The Analyst’s Take: Weight management supplement growth slows despite increased demand

We have packed more data than ever before into this year’s Sports Nutrition and Weight Management Report, including a deeper look at protein powders across ingredient, a breakout of hydration and energy and brand new consumer research from last month looking at the target market of consumers who both do and do not currently use these products. This total market is hot, with growth at 10.6% last year, approaching $70 billion in sales. 

Weight management is a particularly interesting category to track, with growth increasing for the first time in 2021, coming out of what many call the COVID-19 weight gain. Even weight management pills had growth of 2%, following years of constant declines. That was short-lived however, as sales plummeted by 11.2% in 2022, the steepest decline seen since the ephedra ban.

The volatility in this category speaks not as much to a demand for products to support weight loss, but from other market factors. Consumers consistently rate weight loss as a top health concern in survey data, and the extreme success of the pharmaceutical weight-loss drug Ozempic and over-the-counter product Alli indicate that they are willing to turn to health products.

The blurred lines between weight loss and other categories tracked in this report are a factor as well. In the survey fielded earlier this year for this report, consumers report using hydration products and functional sports beverages to control or lose weight. What is certain is that weight loss is not going to disappear from the list of top health concerns, but what is less certain is what role supplements will play in this market.

Find all the detailed data and our analyses in the full Sports Nutrition and Weight Management Report, available in the NBJ store.