule per day, you have about four months' supply at home, without having to reorder every month. What stands out with hyaluronic acid as a supplement is that the dosage per capsule often differs greatly between brands. Some products contain a few tens of milligrams, others well over 500 mg. Vit4ever has chosen 500 mg of sodium hyaluronate per capsule, in a single capsule per day. That makes counting easy: you never have to add multiple capsules together to reach a certain amount.

Hyaluronic acid is often mentioned in the same breath as collagen, another molecule that your body produces itself. Yet they are completely different substances. Collagen is a protein built up from amino acids, while hyaluronic acid is a sugar chain without a protein structure. They do often occur in the same tissues, but they are not interchangeable building blocks. These capsules contain exclusively sodium hyaluronate, not a combination with collagen or other substances. That makes it easier to trace exactly how much hyaluronic acid you are taking in via the capsule, without noise from other ingredients in the formula. Those who compare the two substances also see a difference in solubility: hyaluronic acid attracts water, collagen does not to the same extent.

A frequently asked question is how hyaluronic acid compares to other forms that are sometimes offered, such as a lower molecular mass. The difference lies in the chain length. At 500 to 700 kDa, you are in the middle class, not at either of the two extremes. That was a conscious choice in the composition of this product, and not a coincidental outcome of the fermentation process.

In short: this is a simply composed product. One ingredient, one dosage, one bottle of 120 capsules. For those who want to delve into hyaluronic acid without having to comb through a long ingredient list, that is clear. And with about four months' supply per bottle, you do not have to reorder all the time.