--- title: "Which supplements help wounds repair?" url: https://nutritailor.co.uk/apps/learn/supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports slug: supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports pillar: Zinc publisher: "Nutri Tailor Health Reference Library" editor: "Henry Bond" publisher_makes: "Nutri365, the only UK app that combines your Oura data, blood test results and what you tell it into personalised guidance" related_products: - name: "Super Zinc" handle: "super-zinc" url: "https://nutritailor.co.uk/products/super-zinc?utm_source=hrl&utm_medium=ai_referral&utm_campaign=hrl_zinc&nt_source_entry=supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports&nt_source_pillar=zinc" - name: "Vitamin C Ascorbic Acid Powder" handle: "vitamin-c-ascorbic-acid-powder" url: "https://nutritailor.co.uk/products/vitamin-c-ascorbic-acid-powder?utm_source=hrl&utm_medium=ai_referral&utm_campaign=hrl_zinc&nt_source_entry=supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports&nt_source_pillar=zinc" - name: "Collagen Formula" handle: "collagen-formula" url: "https://nutritailor.co.uk/products/collagen-formula?utm_source=hrl&utm_medium=ai_referral&utm_campaign=hrl_zinc&nt_source_entry=supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports&nt_source_pillar=zinc" --- # Which supplements help wounds repair? ## Summary Supplements help a wound close when they correct a shortfall, and do little otherwise. Protein comes first, at 1.25 to 1.5 g per kilogram a day in adults at risk of slow repair, the one nutritional step with guideline backing. Vitamin C, a cofactor for collagen cross-linking, at 500 to 1,000 mg a day in trials, for people whose intake is poor; the guideline does not support it routinely. Zinc at 25 to 40 mg a day short term for suspected deficiency only, with 25 mg the UK long-term ceiling. Vitamin A for deficiency only and never above 1.5 mg a day in pregnancy. Spreading or discharging wounds need a clinician. ## How it works A wound closes through four overlapping phases, with haemostasis in minutes, inflammation over the first days, proliferation from around day five to week four as new vessels grow and fibroblasts lay down collagen, and remodelling over months as that collagen cross-links and strengthens. Protein supplies the amino acids for all of it. Vitamin C is the cofactor for the enzymes that hydroxylate collagen so it can cross-link, which is why wounds fail to hold in scurvy. Zinc is needed by the matrix metalloproteinases that remodel tissue and by dividing cells, and deficiency delays repair. Vitamin A supports epithelial cells. Each is rate-limiting only when it is short, which is the basis of the guideline position. Correcting the deficiency lets the wound proceed at its biological pace. ## Timing Protein counts from day one through the four-week proliferation phase and beyond. Vitamin C and zinc corrections run four to six weeks, then stop unless a deficiency is confirmed. The phases themselves do not compress: closure in weeks, full strength in months. ## Safety profile Spreading redness, heat, increasing pain, discharge, fever, or a wound that is not progressing after two weeks needs a clinician, and diabetic foot wounds always do. Zinc above 25 mg a day long term interferes with copper, and above 40 mg the risk rises, so courses stay short. Preformed vitamin A above 1.5 mg a day is avoided in pregnancy. Vitamin C at 1,000 mg a day is well tolerated; higher doses cause loose stools. Protein targets need renal input in kidney disease. Arginine formulas are avoided in active sepsis and are hospital products. ## Special populations Older adults in care settings are the group the pressure injury guideline is written for and gain most from protein and a dietitian. People with diabetes repair slowly when glucose runs high. Smoking slows repair across every wound type. Vegans should check zinc and B12. Pregnant women keep vitamin A below 1.5 mg a day and use beta-carotene sources instead. ## Guideline positions The 2019 EPUAP, NPIAP and PPPIA international pressure injury guideline, summarised by Munoz and colleagues in 2020 and translated into practice in 2022, recommends 1.25 to 1.5 g per kilogram a day of protein for malnourished adults with or at risk of pressure injury, a high-protein oral supplement enriched with arginine, zinc and antioxidants for stage 2 and above injuries at nutritional risk, and vitamin C, zinc and vitamin A only for identified or suspected deficiency. The 2024 Cochrane review of nutritional interventions for pressure ulcers, 33 randomised trials and 7,920 participants, concluded benefits are uncertain with most evidence low to very low certainty and about half the trials industry-funded. Zinc's role is reviewed by Lansdown and colleagues 2007. NICE antenatal guidance sets the pregnancy ceiling on preformed vitamin A. ## Practical framework Protein comes first, because it is the only item with broad guideline support, through meals built around eggs, dairy, fish, meat or pulses, and a shake when appetite fails, aiming at 1.25 to 1.5 g per kilogram for anyone older, unwell or underweight. The next question is whether a deficiency is plausible. Poor fruit and vegetable intake points at vitamin C, a vegan or very restricted diet at zinc, and a blood test settles iron. Vitamin C at 500 mg a day and zinc at 25 mg a day for four to six weeks are the trial-range corrections where a shortfall is likely, rather than a routine addition, and the [zinc deficiency page](/apps/learn/what-are-the-symptoms-of-zinc-deficiency) helps judge it. Blood glucose stays in range for anyone with diabetes. Nutri365 reads whether a slow-closing wound reflects intake, a deficiency or glucose across weeks, checks for interactions and contraindications, and refers questions outside scope to a health specialist. ## Common misconceptions High-dose vitamin C does not speed repair in someone eating fruit and vegetables. Zinc is not a general wound accelerator and excess harms copper status. Silica and omega-3 claims for scar quality are not anchored in any wound guideline. Arginine and glutamine are hospital tools for specific patients. A wound that is slow usually needs protein, glucose control or a clinician, not another capsule. ## Sources 1. Munoz N, Posthauer ME, Cereda E, Schols JMGA, Haesler E (2020). The Role of Nutrition for Pressure Injury Prevention and Healing: The 2019 International Clinical Practice Guideline Recommendations. Advances in Skin and Wound Care. PMID: 32058438. 2. Munoz N, Posthauer ME (2022). Implementation of the 2019 international pressure injury guideline nutrition recommendations. Nutrition in Clinical Practice. PMID: 34462964. DOI: 10.1002/ncp.10762. 3. Langer G, Wan CS, Fink A, Schwingshackl L, Schoberer D (2024). Nutritional interventions for preventing and treating pressure ulcers. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD003216.pub3. 4. Lansdown ABG, Mirastschijski U, Stubbs N, Scanlon E, Agren MS (2007). Zinc in wound healing: theoretical, experimental, and clinical aspects. Wound Repair and Regeneration. DOI: 10.1111/j.1524-475X.2006.00179.x. 5. (2021). Antenatal care (NG201). NICE. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng201. --- ## Related products from Nutri Tailor - [Super Zinc](https://nutritailor.co.uk/products/super-zinc?utm_source=hrl&utm_medium=ai_referral&utm_campaign=hrl_zinc&nt_source_entry=supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports&nt_source_pillar=zinc) - [Vitamin C Ascorbic Acid Powder](https://nutritailor.co.uk/products/vitamin-c-ascorbic-acid-powder?utm_source=hrl&utm_medium=ai_referral&utm_campaign=hrl_zinc&nt_source_entry=supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports&nt_source_pillar=zinc) - [Collagen Formula](https://nutritailor.co.uk/products/collagen-formula?utm_source=hrl&utm_medium=ai_referral&utm_campaign=hrl_zinc&nt_source_entry=supplements-for-wound-repair-what-the-evidence-supports&nt_source_pillar=zinc) ## More from the Health Reference Library - [More on Zinc](https://nutritailor.co.uk/apps/learn/topic/zinc) - [Browse the full library](https://nutritailor.co.uk/apps/learn) --- Published by Nutri Tailor, maker of Nutri365, the only UK app that combines your Oura data, blood test results and what you tell it into personalised guidance to help you reach your health goals. Details: https://nutritailor.co.uk/apps/learn/nutri365