Functional foods and beverages are a popular delivery format for nutricosmetic ingredients these days. According to Innova Market Insights, the number of foods and beverages positioned toward skin health has seen 15% average annual growth globally between 2014 and 2018. During this same period of time, new food and beverage product 

 tracked for skin health increased by 12%.

Collagen, to use a popular nutricosmetic example, is a highly versatile ingredient that is easy to incorporate in foods and beverages. It’s also very recognizable, having been a staple of the dietary supplement industry. “Collagen is a desirable ingredient,” says Jayla Harnwell, co-founder of Kalumi, a functional bar company. “People are starting to realize collagen is playing a big role in the look of hair, skin, nails, and even other benefits like feeling full longer.”

Kalumi manufactures “Beauty Bars” that showcase collagen for skin health, as well as a high fiber content from yacon syrup to promote satiety and support weight management. Reflecting the marketing style of the cosmetic and nutricosmetic industry, Kalumi is a lifestyle brand that carries an aspirational message. The products feature branding that invokes sophistication and femininity, targeting a very specific consumer. In fact, the company’s founders, young female professionals, really reflect the target consumer.

“We were both dealing with a number of health issues caused by the lack of healthy food available to us while constantly traveling and working. Jayla’s mom, who is a naturopath, recommended we both take collagen as a supplement to help replenish protein levels and ultimately improve the quality of our hair, skin, and nails,” says Chrissy Blair, co-founder of Kalumi. “After seeing and feeling the difference that collagen made to our overall health and appearance, we were hooked. We would carry white powder with us in Ziploc bags and try to find beverages we could mix it with, but it was so inconvenient. This was what inspired Kalumi.”

The desire for convenient nutrition is a big driver for functional food and beverage products. These products are easily incorporated in one’s busy routine and take the guesswork out of nutrition. “We wanted to create a well-rounded, nutrient-rich, and satiating snack/meal replacement for busy people to keep them looking and feeling their best,” says Blair. “Not only do our bars contain 12 g of marine collagen, they also contain 15 g of protein and less than 6 g sugar from organic yacon syrup, which is a low-GI prebiotic fiber.”

Beauty brands like Kalumi also focus on creating a community around their products through direct-to-consumer sales and social media. Kalumi sells direct to consumers, as well as to retailers, but offers a subscription service that allows customers to buy more products at a discount. “We decided to focus on direct-to-consumer through our website so we can keep a close relationship with our customers, which is important to us, especially at this early stage. About 30% of our customers are subscribers,” said Blair. “In terms of retail, we have partnered with select, like-minded retail accounts to help build brand awareness and to be available where new potential customers are shopping. The reason we went with this particular business model is to have more control over maintaining a close relationship with our customers so we can educate them on the many benefits of our product and really enhance brand experience.”

That means that at least 30% of Kalumi’s customers are consistently buying its products, and believe in the products. With social media platforms like Instagram, this customer relationship becomes even more interactive and personal. “Social media is a great tool to educate and engage with our community,” says Blair. “It gives us the opportunity to highlight our brand values and get feedback on our products so we can always continue to improve and adapt. It’s also a great way to introduce people to our products and direct people to the site to learn more.”

While collagen is the talk of the town, other functional food ingredients that target beauty are sure to break into the category. For example, according to Innova Market Insights, food and beverages targeting skin health that contain turmeric have seen a 57% average annual growth between 2014 and 2018. B-vitamins are another functional beauty ingredient of interest. According to Innova, between 2014 and 2018, skin health–targeting food and beverages containing vitamin B3 and niacin, and vitamin B7 and biotin, experienced 9% and 25% average annual growth, respectively. Opportunities will only grow for nutricosmetic ingredients as marketers continue to harness the convenience and appeal of beauty foods.

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According to Innova Market Insights, the number of foods and beverages positioned toward skin health saw 15% average annual growth globally between 2014 and 2018.

Beauty and the Bar: Beauty food and drinks attract more fans

As more wellness products enter an already crowded market, packaging remains paramount to marketing and branding efforts. Indeed, with packaging of these products continually evolving in a highly competitive atmosphere, one would be forgiven for wondering if there is anything new under the sun.

It seems that the answer is yes, there is, and the more wildly different and potentially disruptive, the better. “I believe what brands are looking for and what they need are two different things this year,” says Kevin Smith of Smashbrand, a packaging design and branding agency serving the natural products industry. He explains: “We get several calls a day with brands looking to refresh with the same on-trend, millennial-friendly buzzwords, such as 

healthy, sustainable, trustworthy, clean,

 and the like. I believe we are hitting a saturation point on-shelf, where too many brands look alike.” This sameness, he says, creates confusion and hesitation on the part of the consumer. To drive home his point, he wryly asks, “Have you seen a kombucha section lately?!”

David Lemley, president and head of strategy at brand-strategy firm Retail Voodoo, agrees that products must use packaging to “stand out,” while also balancing that goal with category convention. “The package is often the first and only salesperson for a health food and for functional foods and beverages,” he says. “In each case, the packaging needs to work hard to deliver brand beyond functional features and benefits while simultaneously clearly communicating those attributes.” (See photo at top right of packaging for Wedderspoon, which is a Retail Voodoo client.)

Gaia Herbs Director of Brand Experience, Frederic Terral, who was involved in the latest rebranding of Gaia Herbs products, adds that successful packaging-design execution for natural products “encompasses deliberate and calculated typography choices and rich or unique colors,” and displays a “general sensitivity to purposeful compositions.” To “intimately control” the company’s brand messaging, Gaia has created an in-house agency called The Hive to align its “verbal and visual identity” with its culture, mission, vision, values, and persona. Via The Hive, Terral says, “We know our people, we know our customers, and we know best how to express our brand in the most sincere and genuine manner.”

“It’s a tough market out there,” says Smashbrand’s Smith. “Nine out of ten new health and nutrition consumer products will fail within the first year. Usually, this has nothing to do with the product itself, only how it’s presented.” He reiterates that the majority of all first-contact and purchasing decisions are made “at the shelf” in retail locations. And for brands following distribution models, packaging is “the most critical marketing asset they have.”

2019 is the year brands “have a significant opportunity to be disruptive on the shelf,” Smith continues. “With so many brands competing for the same look and feel today, the landscape is ripe for smart competitors to take risks with strategic bolder design choices that can still tap into consumers’ shared values and beliefs.” Smith says he is beginning to see what he calls a “massive shift” in the industry, in which the riskier and more differentiated and disruptive concepts are outperforming the more-popular “on trend” ideas that brands say they want.

For Gaia Herbs’ rebrand, for which the company was seeking greater approachability and relatability among customers new to the brand and to herbal supplements in general, Terral began with a comprehensive three-month in-house brand audit, “complete with an anonymous questionnaire to stakeholders, a look into past and present branding strategies, an extensive competitive landscape study, and the creation of a dozen style and mood boards to gauge the collective aesthetic aligned with the leadership teams.” All packaging elements were carefully scrutinized.

The specific changes to Gaia’s packaging design included more-prominent macro herbs photography “to connect plants and people and to capture consumers’ eyes on shelves,” as well as a refined, more modern logo made clearly visible on the package. Gaia also replaced much of the white of the package art to nature-evoking greens.

Trace Minerals recently rebranded, too, and its marketing manager Scott Boyson says the company was seeking a “fresh new look” for the line, after ten years of the same packaging design. “Packaging was an important part of the rebrand,” Boyson says. “We did stay with our cobalt-blue bottles because we felt strongly that our consumers had identified our brand with that bottle, and we didn’t want to create any confusion since we knew we would be changing the logo and design.” The company understood that the blue bottle stood out on the retail shelf, so it left that one element alone. Instead, marketing and branding firm BrandHive-hired by Trace Minerals to lead the rebrand-simplified the front of the label, which had “gotten too busy with logos and other violators,” Boyson explains. BrandHive chose “clean,” updated fonts and bold colors, and a metallic “swoosh” to convey a premium look. Labels and boxes were switched from glossy to matte, and a soft-touch finish was applied to boxes as well. “We wanted consumers to see and feel that ours is different from other products, that it is higher quality than others on the shelf,” Boyson says.

Retail Voodoo’s Lemley says that beyond the visual uniqueness and attractiveness of the packaging artwork, other packaging considerations include holistic sustainability, which he says includes everything from sourcing the packaging materials to discarding the empty container. He also points to an observed increase in the consumer’s desire for portability. “This could be a great opportunity for supplement, wellness, and functional-food brands willing to think about dosing as portion control and provide a sustainable answer to single use, travel size, etc.”

Trace Minerals’ Boyson calls his company’s rebrand one that pairs a “premium look” with environmental friendliness. “Almost all of our packaging is recyclable,” he says. “It is important to us to reduce our carbon footprint as much as possible.”

Alpha Packaging’s (St. Louis) vice president of marketing, Marny Bielefeldt, says her company is seeing increased requests for 100% post-consumer resins across a number of categories. “Sustainable packaging can reinforce a brand’s commitment to the environment and to clean ingredients,” she says. “We find that the companies that value recycled plastic most are those companies making commitments to sustainable practices across many areas of their business. Alpha makes bottles in food-safe PET or HDPE post-consumer resin for all the industries we serve.”

Compliance with labeling regulations is a consideration cited by Gaia’s Terral. “We follow the guidelines set by FDA with diligence and compliance,” he states. “We go above and beyond to grow and source the cleanest ingredients possible. We screen our ingredients at our Gaia Lab in Brevard, North Carolina, and we share the results online in our meetyourherbs.com traceability platform.

“The challenge in creating packaging for nutritional supplements,” he continues, “is to work within the strict confines of a highly regulated industry. Others may make claims on their packaging that we deliberately choose not to make. We do so for the sole purpose of not only ensuring FDA compliance but also to affirm with our customers our commitment to operating a business with integrity, confidence, and conviction.” 

Vitafusion announced last year that it is the first vitamin brand to convert to recycle-friendly shrink packaging in the United States. Its MultiVites 150-count gummies bottle was already recyclable, but the seamed, shrink-wrapped label wasn’t. Beginning last year, however, packaging for Vitafusion MultiVites 150-count gummies now incorporates shrink labels made with Eastman Embrace LV resin and Sun Chemical’s SunLam Deseaming adhesive-a move that converts a previously only partially recyclable gummies package to a fully recyclable one.

“We are committed to making a positive impact on the environment,” a Vitafusion spokesperson said in an e-mail message to 

 “Our partnership with The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation to plant up to 200,000 fruit trees by the end of 2020 has continued to inspire us to be better and do better, and we knew this was the clear next step.”

The full Vitafusion gummies line will convert to recycle-friendly shrink-labeled packaging within 2019, the company says.

As more wellness products enter an already crowded market, packaging remains paramount to marketing and branding efforts.

Natural product packaging trends and strategies

Marine oils, such as fish and krill oil, are not the easiest to encapsulate for a major reason: they are prone to oxidation. By the end of a product’s shelf life, this oxidation can result in a product of poor quality and taste. The goal for softgel manufacturers when handling these marine oils is to minimize oxidation at all costs. Softgel suppliers discuss their strategies for handling these tricky ingredients.

“The molecular structure of the two most popular long-chain polyunsaturated omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA, makes them prone to oxidizing easily, and it’s this oxidation that is a large concern to users,” explains Steve Holtby, president and CEO of Soft Gel Technologies Inc. (Los Angeles). “High oxidation can cause unpleasant repeating (fish burps) and can make the oil smell and taste rancid.” Not only that, but oxidation can lower the product’s overall health efficacy and actually render the product unhealthy by producing pro-inflammatory free radicals.

To avoid these problems, softgel manufacturers often seek to manufacture in an oxygen-free environment and at low temperatures. But a high-quality process starts much earlier than that, says Paul Hwang, vice president of quality and regulatory from Captek Softgel International (Cerritos, CA); it involves everything from vendor selection and qualification to material receipt, sampling, warehousing, and more.

“We are acutely aware of marine oils’ characteristics; thus, we have designed tight process controls and systems that ensure we partner with a fish oil supplier who safeguards and consistently delivers the freshest oil to limit the initiation of the oils’ autooxidation,” says Hwang from Captek. From there, the company follows a strict and careful vetting process, including when sampling and handling the oil once received, inspecting the incoming oil, and warehousing. “In the processing of these oils, our Master Manufacturing Records detail specific control parameters and steps to ensure minimal exposure of these oils to, and control against, autooxidation agents and propagation of the oils’ oxidation,” says Hwang.

Soft Gel’s Holtby agrees that these steps are key to a product’s success, including working with high-quality suppliers whose raw materials have low oxidation levels to start with-for instance, ensuring that you’re using a supplier used to supplying ingredients for supplement production and not just supplying byproducts of the fishing industry. The company also warns industry to be on the lookout for manufacturers who will purchase and import fish oil softgels and “repackage” these softgels as domestically produced products. Asking all manufacturers for a batch-specific Certificate of Analysis can help to sidestep fraud.

From there, quality is in the manufacturer’s hands-something Holtby says his company is well-equipped to handle. “The fish oils encapsulated by Soft Gel Technologies Inc. are molecularly distilled, meet stringent standards, and contain natural antioxidants (d-alpha-tocopherol) to prevent rancidity,” he says. “We also test peroxide values and take great care during manufacturing to ensure the oil is protected from oxidation. We limit exposure by pulling vacuum and/or nitrogen blanketing during blending.” And, Holtby says, “Limiting batch sizes to only those that use full drums can help prevent earlier exposure, even when using nitrogen blanketing to limit that initial exposure.” Fats are removed from the oil, and molecular distillation is used to remove heavy metals and other toxins.

Softgel materials themselves can also help to improve the user experience. For instance, says Timothy Chiprich, vice president of product development for Captek Softgel, his company has developed specific formulations for its capsule shells that ensure the capsules resist becoming brittle and leaking “like regular softgels do.” Namely, says Chiprich, the higher the content of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids in an oil, the more sensitive the oil will be to oxidation, and the faster oxidation will happen.

Chiprich also points out that krill oil can be even more difficult to encapsulate because its omega-3 fatty acids are “bound to water-dispersible phospholipids rather than water insoluble triglycerides like the omega-3 fatty acids in most fish oils. The phospholipids’ attraction to water tends to affect the softgel shell, making it brittle and prone to leaking over time due to water migration from the softgel shell into the phospholipids in the fill.”

Last fall, Marinova (Cambridge, Tasmania, Australia), a supplier of seaweed extract ingredients, announced a novel way to use its fucoidan ingredient to help better microencapsulate fish oils by reducing oxidation. In a press release, the company described it as a “two-step microencapsulation system with a ‘double shell’ structure using a bioactive seaweed polysaccharide, known as fucoidan.” (The technology was developed by university researchers.) By including fucoidan in the shell material at 7%, researchers were able to “significantly improve oxidative stability of the encapsulated oil and induce better crosslinking of the shell material,” said the company.

“The polyphenols present in the fucoidan extract crosslink to form a tight network of chains with gelatin, which provides this powerful stability,” explained Colin Barrow, a researcher from the Deakin University’s School of Life and Environmental Sciences, who led the team who made the discovery. The researchers wrote about their discovery in the journal 

Barrow C et al. “Anchovy oil microcapsule powders prepared using two-step complex coacervation between gelatin and sodium hexametaphosphate followed by spray drying.” 

The goal for softgel manufacturers when handling marine oils like fish and krill oil is to minimize oxidation at all costs.

Softgels for marine oils: Softgel suppliers have found ways to handle tricky marine oils

Cast your gaze across a contemporary supplement shelf crowded with ever-more fine-tuned formulations and you could be forgiven for asking: 

They certainly do, and for good reason: We need them. According to the latest National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), nearly one-third of American adults may be teetering on the edge of at least one vitamin deficiency. And but for the humble multivitamin-whose users have only a 14% risk of deficiency, compared to the 40% risk found among those who don’t take dietary supplements at all-we might tumble over the precipice entirely.

This is hardly lost on Tamara Bernadot, co-founder and chief nutrition officer, Persona (Snoqualmie, WA), who observes that “based on nutrition intake studies, there’s a real need for a daily multivitamin to help adults meet the recommended intake levels of essential nutrients that the body can’t make on its own.”

But, she continues, “To take nutrition to a new level-and to stay relevant with consumers-there’s also a need for multivitamins to go beyond meeting daily minimums.” Fortunately, today’s multivitamins are doing just that while still providing the reliability, affordability, and ease of use that make them invaluable backstops to our sometimes less-than-optimal diets.

If even conscientious consumers fall short of optimal eating, it’s not for lack of trying, says Sara Cullen, founder and CEO, GEM (Venice, CA). “As much as we’d love to get all our nutrition from a colorful, well-rounded daily diet,” she contends, “it’s nearly impossible for three reasons.”

One, she and others claim, contemporary agriculture has yielded successively less-nutritious harvests than in generations past. Then there’s the heavy toll that stressful, sedentary lifestyles take on our bodies-and the corresponding need to rebalance the account nutritionally. And finally, she says, there are those previously mentioned nutrient deficiencies. “So we do need to supplement our diets with the right vitamins built the right way.”

Andrew Shao, PhD, interim senior vice president, scientific and regulatory affairs, Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN; Washington, DC), also concedes that “Americans’ diets fall short in delivering the recommended amounts of key nutrients.” Key among these “nutrients of public health concern” singled out in the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans

 are calcium, magnesium, choline, and the vitamins A, D, E, and C, with a special nod to the need for iron among women.

All of which underscores the importance of supplementation. “Studies

 analyzing NHANES data reveal that supplement use-specifically multivitamin use-reduces significantly the percentage of the U.S. population failing to achieve recommended intakes for these key nutrients,” Shao notes. Better yet, the benefits of multivitamin use accrue to those who need them most: “The prevalence of nutrient inadequacy among Americans in low- to middle-income brackets tends to be higher; thus, daily multivitamin use can have a greater impact on these groups.”

So it’s heartening to learn that the 2018 CRN Consumer Survey on Dietary Supplements once again affirmed the multivitamin as the most popular dietary supplement in overall use across generations and genders-a spot it’s held for two decades.

Notable, Shao adds, is the 83% share of supplement users in the 18-to-34 age bracket who take a multivitamin-an 8% jump over the previous year. “This increased popularity among younger adults points to an interest in simple supplementation and further emphasizes that consumers continue to take supplements to support their overall health and wellness,” he says.

But don’t just take CRN’s word for it. Lonza Consumer Health & Nutrition (Morristown, NJ) commissioned a study

 from the Natural Marketing Institute (NMI) that also found multivitamins “to be the type of supplement most consumers use to help ensure they’re getting the nutrients they require,” says Juliana Erickson, senior marketing manager, Lonza Consumer Health & Nutrition.

The NMI data reveal steadily high use over the past 13 years, Erickson continues, with the rate of use rising from 67% in 2005 to 75% in 2018. As far as she’s concerned, that “indicates that there’s still a market for manufacturers of multivitamins.”

Adding to their appeal, multivitamins eliminate the “pill burden” that can be taxing for all users, and especially, Erickson says, for “those supporting multiple health conditions. By combining key nutrients into one dosage form, multivitamins help consumers increase their vitamin intake while also reducing the pill burden.”

Moreover, Shao adds, multivitamins are, quite simply, safe, stable, and consistently high-quality products. “Consumers have always turned to multivitamins as a nutritional insurance policy,” he says. “They bring peace of mind to consumers, who know their diets are seldom what they should be.”

 to like? Well, nothing, really. But there’s so much more that consumers 

 like about multivitamins, if only manufacturers were to work such assets into the formulas.

Many are, because they know that if they don’t, they risk being left behind. As Erickson says, “It’s vital that multivitamin manufacturers continue to drive innovation to differentiate themselves in a mature, low-growth market.”

Shao agrees, noting that while multivitamins “have remained stable for the past several decades, there have been interesting advances.” Some brands, he says, are experimenting with what he calls “novel ingredients, such as botanicals or other ‘nonessential’ nutrients.” Others, he says, have honed nutrient-delivery formats to improve bioavailability, or delay or promote rapid absorption.

On that front, Erickson says, “Modified or timed-release profiles continue to gain prominence in multivitamin and combination products to help ensure that active ingredients reach their intended target location in the body while also masking odors and taste for a better consumer experience.”

She says that beadlet technology helps manufacturers achieve these goals, enabling a multivitamin to deliver its payload throughout the day. The technology also has the advantage of letting manufacturers combine otherwise incompatible ingredients into a liquid capsule better to optimize the actives’ effects. “Tablet-in-capsule and lipid multiparticulate, or LMP, technologies further broaden the delivery options,” she continues, “and, thus, the combinations available to manufacturers.”

As for increasing the nutrient pool, Cullen’s company, GEM, makes its vitamins from minimally processed, plant-based, whole-food ingredients, which she believes “your body absorbs best.” And unlike traditional multivitamins, her company’s formulas include ingredients like the adaptogenic herb ashwagandha, the red algae–derived antioxidant astaxanthin, and chlorella, “a green algae known for its heavy-metal detoxing benefits,” she says. “There’s a lot more to food than individual minerals and vitamins. Other micronutrients that aren’t quantified on a nutritional label-things like antioxidants-are just as important for your body. This is another big shift in thinking that we need.”

But perhaps the biggest shift in multivitamin thinking involves meeting consumers where they are-in their lifestyles and their life stages.

“In some ways, the reasons multivitamins need to evolve reflect the needs of the supplement category in general,” Shao posits. “The tradition of ‘one size fits all’ in multivitamins could be its greatest limitation. New scientific advances show that individuals have unique health statuses and nutritional needs. Unlike pharmacology, nutrition science tells us that the body’s response to supplemental nutrients is directly determined by its baseline nutrition status, and everyone’s different.”

Indeed, says Cullen, “The recommended dietary allowances-RDAs-haven’t changed much since they were created in the 1940s and are based on trying to find a one-size-fits-all solution for 99% of the population. Secondly, our modern lifestyles have contributed to all kinds of new stressors for minds plus bodies than ever before. So it’s time we change what our daily essentials should be and how much we need to supplement with.”

In response, brands are fitting formulas to distinct demographics. “Multivitamins have been developed aiming at different age groups-kids, teens, adults, older adults-different genders, the physically active, and so-on,” Shao notes. “And with advances in science, companies can get even more specific in providing personalized products and formulas according to one’s individual health profile. So the trend of personalized multivitamins will continue, all the way to each consumer receiving his or her unique formulation.”

Erickson adds that not only are multivitamin formulations focusing on specific consumer groups; they’re helping consumers achieve specific health goals, as well. “Consumers increasingly seek solutions to support their busy lifestyles and the pressures of modern life,” she says, “making formulations for mood health and stress, cognitive health, eye health, sleep support and energy popular.”

But none of this matters if the formulations don’t deliver the right nutrients in the right amounts-and here, Bernadot contends that legacy multivitamins have room for improvement.

“Based on our review of the current multivitamin market, traditional multis-and even some that are part of personalized- or subscription-based models-really only deliver the minimum levels of nutrients,” she says. “But there’s a need for multivitamins to go beyond meeting daily minimums to achieving therapeutic nutrient levels.”

When her company, Persona, launched its Foundational Multi, it made sure that its medical advisory board, as well as decades of peer-reviewed science on nutrient efficacy, supported the finished formulation’s ability to deliver those safe and effective “therapeutic levels” of essential nutrients.

 that formulas contain at least 50% or more of the dietary value (DV)-while not exceeding the tolerable upper intake limit (UL)-for any nutrient. “There are technical limitations that can make it challenging to achieve this for every essential nutrient,” Shao concedes, with “bulky” minerals like calcium and magnesium typically included at lower levels. But he’s found that most manufacturers offer products with a wide range of vitamins and minerals at levels 30% to 100% of the DV.

How else can multivitamin makers “speak” to their increasingly diverse, increasingly demanding market?

They can maintain as clean a label as possible, for one. Lonza’s Erickson points out that 59% of respondents to her company’s NMI survey would prefer buying supplements from natural sources. “With this knowledge, and with the rise in interest in plant-based diets, now comes demand for cleaner labels and more transparency about what’s in supplement products,” she says.

Alas, claims Cullen, most multivitamins mirror “processed foods,” with ingredients from “questionable sources, toxic fillers, binders, synthetic colorants, and megadoses of nutrients that do more harm to the body than good.”

Bernadot advises brands to take consumers’ pharmaceutical regimens into account. “In 2017,” she says, “we conducted a study with Wakefield Research that uncovered that nearly 40% of Americans taking prescription medications and dietary supplements didn’t know about drug-nutrient interactions, or DNIs. This is alarming, as many consumers take their nutrition into their own hands-grabbing supplements they need from store shelves where nutritionists aren’t readily available to check possible DNIs.” So when her company prepares personalized nutrition models for its consumers, it cross-references more than 850 prescription medications to avoid risky drug-nutrient interactions.

Making multivitamins pleasant to take can also go a long way toward boosting compliance. Though Lonza’s NMI data show that tablets and capsules remain the preferred format for 41% and 42% of consumers, respectively, Erickson says “the desire for alternative formats is steadily increasing, helping to promote supplement growth across an array of new categories, from beverage shots to bars, and driving the proliferation of gummy-type products.”

If innovations like these keep multivitamins relevant in changing times, “we’re likely to see nutrient gaps shrink over time,” Shao says. “And the very basis for the well-justified use of multivitamins today could very well be reduced tomorrow.” At that point, he says, “the key will be to evolve the value from filling nutrient gaps to promoting health, which most certainly will be an urgent need well into the future.”
	
	 

https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines

https://www.crnusa.org/multivitamin-mineral-mvm-inclusion-supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap

NMI SORD Proprietary Report for Lonza Consumer Health & Nutrition – US – 2,004 participants, online, 2018.

The biggest shift in multivitamin thinking involves meeting consumers where they are-in their lifestyles and their life stages.

Multivitamins 2.0: Not your grandparents’ supplements

When health advocates call algae a “superfood,” they do mean

 For one, algae have an extraordinary capacity for survival.

 is a broad term encompassing macroalgae and microalgae species, either freshwater or marine.)

For instance, macroalgae (also known as seaweed) “have an ancient lineage on our planet,” says Lynn Cornish, a scientist from Acadian Seaplants Ltd. (Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada), a manufacturer of food and functional ingredients derived from cultivated and wild seaweeds. “They were among the first multicellular organisms, here before even the jellyfish and the dinosaurs. They have survived for millennia in all manner of challenging environments, coping at times with hot sun, high light levels, temperature extremes, ice, and hungry sea creatures.”

Algae’s ability to shield themselves from exterior antagonists has enabled many species to build up a rich store of proteins, lipids, fiber, vitamins, minerals, and more-nutrients that coincidentally are sought in today’s human health market. “Algae is at the base of the food chain, and many algae species have adapted to become extremely potent nutritionally for a variety of reasons,” says Bob Capelli, executive vice president, global marketing, for astaxanthin supplier Algae Health Sciences (AlgaeHealth; Irvine, CA), a division of BGG. “For example, 

”-the microalgae species from which most natural astaxanthin ingredients in the human supplement market are derived today-”is an algal species that can hyper-accumulate astaxanthin as a protective force field to ward off all sorts of environmental stressors.”

Part of what makes algae so exciting a nutrition source is that it is nutritionally rich as a whole. Or Gottlib is vice president of marketing for microalgae-ingredient supplier Algatech (Kibbutz Ketura, Israel). Says Gottlib: “Unlike other plant-based foods-e.g., soy, peas, beans, etc.-where only part of the plant is consumed, microalgae biomass is a complete organism, thus containing all the components of the whole structure. It has significant amounts of proteins, lipids and phospholipids, vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, and carbohydrates, all high quality for human consumption.”

“Nutritionally,” says Cornish from Acadian Seaplants, “seaweeds typically contain all the essential nutrients required for human health and wellness, with the exception of adequate calories.”

While algal ingredients are not new in the nutrition space, interest in these ingredients is growing, for several reasons.

“Consumers are turning to algae-derived ingredients more and more as we continue to see a booming demand for plant-based ingredients,” says Tryggvi StefÃ¡nsson, science manager, Algalif (Reykjanesbaer, Iceland), supplier of the Astalif astaxanthin brand. 

Another reason for the interest has to do with one of the biggest challenges humans will face for centuries to come: how to sustainably feed the earth’s growing population from a planet whose feed supply is limited.

“In the face of growing shortages and strains on our resources, and the increasing demand for proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and other valuable ingredients-especially those that are vegetarian, sustainable, environmentally friendly, and organic-it’s a given that microalgae will play a significant role in the diet of all populations during the next decade,” says Algatech’s Gottlib.

He continues: “Microalgae are on the way to becoming a leading food source of the 21

century…In fact, microalgae contain the nutritional formula for humankind to flourish over the coming decades.”

StefÃ¡nsson adds that “algae are more sustainable than conventional crops because they require significantly less energy/input to be kept alive, thereby limiting environmental impact. It is a renewable source of proteins but also high-value compounds for human nutrition, such as beta-carotene, phycocyanin, astaxanthin, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid).”

While algae, particularly seaweeds, have a long history of use in Asian cultures for helping to address everything from inflammation, immunity, and gut health to oncology, the ability to extract and isolate specific fractions of algae has given these ingredients greater use worldwide, says Helen Fitton, PhD, chief scientist for Marinova (Cambridge, Tasmania, Australia). “The interest in seaweed-derived ingredients has significantly grown in recent years-not just in Asia but in western countries, too-as research continues to reveal the extraordinary health potential they offer.”

Modern-day clinical research substantiating the human health benefits of a number of algal strains continues to grow. “There are endless species of algae, and each has unique constituents” for supporting health, says Algalif’s StefÃ¡nsson. 

Immune health has long been an area of interest where algae are concerned. Marinova’s Fitton points to a study done on fucoidan. Marinova specializes in this high-purity compound, which it extracts from two species of fucoidan-rich, certified-organic macroalgae: 

. Fucoidan, she explains, plays an essential role in helping seaweed protect itself from marine pathogens.

 sponsored by Marinova on its Maritech branded fucoidan exploring the ingredient’s immunomodulatory potential found that the study’s fucoidan-supplemented subjects saw a significant increase in cytotoxic T-cell numbers and phagocytic capacity in monocytes, as well as a significant decrease in levels of the inflammatory cytokine interleukin 6, leading researchers to conclude that the fucoidan does have “potential as an immune modulator.”

Ingredient supplier Kemin (Des Moines, IA) has brought to market a new immune-health ingredient called BetaVia, derived from the algal strain 

The company recently announced the results of a 90-day double-blind, placebo-controlled human clinical trial on BetaVia Complete, which is a whole-cell algae ingredient grown via fermentation and comprising more than 50% algae-sourced beta-glucans, plus protein, amino acids, and essential vitamins and minerals. The study found that compared to subjects taking a placebo, BetaVia Complete subjects experienced 70% fewer upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) symptoms, 3.3 fewer sick days, and 10 fewer URTI symptoms throughout the study. The study is currently awaiting publication. (The company also offers BetaVia Pure, a concentrated

 ingredient containing more than 95% algal-sourced beta-glucans.)

Josh Swalla, product manager for active wellness at Kemin Human Nutrition and Health, says, “We believe the immune supplement market is ripe with opportunity for algae. The overall immune [supplement] market is estimated to reach $25 billion in retail sales by 2025, according to Persistence Market Research.

 Providing customers with an immune-health ingredient from a unique algae source will allow their products to stand out on shelves.”

Another ingredient, InSea2, which is derived from the seaweed species 

, was shown in a newly published six-month randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study

 on 65 dysglycemic patients to be effective for glycemic control compared to placebo. Researchers observed that subjects taking the ingredient saw significant reductions in levels of glycated hemoglobin, fasting plasma glucose, postprandial glucose, and insulin-resistance index compared with placebo. The ingredient, combined with chromium picolinate, helped 18.2% of patients return to normal glycemic status after six months, compared to zero in the placebo group.

Sports nutrition is also a growing market. At the Natural Products Expo West trade show in March, Lonza Consumer Health & Nutrition (Morristown, NJ) introduced a new marine phytoplankton-based ingredient derived from

 that increases physiological response to oxidative stress, supporting physical performance and recovery. The ingredient, brand name Oceanix, is said to be rich in antioxidant enzymes, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), as well as essential fatty acids, vitamins, amino acids, and minerals.

“Oceanix marine phytoplankton is developed using a patent-pending process in a food cGMP facility and is cultivated on non-arable land using recycled water, helping to meet the rising demand for more sustainable, naturally derived dietary supplement products,” says Cliff Barone, global ingredient marketing, Lonza Consumer Health & Nutrition. “The Oceanix brand also meets the growing need for nutritional support for active consumers-whether weekend warriors or elite athletes-and the demand for clean-label, vegetarian products. Active consumers want active nutrition products to support performance and recovery that’s also clean-label and non-GMO, and with its vegetarian origins, the Oceanix ingredient helps to bring sports performance and wellness benefits together, appealing to a new set of consumers.”

Barone says that Oceanix has been the subject of a pilot study on 32 student athletes, which found that 25 mg of the ingredient daily significantly improved multiple biomarkers of exercise performance and recovery compared to baseline and control. “This may be attributable to the high concentration of SOD that sets Oceanix marine phytoplankton apart from other microalgae ingredients,” he says.

He adds: “Phytoplankton ingredients are gaining traction in the dietary supplements space thanks to their natural, non-GMO, and plant-based source of nutrition. This comes as consumers become increasingly informed about the products they consume, which is driving the demand for more naturally sourced products.” Oceanix is suited for various sports nutrition applications, including dietary supplements, bars, drinks, and powders.

Astaxanthin, the natural carotenoid derived from 

, has carved out a special market for itself in the algal ingredients space. Says Algalif’s StefÃ¡nsson, “Astaxanthin protects against free radical damage; preserves healthy lipids, proteins, and DNA; and helps the human body maintain a healthy oxidative balance. As science continues to demonstrate the numerous benefits of astaxanthin, opportunities are growing in markets from beauty and self-care to sports nutrition and healthy aging.”

Skin health is one area of research interest. Last year, Algatech announced a new study

 done on a branded supplement from Fujifilm containing Algatech’s natural astaxanthin, derived from 

. Study subjects were given the oral supplements, after which skin was irradiated in order to measure any skin changes. Nine weeks of daily astaxanthin intake resulted in a higher amount of UV exposure required to visibly redden the skin, leading the researchers to conclude that “astaxanthin seems protective against UV-induced skin deterioration and helps maintain healthy skin in healthy people.”

“Astaxanthin will not and should not replace a sunscreen cream, but it provides another layer of protection,” says Algatech’s Gottlib.

Gottlib adds: “Natural algal-sourced astaxanthin is gaining popularity thanks to the expanding evidence and clinical studies supporting its health benefits and its key role in preventing health disorders, especially those associated with inflammation and oxidative stress conditions, as well as its support of mitochondria activity and function. There is strong clinical evidence for its support of eye health, cognition, skin health, cardiovascular health, and muscle endurance and recovery.”

Last fall, astaxanthin supplier AstaReal (Nacka, Sweden) announced a new four-month study

funded by the company’s retail brand Astavita showing that a supplement containing AstaReal natural astaxanthin, along with tocotrienol and zinc, both increased endurance and significantly improved muscle function loss in sarcopenia sufferers. (Sarcopenia is the loss of muscle mass that occurs due to aging.)

“The results of this study are incredibly exciting as they show that AstaReal can play a vital role in supporting muscle endurance, strength, and mobility, thus combatting the effects of debilitating conditions such as sarcopenia,” said Andie Long, sales and marketing manager, AstaReal Sweden, in a press release.

Meanwhile, AlgaeHealth’s Capelli points to brand new study

 on his company’s AstaZine astaxanthin, which he says is “the first of its kind.” The study, funded by AlgaeHealth, examined the effects of AstaZine astaxanthin on depression and fatigue in human subjects. The researchers found that supplemented subjects saw significant improvements in positive mood state parameters such as global mood and vigor, and in negative mood state parameters, including depression, fatigue, confusion, tension, and anger. Wrote the researchers: “While previous studies have shown [natural astaxanthin] supplementation to improve parameters associated with brain health (neuro-inflammation and cognition), these data are the first to suggest that natural astaxanthin supplementation reduces negative mood state parameters (depression and fatigue) and improves global mood state and thus supports mental wellness.”

Capelli says: “It’s preliminary to make conclusions based on this one study, but the potential implications for people on prescription antidepressants is very interesting.”

Promises such as these are what keep astaxanthin suppliers looking forward.

Algatech’s Gottlib says, “Globally, the demand for astaxanthin is expected to continue to grow at a fast pace in the years to come. Natural algal sources of astaxanthin could be called the ‘king’ of carotenoids, with studies showing it to be 500 times more effective than tocopherol vitamin E and possessing proven clinical advantages.”

“We also see more and more countries have started to seek out the benefits of astaxanthin,” he adds. “We expect that, the same as with other valuable health ingredients, astaxanthin will gain an even bigger role in the functional food industry.”

Capelli says: “The astaxanthin market has been tumultuous over the last decade, with demand growing very rapidly when many huge opinion leaders tried it, felt the benefits for themselves, then went on ‘The Dr. Oz Show’ and ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ and wrote 

  number-one-bestselling books extolling its benefits. Now, you can find it in many products outside its traditional supplement market, but supplements still comprise the large majority of the volume.”

Capelli says that following a large spike in demand for astaxanthin in 2011-2014, demand has continued to rise, “but at more reasonable levels.” He says: “We still have a long way to go in our goal to make 

 a household word. Even though there’s been a lot of publicity about it over the last decade, most consumers still don’t know what it is, so there’s a lot of room for innovative brands to grow the market.”

Astaxanthin ingredient suppliers are working hard to ensure their ingredients can accommodate many types of product forms and consumer requests so that manufacturers can innovate further with astaxanthin.

Last fall, AlgaeHealth introduced a new water-dispersible emulsion of its AstaZine natural astaxanthin especially for beverages. According to the company, this new format utilizes a trademarked technology called Dispersa that “resolves two key complications common in competitive ‘water dispersible’ astaxanthin products: ineffective dispersion in water applications and residual staining of consumers’ mouths and packaging containers.” (Astaxanthin is known for its bright red color, which is often used as a colorant.) “We’ve seen competitive products claiming to be water dispersible which have sedimentation and suspended particles after mixing,” added Lixin Ding, PhD, general manager of BGG North America, AlgaeHealth’s parent company, in a press release. “Astaxanthin using Dispersa technology is completely transparent and stable over time, with no aggregation, sedimentation, or suspension of astaxanthin.” BGG says it plans to apply Dispersa to other ingredients in its line.

Algatech recently released a whole-algae powder form of its AstaPure astaxanthin-called AstaPure Arava powder-that it says meets consumer demands for a clean-label, vegan, organic, whole-food ingredient. The whole-algae powder brings “consumers the full array of benefits from the 

 algae cells as polysaccharide complex, proteins, minerals, essential fatty acids, as well as astaxanthin.” Gottlib says this kind of an ingredient meets consumer demands for “less-processed food-in the case of astaxanthin, meaning consuming it exactly as nature created it.”

Marketers interested in taking advantage of the benefits of algal ingredients should keep in mind that source material is important.

For instance, says AlgaeHealth’s Capelli, “The source of astaxanthin is a key consideration, since forms other than algae-based have been show in several peer-reviewed studies to be far inferior in efficacy. As an example, algae-based astaxanthin is 20 to 90 times stronger as an antioxidant than synthetic astaxanthin produced from petrochemicals. And about half a dozen studies have shown how yeast-based and synthetic forms don’t deliver the health benefits that algae-based astaxanthin does in a variety of animals.” (Capelli was the co-author of a paper published in 2013 exploring this topic.

Algalif’s StefÃ¡nsson points out: “As the consumer trend towards natural, functional ingredients continues to grow, not only is the demand for algae ingredients growing, but specifically those that have proven sustainability, quality, and traceability behind them. Microalgae cultivated under controlled conditions in locations that can provide clean energy and water inputs address these demands particularly well.” Instead of cultivating algae in open ponds, for instance, Algalif utilizes a LED-illuminated indoor photobioreactor system and a three-phase cultivation process to produce the 

 used to extract its Astalif astaxanthin ingredients. The company says this process allows it to control all production parameters and prevent the presence of any contaminants. “The productivity in such a system is much higher than in open-pond systems, as the light utilization is better, evaporation is lower, and the systems can run on maximum productivity 24/7,” StefÃ¡nsson adds.

Kemin is another company using a patented fermentation process that enables the company to produce BetaVia ingredients under controlled conditions.

Slowly, consumers here at home are coming around to all that algae offers. “Marine-derived ingredients have been popular in Asian markets for years, but they are just beginning to gain traction in North America,” says Kemin’s Josh Swalla. “With many consumers switching to a plant-based diet, marine ingredients such as algae are becoming more accepted. The wide acceptance of spirulina shows that North American consumers are willing to try marine ingredients.”

There’s no doubt that algal ingredients will continue attracting attention in the human health market as algae becomes a popular topic all around. “Interest in algae-based ingredients has increased over the last decade for two reasons: a lot more research has emerged showing health benefits for several species of algae. In addition, there has been increased focus by some huge companies on algae for other potential uses, such as energy, which has spilled over into interest in its other benefits,” says AlgaeHealth’s Capelli. “When you’ve got Exxon Mobil running television ads about the potential to produce fuel from algae, it’s certain to increase interest in its other uses.”

Marine-Derived Minerals: Lots of Room for Growth as Consumers Demand Natural Ingredients

Suppliers of marine mineral ingredients say that the origin of their ingredients results in a better-quality mineral ingredient.

Manufacturers in search of minerals that offer superior absorption might want to look seaward. Suppliers of marine mineral ingredients say that the origin of their ingredients results in a better-quality mineral ingredient.

One of those companies is CK Nutraceuticals (Oakville, ON, Canada). Michael Chernyak, the company’s president, explains why more consumers are turning to marine minerals such as the Deep Ocean Minerals ingredient his company supplies on behalf of the ingredient’s manufacturer, Pacific Deep Ocean Biotech in Taiwan. Deep Ocean Minerals is extracted from deep ocean seawater, whose mineral composition is said to mimic that of humans’, including essential minerals such as magnesium, calcium, and potassium.

“Synthetic mineral sources are generally not well absorbed,” Chernyak explains. “They can deliver high elemental mineral levels; however, the question of bioavailability should be raised. Minerals from nature tend to be better absorbed. For instance, our Deep Ocean Minerals ingredient is standardized to four macro-minerals, including magnesium, and contains over 70 naturally occurring minerals and trace elements.” These minerals and trace elements are not concentrated or isolated, he says; rather, they are left “naturally occurring and synergistic” in the ingredient.

The ocean water from which Deep Ocean Minerals is sourced-2000 feet below the ocean’s surface-is extremely pure. At those depths, the water is not contaminated by pollutants such as heavy metals. In fact, the mineral quality of the deep ocean water is superior to the quality one would achieve from surface water, the company explains.

Chernyak says his company has several published human studies demonstrating the health efficacy of Deep Ocean Minerals. Several recent studies focused on exercise recovery, including one showing that Deep Ocean Minerals water can enhance exercise recovery in terms of aerobic capacity and leg muscle power compared to plain water

 and another showing that a Deep Ocean Minerals drink helped increase cerebral hemodynamic response in subjects during exercise recovery

Chernyak says consumer interest in marine minerals is “beginning to develop, slowly but surely.” He says: “The marine-sourced mineral market is still quite nascent; however, there is lots of room for this trend to run. I’m encouraged to see this play out.”

Part of what will drive interest is consumers’ demand for natural ingredient sources. “Consumers are becoming more educated, more aware,” he says. “The ‘natural’ trend does not show signs of slowing, and this is where innovative natural mineral sources come into play, particularly those like Deep Ocean Minerals which are backed by clinical research.”

Another notable marine-mineral ingredient is Aquamin by Marigot Ltd. (Cork, Ireland). The Aquamin line includes marine magnesium ingredients from seawater and multimineral complex ingredients from marine plants. David O’Leary, commercial manager for Marigot, describes his company’s ingredient more fully: “Our plant-based mineral is derived from the red seaweed species 

. Our mineral offering has been tested extensively in research across three main areas: bone, joint, and digestive health.”

O’Leary describes the sustainable process by which the Aquamin ingredient is obtained. “Plant-based, aged, non-live/calcified materials are harvested from the fjord beds in the northwest of Iceland. This is where the material is harvested under a rigorous sustainability-management program. As no live material is harvested, no damage is done to the live cover, thereby ensuring the live bed deposits of the seaweed are allowed to continue producing calcified exoskeletons uninterrupted for generations to come.”

These mineral suppliers are also looking to make their ingredients even easier for formulators to work with in an array of products. CK Nutraceuticals says that a powdered version of the liquid Deep Ocean Minerals ingredient is now available “in response to market demand for this format.”

Last year, Marigot introduced Aquamin Mg Soluble, an “instantly soluble” form of its Aquamin magnesium-rich ingredient. “Our product offering has been tailored for application in multiple delivery systems-foods, beverages, capsules/tablets,” O’Leary says. “We have focused on the ability to provide application-based solutions ranging from powders to granulated grades, soluble beverage grades, and dispersible-in-low-pH grades.”

A red algae ingredient that provides the look, feel, and taste of real meat


	In March, a San Diego–based startup called Triton Algae Innovations secured a “no questions” letter from FDA for a Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) notification for its innovative whole-cell algae powder. Derived from the red algal species 

the ingredient can be used as a plant-based source of protein in food. It’s described as “a non-GM, plant-based algae powder rich in essential amino acids; omega-3, -6, and -9 fatty acids; vitamin A/beta-carotene; and iron; and is an excellent source of highly nutritious protein.” The ingredient is produced via fermentation.

David Schroeder, the company’s director of corporate and regulatory affairs, says this is the first 

 ingredient to enter the food chain. He says its protein levels are higher than other plant-based proteins’, including other algae. Already, the ingredient has been tested as a culinary ingredient at several prominent San Diego restaurants and has been used in everything from pasta to cookies.

Notably, in addition to producing this whole-algal protein powder, Triton Algae Innovations is also able to produce a red version of this algae species from which non-GM heme can be produced. Heme is the iron-rich molecule naturally found in red meat and is regarded by plant food firms as a way to mimic the look, taste, and smell of real meat products. “This ability to generate the same heme found in animal meats without utilizing GMO technology is of considerable interest to plant-based meat companies interested in offering non-GMO products to consumers,” says Schroeder.

Of the whole-algal protein powder, Schroeder says, “We anticipate that as the market becomes more familiar with the ingredient, it will be incorporated into and utilized in a variety of food and nutritional end uses…Additionally, the environmental benefits of production via fermentation-smaller footprint, no arable land, minimal fresh water inputs, no use of pesticides or crop protection chemicals, etc.-provide certain competitive advantages as opposed to other plant-based proteins, which are produced via traditional agricultural methods.”

Wells ML et al. “Algae as nutritional and functional food sources: revisiting our understanding.” 

Myers SP et al. “A combined Phase I and II open-label study on the immunomodulatory effects of seaweed extract nutrient complex.” 

Persistence Market Research. “Global market study on immune health supplements: omega-3 fatty acids expected to be the fastest-growing ingredient type during 2017-2025.” December 2017

 on glycemic status and on endothelial damage markers in dysglicemic patients.” 

Kaoki I et al. “The protective role of astaxanthin for UV-induced skin deterioration in healthy people-a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.”

Published online ahead of print June 25, 2018.	

Liu SZ et al. “Building strength, endurance, and mobility using an astaxanthin formulation with functional training in elderly.” 

Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia, and Muscle,

Talbott S et al. “Astaxanthin supplementation reduces depression and fatigue in healthy subjects.” 

Capelli B et al. “Synthetic astaxanthin is significantly inferior to algae-based astaxanthin as an antioxidant and may not be suitable as a human nutraceutical supplement.” 

Stasiule L et al. “Deep mineral water accelerates recovery after dehydrating aerobic exercise: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study.” 

Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 

Wei CY et al. “Deep ocean mineral supplementation enhances the cerebral hemodynamic response during exercise and decreases inflammation postexercise in men at two age levels.” 

Algae’s valuable nutrition stores are prized in today’s human health market.

Algae and nutrition: Putting the “super” in "superfood"

Brain health supplements have rapidly gained popularity among the academic and professional communities alike, with everyone on the lookout for new ingredients that will improve focus, boost critical thinking skills, shorten reaction time, and extend mental endurance. As the world of work continues to shift toward mental rather than physical tasks, cognitive performance in school and the workplace will only become more critical to the everyday lives of mainstream consumers.

Supplement manufacturers and brands looking to capitalize on emerging markets will want to watch the cognitive performance space closely in the coming years as more research validates the benefits of cognitive performance ingredients and consumer interest snowballs. If past is prelude and general nutritional supplement trends hold true, then the growth of the cognitive health market will lead consumers to demand more research to back up the claims of brands and manufacturers. Here’s what the latest research shows about five of the market’s fastest-growing cognitive performance ingredients.

Spearmint Extract Improves Cognitive Performance in Elite Military Forces

Spearmint extract has undergone several studies for its cognitive performance properties in the last few years. Most recently, researchers in Israel working under the supervision of Israel Defense Forces Medical Corp Cardiothoracic Surgeon Commander Col. Ishay Ostfeld, MD, studied the effects of Kemin’s (Des Moines, IA) branded spearmint extract supplement Neumentix on 10 special operations counterterrorism specialists during a live military tactical operation.

The randomized, double-blind, parallel-design clinical trial

 followed these specialists during an operation after a 24-hour period of sleep deprivation. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either 900 mg/day of Neumentix (n=5) or a matching placebo (n=5) for 17 days. All participants underwent tests of physical, cognitive, and executive functioning before Neumentix supplementation and one hour after the conclusion of the military operation.

Five out of five subjects in the experimental condition correctly identified the target within one hour of the operation’s conclusion, compared to only three out of five subjects in the control condition. While the study authors caution that these results are not conclusive evidence that spearmint extract is an effective cognitive supplement, and the small sample size limits the generalizability of the findings, Kim Colletti, Kemin’s global product manager, brain health platform, says that the trial is noteworthy nonetheless: “This study was a well-designed clinical trial, and while the small sample size means the findings are mostly suggestive, this was a one-of-a-kind experimental situation that we believe adds to the body of evidence for Neumentix. [The study also found that] Neumentix may improve subjective feelings of energy and alertness when stressed.”

Low Magnesium Intake Correlated with Alzheimer’s Disease, Memory Disruptions

An oft-overlooked mineral, magnesium appears to have a critical function in both fueling cognitive processes and protecting the brain from age-related decline. One literature review

Here’s what the latest research shows about five of the market’s fastest-growing cognitive performance ingredients.

Nutritional Outlook Vol. 22 No. 3

Beauty and the Bar: Beauty food and drinks attract more fans

Natural product packaging trends and strategies

Softgels for marine oils: Softgel suppliers have found ways to handle tricky marine oils

Multivitamins 2.0: Not your grandparents’ supplements

Algae and nutrition: Putting the “super” in "superfood"

Five brain health ingredients on the rise

The growing appeal of whole-food supplements

Botanical superstars in 2019

Can you still patent a natural product?

Best Frenemies: Can the drug and dietary supplement industries get along?

Nootropic herbs: Research on brain-boosting botanicals

Subscription services, the next wave in dietary supplement retail?