Why Supplements?

The overall question should be: are people adequately provided with nutrients to promote their healthspan and live long, healthy and happy? 

Since decades nutrition and health experts are praying about healthy lifestyle habits including, among other, a balanced nutrition as solution for healthy ageing. 

Poor nutrition is compromising both, a healthy development of young humans and maintaining and promoting physiological homeostasis of ageing people—a healthy stady-state. Getting older is inevitable – ageing not. Ageing describes a process which gradually leads to the loss of a healthy body and organ functions. It is largely dependent on the status of supply and dietary intervention as well as exercising, being mentally balanced and surrounded by good environmental conditions. 

What is the status quo? According to the World Health Organization, the lives of up to 2.7 million people could be saved each year, if they ate enough fruit and vegetables. A low consumption of fruit and vegetables is considered to be one of the main

causes that can lead to death. According to Murphy et al., global fruit and vegetable consumption is lower than recommended, which leads to people lacking nutrients and phytonutrients. Inadequate consumption of fruits and vegetables leads to 19 % of all gastric and colorectal cancers, about 31% of (ischaemic) heart disease and 11 % of all strokes. 

It is projected that the Global prevalence of type 2 diabetes will increase to 7% of the world population by 2030 representing over 600 million people. Type 2 Diabetes is linked to overall increased risk to diseases and death due to oxidative stress, metabolic disorders, DNA damage and premature cell ageing.  

According to the WHO Global Nutrition Report of 2021, deaths attributable to poor diets have grown by 15% since 2010 – more rapidly than population growth – and are now responsible for more than 12 million deaths in adults. This is a quarter (26%) of all adult deaths each year.

We’re all getting older, and the question is: how do we want to get older? Gana et al. stated in regard of nutrient supply of elderly people that although vitamin deficiencies (whether combined or not with undernutrition) have a serious impact on healthy ageing in older people,  health professionals and public health are not sufficiently aware of this issue. 

Nowadays, there is an immense need for personalized nutrition as every human has its own risk profile according to genetics and environmental conditions. Targeted supplementation with individual nutrients may make sense (i.e. pregnancy, vegan diet, newborn, medication, metabolic conditions, genetic mutations etc.). 

Supplements can help to fill the nutritional gaps in your diet safely and prevent your body from oxidative stress. A large proportion of people lead hectic lifestyles and find it difficult to get all the nutrients they require. Supplements aren't a shortcut but a nutritional facilitator, and we see them as a synergetic mean to complement personal needs depending on genetics, life circumstances and risk factors. 

Every day, we place great emphasis on designing effective as well as safe supplements based on recent scientific evidences regarding longevity and healthy ageing. We strongly believe in the future of longevity based interventions. 

References: 

Global Dietary Database, 2021. https://www.globaldietarydatabase.org/

Recommended healthy and sustainable diets developed by the EAT-Lancet Commission on Healthy Diets from Sustainable Food Systems https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)31788-4/fulltext

WHO, 2021 https://globalnutritionreport.org/documents/763/Executive_summary_2021_Global_Nutrition_Report.pdf

https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/events/pdf/other/21/21June_FINAL%20PRESS%20RELEASE_WPP17.pdf

Gana W, De Luca A, Debacq C, Poitau F, Poupin P, Aidoud A, Fougère B. Analysis of the Impact of Selected Vitamins Deficiencies on the Risk of Disability in Older People. Nutrients. 2021; 13(9):3163. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13093163

Khan MAB, Hashim MJ, King JK, Govender RD, Mustafa H, Al Kaabi J. Epidemiology of Type 2 Diabetes - Global Burden of Disease and Forecasted Trends. J Epidemiol Glob Health. 2020 Mar;10(1):107-111. doi: 10.2991/jegh.k.191028.001. PMID: 32175717; PMCID: PMC7310804.

Murphy MM, Barraj LM, Spungen JH, Herman DR, Randolph RK. Global assessment of select phytonutrient intakes by level of fruit and vegetable consumption. Br J Nutr. 2014 Sep 28;112(6):1004-18. doi: 10.1017/S0007114514001937. Epub 2014 Aug 11. PMID: 25108700; PMCID: PMC4162485.

Lee S, Huh I, Kang S, Nam YE, Cho Y, Kamruzzaman M, Hong J, Kwon O, Park T. Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials Evaluating Effectiveness of a Multivitamin Supplementation against Oxidative Stress in Healthy Subjects. Nutrients. 2022 Mar 10;14(6):1170. doi: 10.3390/nu14061170. PMID: 35334829; PMCID: PMC8955918.