Top 11 trends shifting the way we see supplements
September 26, 2014
![Top 11 trends shifting the way we see supplements Top 11 trends shifting the way we see supplements](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt09e5e63517a16184/blt21774dfbfe43c161/64f1daec2e2a13d30bce6135/supplement-picks.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
Krill has been eating fish oil for lunch lately, and it's (pretty much) because of the phospholipids in krill, which lead to enhanced uptake of the all-important omega-3s DHA and EPA. This has not gone unnoticed by the fish-oil people. Leave it to Nordic Naturals to take an already-superior omega-3 concentrate, then infuse it with phospholipids, and you've got the best omega-3 on the market.
We all know Greek yogurt is big. Protein is big. Leave it to early adopter Jarrow Formulas to come out with a Greek yogurt protein powder comprised of Greek yogurt powder, creaminess-inducing whey protein, and some fiber as well.
"The C Word" that strikes fear into people the world over no longer stands for cancer. Nowadays, it's cognitive health everyone wants to maintain. And finished products are now catching up with that consumer desire. Some, like the NOW Foods RememBRAIN supplement pictured to the left, use the phospholipid PS, along with plant-derived huperzine-A, alpha-GPC (a B vitamin cousin related to choline) and the high-quality methylcobalamin form of vitamin B12. NOW also has CurcuBrain, featuring the branded ingredient Longvida, which features enhanced bioavailability and a dozen research studies and clinical trials suggesting efficacy in reducing inflammation in the brain. For those who don't want to wait for the evidence to be ironclad, curcumin in any event is the anti-inflammatory ingredient kingpin.
Fish oil with the once-standard 180/120 combo -- meaning 180mg EPA and 120mg DHA within 1,000mg of total fish oil -- was developed in supplement form to approximate the ratio naturally found in fish. But now that we know that the DHA and EPA are where it's at, manufacturers are delivering increasingly concentrated levels of the two long-chain omega-3s of interest. This Carlson SKU contains 300mg EPA and 200mg DHA. Even higher concentrates are available.
Remember when Emergen-C was the only effervescent satchel game in town? The Ester-C people are now in the game with its superior form of vitamin C. For good measure, there's enough B vitamins and minerals to qualify as a bona fide multivitamin here. You can't blame your poor nutritional status on pill fatigue anymore.
Everybody wants energy, but not everybody goes for the caffeine buzz. For those seeking healthy, sustained energy, there are solutions. Some foods pack in fiber, some supplements contain functional ingredients that act as carb blockers - these slow down the digestion of sugars to prolong the time span upon which the energy source acts in the body. Twinlab has introduced its MCT Fuel, a calorie source that is not incorporated into the adipose tissue (aka, fat cells). Based on medium-chain triglycerides, you might call this viscous yellow fluid the anti-fat fat. For a video further explaining this and three other supplement trends, click here.
Friendly bacteria are now the No. 1 functional ingredient sold in America. The marketing is still ahead of the science - specific strains have specific health effects. The game today is mostly one-upmanship, so whichever product contains the most CFUs wins. Some differentiation is still going on - some companies add a prebiotic lunch to go with the probiotics to give the bacteria something to nourish themselves (typically seen as FOS or inulin). Most add a range of strains - again, in the consumer mindset, the more the merrier. We await the elusive day when specific strains are legitimately marketed to specific health conditions, using both the proper strain documented in published clinicals as well as the appropriate dose. For a video further explaining this and three other supplement trends, click here.
American Health's More Than A Multi is on the bandwagon offering consumers vitamins and minerals from whole-food sources. Nothing fermented in here. Just 50+ ingredients, charged with real-food enzymes to enhance absorption and uptake. The bonus here is a time-release formulation that takes 8-10 hours to get into the body, providing the consumer with extended nutrition. For a video further explaining this and three other supplement trends, click here.
The most unique product we've seen ameliorates the deterioration of "tight junctions" of the cells that make up the intestinal lining. These tight junctions degrade in the presence of gluten and glyphosphates - the latter the key ingredient in Roundup, the archetypal GMO. This loosening of cell-wall lining can not only lead to leaky gut syndrome but also be the thing responsible for GI upset that we attribute to gluten sensitivity. For a video further explaining this and three other supplement trends, click here.
Consumers clamor for clean products. It's why capsules (in particular veggie capsules) are so popular - fewer binders, fillers and excipients than tablets. So why not get rid of the pill entirely? Nutritional powders are all the rage - the perfect topper for a morning smoothie, or just add water and you're good to go. This entrant from Juvo is notable because it was founded by an oncologist who saw malnourishment as a problem among cancer patients. The research team went on to study 3,000 ingredients, and developed the brand that contains 55 of the best raw greens and whole foods. The vanilla chai tastes great!
Glutathione is the master antioxidant and toxin avenger, but it's been nigh-impossible to get it in active form. So people would supplement with N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) as a precursor. At last suppliers are delivering the active form - in a healthy individual, at least 90% of glutathione in the body should be active. By age 65, you've lost 50% of the body's ability to make glutathione. Among other things, it protects the length of telomeres - the end caps of DNA strands that figure in longevity. Terry Naturally has just launched an active glutathione shown in studies to improve the ratio of active to inactive glutathione in the body by 230%. Which just goes to show that there's still new things under the supplements sun.
Glutathione is the master antioxidant and toxin avenger, but it's been nigh-impossible to get it in active form. So people would supplement with N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) as a precursor. At last suppliers are delivering the active form - in a healthy individual, at least 90% of glutathione in the body should be active. By age 65, you've lost 50% of the body's ability to make glutathione. Among other things, it protects the length of telomeres - the end caps of DNA strands that figure in longevity. Terry Naturally has just launched an active glutathione shown in studies to improve the ratio of active to inactive glutathione in the body by 230%. Which just goes to show that there's still new things under the supplements sun.
Supplements continue to do leviathan work in filling nutrient gaps among consumers, just about none of whom actually get the full suite of recommended nutrients every day.
But these nutritional powerhouses do more than that (wink, wink) - because there's a difference between merely meeting the Daily Value, which after all is only the minimum amount required to prevent deficiency diseases from cropping up. Good nutrition taken at clinically relevant doses can actually improve the health of consumers.
And for those who just can't countenance popping a pill, no matter how magical it may be, supplements are leaving the capsule and tablet altogether. Here's what we saw from the revolution, as seen from the show floor of Natural Products Expo East 2014.
If your learning style tacks to the video, check out this 4-minute audio-visual extravaganza from the Baltimore Convention Center, home port of Natural Products Expo East, mateys.
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