As the brain health category continues to expand past Baby Boomers,
manufacturers see to it that more effective, scientifically backed products are
entering the market.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in 2007, Alzheimer’s disease was ranked as the seventh leading cause of death among American adults aged 18 and older.Since then, it has surpassed diabetes to become the sixth leading cause of death among adults, and continues to be the fifth leading cause of death for those aged 65 and older.

Further, according to the Alzheimer’s Association’s 2011 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures Report, an estimated5. 4 million Americans of all ages have Alzheimer’s disease in 2011. This figure includes 5.2 million people aged 65 and older, and 200,000 individuals under age 65 who have younger-onset Alzheimer’s.The number of Americans with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias will grow each year as the proportion of the U.S. population that is over age 65 continues to increase. The number will escalate rapidly in coming years as the Baby Boom generation ages.

Thus, the brain health category is undoubtedly an evolving one. “Due to the aging Boomer population in North America, there is more interest from consumers looking for products that improve cognitive performance and reduce risk of cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s and dementia,” said Marc St-Onge, CEO and director of research at Ascenta Health (Dartmouth, NS, Canada). The direct and indirect costs of Alzheimer’s and other dementias amount to more than $148 billion each year, he added.

This category, possibly more so than any other, has definitely grown and matured, contributed Mark J. Kaylor, vice president of education and research at Mushroom Wisdom (East Rutherford, NJ). “In the past, the category was pretty much limited to various ginkgo and ginkgo-based formulas.

Today however, a much wider array of ingredients and sophistication of compounding is at work. I would argue that with this increasing sciencebased refinement comes better and more effective products, and this leads to greater customer satisfaction and buying.”

A Bountiful Brain Market

Although the brain health category has been known to target Boomers and the older population, this is an arena where the target consumer has changed, said Kaylor. “Most brain products were focused on general memory improvement and some toward an aging brain.Because of the growing research and increased sophistication of actions, brain formulas can now more effectively target once thought of as untouchable cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s imbalances. With the statistics suggesting neurodegenerative disorders are significantly on the rise, the audience has really broadened to include all consumers.”

There are three major segments for the [brain health] category, added Bill Levi, vice president of sales and marketing at Nutrition 21, Inc. (Purchase, NY). First, he said, there is the children’s market dominated by DHA products and targeted toward brain development. The second is for seniors who are looking for nutritional support as their cognition slows down. The third is the most interesting category: Baby Boomers. “This population has seen, potentially firsthand, the debilitating effects of cognitive decline in aging parents, relatives and acquaintances. It has often been cited that this population is fearful of cognitive decline as it ages,” said Levi.

The best time to sell a brain health product is when a customer comes in specifically seeking brain, attention (especially with children) or memory support, added Ramona Billingslea, marketing director at Betsy’s Health Foods (Houston, TX). “How else would one approach a brain health product, which is perceived as an age-related issue, without offending?” she asked.

David Hawkins, owner of natural health food store Mother Earth Foods (Parkersburg, WV), also acknowledged that brain health supplements are trending toward a consumer base other than just Boomers. “The children’s market for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), etc., is so very important and so few take advantage of natural options. It would be great and so much easier on the Achildren/families if folks gave nutrition and supplementation a try—a real try—before turning to prescription medications.” Hawkins added that his store has seen a shift toward brain health as preventive medicine.
“Baby Boomers are seeing their parents age and trying to protect themselves early.” Further, while many people believe brain health is strictly inherited, experts suggest that lifestyle factors can have an impact on positive brain health at all stages of life, including pregnancy, childhood and through adulthood, said Andrea D. Martin, spokeswoman for Nutritional Lipids, DSM Nutritional Products (Columbia, MD). “These key lifestyle factors, often referred to as the four dimensions of brain health, consist of diet and nutrition, physical health, mental engagement and social well-being. It is important for everyone—pregnant women, infants, children, teens and adults—to incorporate the four dimensions of brain health into their lives.”

Mindful Products

Manufacturers have been making sure that products cast a wide net in terms of ingredients. As such, single ingredient products are giving way to combination products.

It makes sense that using a range of ingredients that affect a variety of processes within the brain would be the healthiest and most effective path, said Kaylor. Accordingly, Mushroom Wisdom has developed a research-founded extract derived from the lion’s mane mushroom, Amyloban 3399. First, a class of constituents, called hericenones, was found to cross the blood brain barrier and effectively increase levels of nerve growth factor (NGF), explained Kaylor. Second, a fatty acid component (named amyloban) was found to offer protective benefits to healthy cells from the damage associated and caused by the amyloid beta plaque. These unique holistic actions make Amyloban 3399 a promising remedy in the growing battle against dementia, he said.

Nutrition 21’s cognition-aiding ingredient, Chromax® chromium picolinate, helps the brain utilize insulin more effectively thereby allowing for healthy glucose metabolism. The brain utilizes more glucose than any other organ in the body, and poor glucose metabolism has been shown to affect things such as mood and cognition. In fact, there is statistical evidence that the diabetic population has a higher rate of development of Alzheimer’s, said Levi.

AIDP, Inc. (City of Industry, CA) offers Magtein™, a breakthrough supermineral with strong evidence supporting cognitive functions and brain health, said the company’s Director of Business Development and Marketing Kathy Lund. “Magtein helps brain cells to stay healthy, without being over activated.When brain cells are healthy and well rested, they will respond to signals with clarity and robustness,” she said.

Additionally, according to Jim von der Heydt, CEO of Nawgan (Chesterfield, MO), more science-oriented products have entered the market. “These products highlight the scientific aspect of either specific ingredients or doses of specific ingredients,” he said. Nawgan produces three varieties of brain health beverages, including two caffeinated flavors (Red Berries and Tarocco Orange) and one non-caffeinated flavor (Berry). All of the products include 250mg of cognizin citicoline, which, according to Nawgan’s clinical studies, leads to improved focus and concentration following regular consumption.

Retailer Billingslea added that, with the increase in scientific data, including clinical trials and a more willing cooperation between manufacturers and teaching hospitals, “our job at determining which ‘new’ products might best serve our customers’ needs has become a little simpler,” noting that another big trend affecting brain health is the increased information about the benefits of fish oils. “The standard ginkgo biloba and the newer phosphatidylserine (PS) are among our most popular brain health supplements, along with the support fish oils provide for anyone who chooses to add them to their health regimen,” she said.

Ascenta offers a novel omega-3 product, NutraSea DHA, derived from sustainably caught squid oil, which provides high quality omega-3 with a 2:1 ratio of DHA to EPA. This formulation is best suited for brain health due to the role of DHA in the structure and function of brain neurons. In addition, Ascenta offers the innovative NutraVege, the first ever vegetarian equivalent to fish oil, thus providing the essential brain fats DHA and EPA from a combination of algae and an exciting new plant called echium, said St-Onge.

Challenges and Misconceptions

According to Lund, the biggest challenge behind cognitive health is researching and verifying a product’s effectiveness. “Subjective results can be influenced by placebo effect, [while] objective research is costly and takes time. Magtein has been researched against other magnesium forms, verified in animal models and is now preparing for human studies.”

“Still, very little is known about the brain and its complex chemistry,” agreed St-Onge. “The challenges of conducting clinical trials for brain health leave us to extrapolate most of the data from animal studies. This can be very limiting and does not provide conclusive results.”

Additionally, von der Heydt noted a few key misconceptions about brain health supplements that retailers and consumers should be aware. “It is not the case that all brain-related ingredients increase brain power. Some manufacturers have elected to include a large number of ingredients that have some impact on brain health, but the mechanism of action for those individual ingredients may work in opposite directions.” The manufacturers understand that the ingredients have an effect, but the direction of the effect is not understood without recognition of the mechanism of action, he explained.

Further, von der Heydt pointed out that that some manufacturers promote the concept that “more is better” and that only products that provide a very large total dose are efficacious. This promotion takes advantage of consumers by failing to respect dose response curves, and the concept of an ideal “dose window” based on avoiding both a low dose that has no effect and an excessively high dose, he said. “At the very least, excessively high doses pass costs to consumers despite adding no biological benefit, and at worst, create potential for interactions, side effects, and related unwanted problems for consumers. [The] bottom line is when manufacturers lack a true scientific perspective, the outcomes for consumers may be less than ideal.”

Clearly, there can be ground gained in consumer and retailer knowledge when it comes to brain health supplements. Nutrition 21’s Levi added, “As consumers become better educated and [more] demanding of results and the industry comes under more regulatory scrutiny, retailers should demand that manufacturers and marketers are providing products that deliver on their promises.”

Memory Improvement with DHA

Brain health, including memory, is a high-ranking priority and often listed as one of the top health-related concerns of aging populations in the U.S. and other countries.

Additionally, there is a growing awareness that certain aspects of healthy lifestyles may prevent or delay the expression of negative symptoms typically associated with aging including cognition.

One of these aspects includes the addition of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) to the diet.

DHA is an integral component of all mammalian membranes.

It is the major structural and functional omega-3 longchain polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 LCPUFA) in the brain and retina throughout life.

Certainly, research in the fields of nutrition and brain health has helped to advance the category over the past year. In June 2010, a study by Martek (Columbia, MD) published online in Alzheimer’s and Dementia: the Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, found that supplementation with algal DHA omega-3 may help improve the memory of healthy older adults.

The memory improvement with docosahexaenoic acid study (MIDAS) is the first large, randomized and placebo-controlled study demonstrating the benefits of DHA in maintaining and improving brain health in older adults.

Scientists examined 500 older adults who took 900mg of algal DHA for six months.

They took numerous computerized tests that measured their ability to learn new information. The results found that healthy people with mild memory complaints who took the algal DHA capsules had nearly double the reduction in errors on the tests than those who took the placebo, a benefit roughly equivalent to having the learning and memory skills of someone three years younger.

As such, Nutritional Lipids, DSM Nutritional Products develops and positions innovative nutritional lipids products, including a vegetarian and sustainable source of DHA omega-3 from algae—life’sDHA™.

BrainStrong is a line of brain health supplements for all stages of life available in four varieties, including a prenatal multivitamin with DHA omega-3 (350mg DHA per serving), a toddler powder (100mg DHA per serving), kid’s gummy (100mg DHA per serving) and an adult supplement (900mg DHA per serving).

BrainStrong is unique because it is powered by life’sDHA, said Andrea D. Martin, the company’s spokeswoman. “Fish are often incorrectly thought to be the only source of DHA omega-3. Fish are sources of DHA because of the DHA-rich microalgae in their food chain; life’sDHA is derived directly from microalgae, which is grown in FDA-inspected fermentation tanks in the U.S.,” she said.