Egg Shell Membrane (NEM)

Contains egg

NEM comes from hen eggs, and there is no version of it that doesn't. If you have an egg allergy, this is not an ingredient for you — and that applies to the combination formulas too, whichever other ingredient is named on the front. Egg is one of Canada's priority allergens, so it will be declared on the label; read it. If you're unsure whether an egg allergy extends to this ingredient, ask your pharmacist or allergist before starting.

About eggshell membrane

Crack an egg and there's a thin, papery film clinging to the inside of the shell — that's the membrane. It's mostly protein, and its interest as a supplement comes from what those proteins are: collagen (largely type I), elastin, glucosamine, chondroitin and hyaluronic acid, present together in the proportions the egg made them. That's the distinction people are usually drawing when they compare NEM to a single-ingredient joint supplement — not that it's stronger, but that it's a package rather than one isolated compound. It's processed from the shell without harsh solvents, which is what the "natural" in Natural Eggshell Membrane refers to.

Doses and formats

500mg per capsule is the standard for a single-ingredient NEM product, and the serving is usually one a day, which is part of the appeal next to the multi-capsule regimes common in this category. The combination formulas take different routes: some add collagen, some add glucosamine at higher doses, some add curcumin. Those carry their own serving sizes — the tablet-based glucosamine combinations in particular run to several a day. Read the label rather than assuming.

Vegetarian, but not vegan

NEM is vegetarian: it comes from an egg, not from an animal's body, so it clears the line for most vegetarians in a way that bovine or marine collagen doesn't. It is not vegan. You'll see it marketed as a "vegetarian collagen" for exactly that reason — which is accurate, but worth understanding rather than taking at face value: it's still an animal-derived collagen source.

NEM alongside other joint ingredients

The neighbours here are glucosamine, MSM, collagen and curcumin — different ingredients that people considering NEM tend to look at as well. The wider joint support range brings them together.

Eggshell membrane in Canada

Every NEM supplement at Vitamart is licensed for sale in Canada — look for the NPN on the label — and ships from our Ontario warehouse.