Natural ingredients address mental health as COVID-19 turns up the pressure

20 Apr 2020 --- Consumers’ fear of COVID-19 may take its toll on mental health and consequently compromise the immune system. This is according to Dr. Sybille Buchwald-Werner, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Vital Solutions, who tells NutritionInsight how the company’s flagship ingredients can help alleviate stress and anxiety in these trying times, even as supply chains are affected. Other investigations into nutrients and mood patterns may also provide new ways to address consumers’ rapidly evolving needs. 

The global pandemic left Vital Solutions Q1 sales results unscathed. However, Dr. Buchwald-Werner tells NutritionInsight that the next quarter is bound to determine how the outbreak will affect the business.

“Production was stopped in some European countries and some Asian countries do not allow imports. Our customers in Italy who want to receive the final product have to wait. In Malaysia, we have customers with orders pending, which we cannot deliver because it is not allowed to receive materials from there. We are well stocked and are unaffected in sourcing raw materials, which is all working fine. Nonetheless, it’s affecting our customers,” she explains. 

Notably, amid postponed new product launches, Vital Solutions is also recognizing a higher focus on its new product development projects. This relates to how home-office rules are providing more time for strategic desk work, Dr. Buchwald-Werner highlights.

Wild blueberry consumption has recently been linked to lower symptoms of depression in adolescents.“The COVID-19 crisis will not change the market demand by categories or applications. Consumers’ health concerns may increase overall and we might see higher sales volumes for food supplements or functional foods supporting a healthy lifestyle,” she predicts. 

Boosting mental health with tryptophan and blueberries extracts
Meanwhile, researchers are investigating associations between food supplementation and depression. Scientifically established as the precursor of serotonin, L-tryptophan is known to help suppress depressed and anxious moods. A recent research review conducted by a team of Japanese researchers investigated the effects of L-tryptophan on emotional functioning and found that daily supplementation with 0.14 to 3 g of the amino acid “can be expected to improve the mood of health individuals,” the study reads. 

“Self-isolating could cause depressed feelings, so mental care is one of the important issues. Tryptophan availability to the brain can be enhanced by ingestion of carbohydrates and tryptophan. Taking tryptophan with sugars would maximize the mood improving effect. If I were a member of the development team of a food company, I would develop a sugar-based beverage with 1 g tryptophan,” co-author Dr. Asako Kikuchi tells NutritionInsight. 

In their systematic review, the researchers evaluated 11 randomized clinical trials (RCTs) and concluded that effective intake of TRP helped improve moods but had no significant impact on aggressive feelings.

“Taking 1 to 3 g tryptophan supplements a day in addition to the usual meal could help and is worth a try when we experience depressed feelings,” Dr. Kikuchi states, “But I do not guarantee the effect of tryptophan, especially in the coronavirus pandemic,” he asserts.

Mental health is increasingly priortized by stressed consumers, Innova Market Insights research highlights. Meanwhile, in a recent RCT published in the British Journal of Nutrition, researchers found that healthy 12 to 17-year-olds supplementing with wild blueberries reported significantly fewer depression symptoms as compared with a placebo control group. However, there was no between-group effect on anxiety symptoms or on transient affect.

Trending ingredients for stress relief
Innova Market Insights reports that physical and mental health are now equally important to consumers. A 2018 survey found that eight out of ten consumers agreed that mental health is as important as physical health to their overall well-being, rising to nine out of ten respondents in China, US and Brazil. In a 2019 Consumer Survey, 32 percent of UK consumers and 39 percent of US consumers claimed to experience stress at least once a day. The industry response has included more products targeted at improving low mood.

Vital Solutions offers two science-based branded ingredients, Benegut and Bluenesse, the former known to relax the bronchial system with Perilla frutescens extract, the ingredient’s raw material. Bluenesse, made from Melissa officinalis lemon balm extract, supports cognitive health and has an “immediate effect” on positive mood and improves the ability to cope with stress, the company states. 

Meanwhile, Ayurvedic ingredient ashwagandha is increasingly coming to the fore as a mental well-being boost. In this space, Arjuna Natural’s ashwagandha extract Shoden is made up of 35 percent glycowithanolides – the most active component of ashwagandha – and has been used in India for centuries to reduce anxiety and stress. The natural ingredients company also touts its flagship turmeric product BCM-95 as an anti-inflammatory, which is also known to support mood and cognitive health. 

Also active in this space, Pharmactive’s synthetic-free, pure plant saffron extract affron also shows its positive effect on mood improvement, relaxation and sleep quality. The company’s ABG10+ black garlic extract is currently pending the approval for European Food and Safety Authority (EFSA) claims for stress relief and tiredness, boosting energy and fostering immune function.

A balanced diet is incredibly important for mental well-being, Pigott affirms.No single solution to stress
Despite the promising avenues for mood improvement and anxiety relief industry and research appear to provide, complex problems such as stress do not have one sole magic solution, Registered Dietician Aisling Pigott from the British Dietetic Association tells NutritionInsight. 

“While a good diet is incredibly important for our mental well-being, there are no individual magic supplements that will reduce or relieve stress without considering the broader factors. There is a perception that if we buy expensive and glamorous supplements, then we don’t need to pay any attention to the food we eat. This is not true,” she flags.

Paying attention to food and enjoying meals is important, Pigott continues, especially during these uncertain times. Simple ways of maintaining positive mood through meals include ensuring sufficient hydration, boosting protein intake by adding nuts and seeds to breakfast meals and choosing wholegrain where possible. She also recommends taking a vitamin D supplement, which has recently been in the spotlight for its association with immunity boosting for vulnerable COVID-19 groups.

Ultimately, it is “food in itself” that can help deliver an alleviating effect, Pigott concludes.

By Anni Schleicher, with additional reporting by Katherine Durrell