Among the latest devleopments in the supplement industry is new research to support the role of ashwagandha for sexual health in women, manufacturing technology that allows for extended shelf life of probiotic gummies and a new ingredient to support weight management and metabolic health from OmniActive.

A double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, published in the BioMed Research International, examined the effect of supplementation by KSM-66 Ashwagandha in 50 women between the ages of 21 and 50 years. Compared to the placebo subjects, the group consuming KSM-66 had significantly greater improvement in sexual interest, arousal, lubrication and in achieving orgasm. Importantly, those receiving ashwagandha also had significantly greater improvement in sexual satisfaction and emotional closeness during sexual activity. Moreover, ashwagandha supplementation caused a marked reduction in sexually related distress in women during the study. These findings are noteworthy because they indicate that KSM-66 Ashwagandha can help to increase sexual function and satisfaction in women.

According to Kartikeya Baldwa, director of Ixoreal Biomed, the maker of KSM-66, ashwagandha has been traditionally recommended for use as an enhancer of sexual function in both men and women, but this is the first study using a standardized, branded ashwagandha extract to demonstrating significant positive effects on sexual function in women.

"From the scientific literature, we know that the ashwagandha root is a calming agent, and promotes balance in the body to increase or decrease key hormone levels to bring them to appropriate levels," Baldwa said. “These effects are perhaps responsible for the significant effects we see in this study. Female sexual dysfunction and satisfaction is a complex phenomenon with both psychological and physiological dimensions. KSM-66 is one of the very few ingredients shown to be clinically effective for this application."

Considering new ingredients, OmniActive will launch OmniLean at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, California, March 9-13, an ingredient targeting multiple facets of weight management and metabolic markers.

"OmniLean supports multiple synergistic effects for weight management, glucose metabolism and lipid metabolism in one convenient ingredient from a traceable, reliable supply chain," said Lynda Doyle, vice president of global marketing, OmniActive. OmniLean is specifically designed to include not only defined actives but also actives that affect multiple systems to support health and wellness. Moreover, OmniActive’s verification process ensures the authentication and consistent performance of OmniLean. The ingredient is a free-flowing powder for a variety of supplement applications such as tablets, capsules and powders (e.g., meal replacements, protein, etc.).

Viva 5 Corporation demonstrated 18 months of real-time stability with their Bacillus coagulans probiotic gummies via a proprietary manufacturing process. The process allows for the addition of the probiotic into the gummy matrix, rather than as a component of the sugar coating, allowing high recovery after manufacture and robust stability over an extended period of 18 months. Accelerated testing further indicates probiotic stability over a 24-month period. The highly stable probiotic can tolerate higher temperatures during manufacturing than traditional lactic acid bacteria, thereby conferring superior shelf-life stability in gummies and other finished products containing this strain.

In addition to probiotic gummies, Viva 5 recently added Immunobiotic Gummies to their portfolio after partnering with Mitsubishi International Food Ingredients, a specialty ingredients company, to develop and help commercialize the proprietary ImmunoLP-20™ ingredient in gummy delivery forms. Originally isolated from a fermented traditional Asian food, ImmunoLP-20 is a specially derived Lactobacillus plantarum L-137 strain, super potentiated for its balanced immune benefits with a 5-year shelf life.