Yakult and leading academics expressed frustration at what they see as unfair and opaque scientific requirements around probiotic health claims in the European Union – but how much is industry to blame and could social media be a data-sharing saviour?
Nestlé and Swedish-based supplier BioGaia have announced the launch of a new toddler formula containing the patented probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri Protectis.
A low vitamin D intake during childhood is associated with a higher risk of sub-clinical atherosclerosis in adulthood, researchers in Finland have found.
Benefit-risk ratios must be established for each antioxidant separately, considering risk groups and dosage, according to researchers reviewing polarised perceptions of vitamin E and beta-carotene.
A study led by researchers in New Zealand suggests that an antioxidant can greatly improve symptoms related to obesity and type II diabetes by reversing inflammation in the brain caused by a high-fat diet.
A genetically engineered strain of human gut bacteria from the lactobacillus family could help to slash in incidence of high blood sugar by up to 30%, according to new research in rats.
Although the mechanism of action is somewhat unclear, polyphenols have a solid and growing body of research backing their effect on the regulation of blood sugar levels, experts say.
‘Don’t take sports supplements, they can’t be trusted’ was the takeaway message from Welsh track stars Rhys Williams and Gareth Warburton after the recent UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) tribunal agreed steroids got into their blood streams via contaminated sports...
Vietnamese pharmaceutical company VietPhap International has been given the rights to sell BioGaia’s ProTectis probiotic baby drops in its home market.
It is well established that the brain has metabolic requirements that must be satisfied by what we eat or in the case of infants, “what their mother eats”. In particular, dietary fats are fundamentally important for thinking, learning and memory abilities,...
An Israeli firm has debuted ‘his, her’s and theirs’ food supplements aimed at boosting the fertility of ageing couples who want children - the chances of pregnancy drop to as low as 5% after the age of 40.
New Zealand scientists believe that feijoa and blackberry extracts could be central to the development of new treatments for inflammatory bowel disease after the two fruits came top of a field of 12 others in terms their anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant...
The methods of Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council have been panned after expert opinion branded its review of evidence on the effectiveness of homeopathy as “shoddy” and “fatally flawed” prior to its publication.
Ongoing research into the effects of individual amino acids will both substantiate their possible effects and counteract the negative assumption that they have been added to sports nutrition products solely to alter the protein test numbers, experts say.
BASF has sold its Norwegian, “natural fish oils, medium-concentrated omega-3s, and customised bottled fish oil” plant to Pennsylvania firm Marine Ingredients for an undisclosed sum as the German ingredients and chemicals giant switches its focus to high-end...
To understand Functional Foods you must see it as a strategy to add value to processed foods, says the president and founder of the HealthyMarketingTeam, Peter Wennstrom, in this guest article.
Faced with mounting difficulties in their drug businesses, many pharmaceutical manufacturers are looking at getting into functional foods and beverages, notes food marketing expert, Julian Mellentin in this guest article.
“This is a good move for Raisio. They are the correct parent of this niche brand.”
“J&J should have sold it 10 years ago,” is one analyst’s appraisal of Finnish agro-food giant Raisio’s buy-back of the licensing rights to its cholesterol lowering, plant stanol-based Benecol brand today, referring to US market difficulties for the...
China’s food and drug regulators have embarked on modernising the country’s health food industry by releasing two draft documents covering nutritional supplements to form a new category within the country’s fast-evolving regulatory framework.
Academic: "Anybody who thinks the world’s malnutrition problems are going to be solved without industry is dreaming."
By Shane Starling from the 3rd World Congress of Public Health Nutrition in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria
Emerging research linking vitamin E deficiency with increased risk of Alzheimer’s, miscarriages and fatty liver disease can contribute to an ongoing debate around recommended intakes, a nutrition congress was told yesterday.
After years of calling for changes in Australia’s supremely tight regulatory framework, Australian complementary medicine manufacturers might just get some of the things they’ve been asking for, even if the process will only be a “quiet revolution”, according...
Calcium supplementation (Marigot’s Aquamin) could prevent exercise-associated bone density reduction in post-menopausal women, according to an American study.
Speaking at the complementary medicines industry’s national conference Sydney, the chief executive of Complementary Medicines Australia welcomed a report by Frost & Sullivan to show a robust link between some complementary medicines with the reduced...
Tate & Lyle used the recent Food Ingredients-Asia trade event in Jakarta as a springboard for its mounting ambitions in the country of 250 million people as well as other parts of Asia. Fibre and low-calorie sweeteners for weight control were a big...
Australasia’s food regulator has released a consultation paper on the back of calls by an Australian food industry body for the start date for new dietary fibre content claims to be delayed.
Next Tuesday NutraIngredients is proud to host our first healthy ageing forum, an hour long online discussion about a booming sector with leading experts.
By Shane Starling from Food Ingredients-Asia in Jakarta
Irish dairy and ingredients group Kerry sees a lot of potential in an Indonesian market where sophisticated nutritionals are gaining ground with a young demographic. It is upping investment in a country with south east Asia’s largest population (250m).
The ‘surprising’ discovery of a previously unidentified class of lipid molecules that enhance insulin sensitivity and blood sugar control could offer a route to the prevention of type 2 diabetes, say researchers.
By Shane Starling at FI-Asia in Jakarta, Indonesia
From tea yoghurt to coffee fruit energy, portable water enhancement to Milo’s brand expansions, Mintel shared category-busting innovation at Food Ingredients-Asia in Jakarta, Indonesia, this week.
Governments might not want to admit it, but according to a leading academic in microbiology and probiotics, there is demand for probiotic products with detoxification properties that can help protect against uptake of toxic metals such as mercury and...
The absence of any EU-approved health claims for probiotics hasn’t deterred Lallemand Health Solutions from launching a suite of probiotics addressing women’s health issues.
As healthcare industry faces increasing expenditure, the emphasis shifts from treatment to prevention thorough use of nutraceuticals and better nutrition, say Frost & Sullivan analysts.
Danish probiotics player Chr Hansen has launched a patent-pending soft gel that can deliver live probiotics with a two-year shelf life and matched it with a probiotic-omega-3 supplement targeting pregnant women.
Vitamin D supplementation improves winter-related atopic dermatitis (AD) in children at risk of vitamin D deficiency and could provide a safe alternative to UV light treatment, according to a new study led by Boston researchers.
"We aren’t going to wake up one day and everything will be crystal clear; there’s going to be some trial and error going through it.”
By RJ Whitehead & Shane Starling at Health Ingredients-Japan in Tokyo
Japan will implement a new health claims system that is set to supersede its strict FOSHU regime in April 2015 – just six months away – but what form will it take and will it meet its deadline?
By Shane Starling at Health Ingredients-Japan in Tokyo
Japan’s innovative but restricted €25bn functional foods and food supplements sector is about to be handed a set of game-changing marketing keys by the government, industry players told us at Health Ingredients-Japan in Tokyo today.
Breakfasts rich in protein from dairy, but not soy, could stimulate mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin), which is known to cause muscle cells to increase protein synthesis, says a new study.
Global lipid supplier Enzymotec has established a Southern Hemisphere subsidiary, Enzymotec Australia with Claudette Cross at the helm of the country’s operations in Australia and New Zealand.
Sports nutrition products should not be allowed to sponsor sporting events, say two researchers from the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Active Living in Australia.
Dutch research organisation TNO is working with industry partners on a pilot scale algae refining plant with potential in omega-3s, proteins and antioxidants.
