Consumers want sustained energy without a crash. Non-stimulant, low caffeine, and slow-release caffeine for lasting energy is in demand and ingredients like mango leaf extract and coffee fruit extract are some of the many options consumers now have available. 

More branded formulation will be leveraging clinical studies done on the product and not just the constituent ingredients. This will help creates unique offerings with potential for ingredient synergies.

Branded ingredients will be offering more modifications to traditional ingredients, giving them unique attributes such as improved bioavailability, stability, or active content. These singular designer blends and complexes are backed by their own studies and compared to conventional versions of the same ingredients.

For example:

1. 1. liposomal formulations, chelated minerals (ex. magnesium L-threonate) or piperine for improved absorption (1, 2).
   2. Standardized “full spectrum” extracts with optimized and consistent compositions:
      • Lion’s Mane (Hericium erinaceus) with standardized ß-Glucan content and secondary metabolites of Lion’s Mane (3).
      • Extract of mango (Mangifera indica L.) leaves containing mangiferin and a host of total phenolic compounds (4).
      • Whole coffee fruit extract in which more than 200 phytonutrients have been identified (5, 6).
      • Bacopa monnieri extract standardized for four different bacosides (7).
      • Lemon verbena extract (Aloysia citriodora Paláu) with standardized verbascoside and total phenylpropanoids content (8).
   3. Designer complexes that improve stability and function (ex. inositol-stabilized arginine silicate complex) (9).
   4. Extracts from specially bred plants that optimize composition of actives (ex. polyphenolic spearmint extract) (10).

A few years ago direct action in the brain was how people thought of influencing brain health and cognition. An active ingredient needed to cross the blood brain barrier as a mechanism of action for supporting cognition. However, recent breakthroughs in research of the gut-brain axis have highlighted the indirect ways in which prebiotics and probiotics can influence brain health and function. This has presented an opportunity for patented probiotic strains and combinations that are being leveraged in both supplement and food and beverage formulations.

Ex. Cognibiotics | Bioptimizers Mood enhancing Supplement

Ex. MaryRuth's Stress & Cognition Probiotic Drops (Chocolate) for Women

Ex. Cognition Probiotic Drink with Cereboost® for Cognitive Function – Bio-K+

Ex. Probiotics Mood Capsules | Garden of Life

Consumers of cognitive support supplements used to be primarily 50+ and prioritizing memory benefits. Today, younger consumers are more aware and open about the importance of mental health and are prioritizing stress management. This has shifted the category more towards supplements affecting mood, like ashwagandha. Younger consumers are also enjoying functional beverages and choosing non-caffeinated options for sustained energy and focus, with mushroom blends and L-theanine being especially popular in this category.

At the same time women now going through menopause are more vocal about their needs than previous generations and looking for natural solutions. This has resulted in more attention to women’s health and managing stress and sleep for these consumers.

• Liposomal deliveries are popular for improving absorption.
• Piperine is often used to make claims of improved absorption (11, 12).
• Stabilizing complexes and chelates are being leveraged to improve absorption of actives like inositol-stabilized arginine silicate complex and magnesium L-threonate (13).

Research suggests that microbiomes may be influenced by gender (14), life stage (15) and physical activity (16). This has led to more specific products with functional benefits for specific demographics.

Ex. Menopause Support Probiotics for Women

Ex. Raw Probiotics Men | Garden of Life

Personalized Vitamins can be consumer survey based and combining standalone capsules into a customized supplement kit, like Persona and Care/of models. Nourish is creating customized formulations in a single gummy using 3D printing technology. The next evolution may involve practitioner-driven models, where healthcare providers tailor recommendations to align with individual goals, health conditions, and medical history. Retailers might also participate in this model of personalization by engaging with healthcare professionals directly, as is being done by the Vitamin Shoppe with their Wellness Council. Wellness Council | The Vitamin Shoppe

Traditionally, dietary supplement studies have been relatively small; typically engaging fewer than 100 participants. However, new guidance on representative trial samples from Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and a growing awareness of the need for diversity in clinical trial participants has started to change the way dietary supplement studies are designed. More diverse representation and subgroup analyses could make it possible to create tailored formulations and may ensure that clinical outcomes are generalizable.

Branded ingredient manufacturers are turning to contract research organization (CROs) offering decentralized and hybrid clinical trial models. These are often, but not exclusively, survey-based studies that participants can answer remotely. This makes studies more accessible to a diverse group of participants who may otherwise have limited access to clinical trial sites. It can also lower the cost of the clinical trial, allowing the recruitment of more participants. With larger datasets made possible by decentralized trial models, AI could be used for sub-group analysis to look at responders vs. non-responders, different demographics, or to isolate other lifestyle and environmental factors that might influence clinical outcomes.

I think AI data analysis has the greatest potential to optimize interpretation of large datasets from trials using wearable devices, using omics approaches, in systems biology studies, longitudinal studies, real world studies, and resilience studies.

In the case of systems biology, the goal is to identify disruptions in the steady state signature of numerous complex metabolic, genetic, and biochemical signatures with the goal of applying an intervention before the individual becomes symptomatic. This preventative approach aligns well with dietary supplementation and AI would be well suited in identifying early disturbances in the system’s equilibrium. As AI and wearable devices become more advanced, it may become possible to apply a systems biology approach in real time to help make recommendations for lifestyle changes, nutrition, and supplementation that will help maintain good health and support resilience and quality of life.

Simplifying the supply chain and improving accessibility for consumers will become increasingly important.

Citicholine has been very successful as a cognitive support ingredient in clinical studies. For example, a study of older adults (50 – 85 years old) supplementing with 500 mg/day citicoline for 12 weeks showed improved episodic and composite memory compared to placebo (17). In addition to scientific evidence supporting its safety and efficacy, citicholine has excellent functional properties; it is dispersible, colorless, odorless, and tasteless. This makes it widely applicable in a variety of supplement formats, functional foods, and beverages.

Lion’s mane has captured consumer awareness as part of the mushroom zeitgeist. Consumers are aware of the benefits of mushrooms, which now have an established health halo and are being used in functional coffees, snacks, foods, and supplements. While Lion’s mane has a long history in traditional Chinese medicine, its PubMed record of double-blind placebo controlled clinical studies is sparse (18, 19, 20).

L-theanine, caffeine, tyrosine, creatine, and nitrosigine are well studied in sports nutrition with cross-functional benefits for stress management and cognitive performance. As the sports nutrition space expands into active nutrition, serving a broader demographic of health and wellness enthusiasts, the cognitive benefits of these ingredients will becomes increasingly relevant and well-studied (21, 22).

Carotenoids lutein and astaxanthin are starting to emerge as having cognitive benefits for pre-natal, pediatric, and elderly nutrition in the case of lutein and managing cognitive fatigue in athletes and individual 50+ in the case of astaxanthin. Carotenoids from curcumin and saffron have also shown cognitive health benefits (23, 24, 25, 26).

Flavanols and polyphenols from a variety sources, including spearmint, mango leaf, grape seeds and blueberries will likely continue to expand, while traditional herbs like bacopa, rhodiola and ginseng remain staples.

Digital and social media are evolving trends at a rapid pace and vying for our attention, making it hard to focus and experience life offline. The supplement industry can position itself as a way to re-connect with nature and with ourselves; inviting awareness back to our bodies, our minds, and our lifestyle.

In an era of digital fatigue, holding a bottle of medicinal herbs is a proverbial way of going to “touch grass” (meaning getting off the internet and going outside to find grounding experiences).

Yes, I do see cognitive health overlapping with gut health and immune health as part of the mood and stress management platform. I also see sports and active nutrition overlapping with cognitive benefits related to focus, mental fatigue, and cognitive function/alertness.

I think the more accessible an ingredient is, the more likely it is to succeed. Part of that means giving consumers lots of product choices, the way mushrooms and probiotics have been able to do by crossing over into food and beverage. Another aspect of accessibility is communicating the benefit simply and clearly. Consumers are looking for products backed by robust and meaningful clinical data. However, they rely on brands to accurately interpret the science and present it in a clear, relatable way that connects ingredients to specific health benefits and makes their health goals achievable.

As consumers become more comfortable with technology, monitoring their performance (sleep, fitness, stress, recovery) in real time, their awareness and appetite for supplement interventions and lifestyle optimization will grow. I believe there is an opportunity for supplement brands to engage with these consumers, creating experiences both online and IRL (In Real Life) that help consumers feel in control and give them access to expert consultation. Partnerships with brands, retailers, nutritionists, and coaches that give consumers healthcare consultations or coffee-shop experiences will help them integrate nutrition more seamlessly into their routine.

Becoming integrated into wearable tech software and health and fitness apps will also improve visibility, awareness, and access.

I hope the decentralized clinical trial model will continue to evolve and bring more people into view so we can better understand their needs and serve them appropriately. Clinical trial design needs to evolve to better define and investigate the impact of dietary supplements on resilience and health optimization. The Trans-NIH Resilience Working Group is an important contributor to this effort, and I hope more supplement brands will engage in this work moving forward.

Finally, I hope that as the concept of resilience matures and is applied in clinical studies of dietary supplements, the systems biology approach will also become more common and reveal objective markers of resilience. If studies can provide a readout on the impact of, say, a multivitamin on resilience, then people will more easily understand the potential long-term impact on health and quality of life.