When 30-year-old Pauline Lim got hitched this year, she looked every inch the radiant bride. And she says the secret to her skin's glow was not fabulous face creams but a fermented milk drink popular with tots - Vitagen.

In the lead-up to her wedding, Ms Lim gulped down numerous bottles of Vitagen, which come in packs of five and are sold at supermarkets everywhere.

'I drank it practically every day. It started with one bottle daily and then it went on to two,' said the marketing manager, who got married in March.

Wash your meal down with Vitagen's collagen range.

However, it wasn't just any old Vitagen, but its latest range launched in August last year, featuring collagen, a natural protein that helps keep skin taut and terrific.

Celebrities first made collagen popular by getting cosmetic surgeons to inject it into their lips to give a fuller pucker.

Ms Lim wasn't seeking larger lips, though.

She was taking the new Vitagen as a 'last-ditch attempt' to improve her spotty skin that resulted from wedding-preparation stress.

She's among Singaporeans taking collagen as an additive in foodstuff to keep saggy skin at bay.

It comes in powder form to be dissolved and drunk, even as ramen soup, and is also all the rage in Japan.

Popular abalone essence brand New Moon got in early on the act, with a line of chicken essence with collagen in 2005.

A year later, Japanese label Meiji introduced Amino Collagen (main picture), a powder to be dissolved in drinks and liquid-based food.

And it's selling like hotcakes - 10 millions cans worldwide since its introduction.

Here, Amino Collagen was one of the best-selling beauty and health products last year at pharmacies such as Guardian Health and Beauty, and Watson's Personal Care stores.

Meiji also has confectionery products such as Kaon and grape gummies with fruit juice, in which collagen is added.

Restaurant Kyo-Nichi serves collagen soup with ramen.

Serving up collagen soup with ramen (noodle) dishes has proved a hit for restaurant brand Kyo-Nichi here (right).

Its spokesman says: 'Business has increased by 10 per cent since last year without any heavy advertising.'

For $10 upwards, savour a 'rich and creamy' soup to go with ramen dishes, and which contains collagen extracted from pork bones. The restaurant has two branches here.

If you prefer collagen in drinks, brands such as Meiji, Plush! and Fine Co offer it as a tasteless or flavoured powder, with prices ranging from about $6 to as much as $96, depending on concentration and supply duration.

One happy consumer is Ms Evelyn Ng, who works in the motoring industry.

She has been taking Meiji's Amino Collagen at breakfast daily for two years, served with milk or oats, and spends about $58 monthly on it.

'There were results after taking it for three weeks,' claims the 43-year-old, saying that she saw improvements to the dark eye circles, eye bags and saggy skin on her face.

So what exactly is this 'magical' elixir?

Dietician Nehal Kamdar from Raffles Hospital explains that collagen is an important structural protein found in all living things: 'Collagen functions like a 'glue' in the body, holding connective tissues together.'

As the body ages, collagen decreases and this can be seen in frown lines and wrinkles on the skin.

Collagen products in food and drink are derived from animals such as pigs and fish.

The usual benchmark is 5,000mg of collagen daily, but experts admit there is no official recommended daily allowance, and no proof to show harmful effects if overdosed.

Collagen products come in various amounts. Vitagen has 500mg of it in its drink, while one tablespoon of Meiji's Amino Collagen contains 5,000mg.

Health authorities, though, have given it the green light. The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore, which regulates food products such as Vitagen Collagen, says that collagen 'may be used in food as an ingredient'.

But experts have differing opinions about its usefulness as a health and beauty product.

They say people should obtain all their protein needs from fresh food such as fish, eggs and beans.

The general view is that taking collagen via food supplements helps only those with a severe shortage of protein.

Nutritionist and dietician Anna Jacob says: 'The amount of collagen the body makes is dictated by genetics and age. You cannot tell the body what protein it should make.'

Still, administrative assistant Chai Hui Shan wouldn't go without her daily breakfast dose of Meiji collagen.

She claims her face is less oily and her complexion more radiant.

'I'm thinking that in the long term, collagen actually helps. This is more like a prevention,' explains the 23-year-old.