Spotlight on women’s health: Precision probiotics address life and health span nutrition needs

15 Jun 2023 --- Nutrition requirements can change drastically throughout the course of a lifetime and for women, those changes can be even more significant. Nutrition Insight speaks with experts and professionals from ADM and Nutiani by Fonterra about how probiotics are set to meet women’s particular health needs.

According to Innova Market Insights, there is a growing body of scientific research demonstrating the positive benefits of probiotics for female health. Additionally, evidence regarding the gut axes and their effects on physical and mental health are expanding in conjunction with consumer demand.

Probiotics targeting women’s immune or gut health and products that help with brain, mood and bone health are also trending.

“Our scientific research points to complex mechanisms underlying the gut-brain axis and the gut-skin axis – we know that our probiotics modify the microbiome and lead to positive changes in distal parts of the body,” Marshall Fong, the senior global marketing manager at Fonterra, tells us.

“Many women are actively seeking out products that support their distinct experiences, as well as those that provide a balanced approach to wellness and fit into their daily lifestyles,” says Vaughn DuBow, global director of marketing for microbiome solutions at ADM.The market for probiotics that meet women’s nutrition needs is expanding across several categories.

“On top of that, consumers are becoming more aware of the role of their microbiome and are making the connection between the function of bacteria in the gut to wider aspects of well-being.”

The microbiome connection
Recent research into the microbiome has found that it could influence several critical aspects of human health, including healthy aging, strengthening immune responses, infant health and mental and cognitive health, among others.

“Today’s consumers are taking a closer look at their individual wellness needs, with many adopting a holistic approach to health that supports overall well-being,” explains DuBow. “The gut microbiome plays an important role in digestive health and other aspects of well-being across all life stages – especially for women where metabolic health and weight management are key areas of consideration.”

“ADM’s health and wellness portfolio spans microbiome-supporting solutions, as well as botanical and standardized plant extracts, fruit and vegetable content powders and more. We can also leverage our wide selection of quality plant-based ingredients and proteins to build systems purposefully designed to maximize functionality, nutrition and sensory appeal to support women’s health and wellness goals.”

“We have invested, and continue to invest, in clinical research to demonstrate benefits in health conditions that are unique to women,” Fong from Fonterra elaborates. “In some of these cases, we secured IP for those unique women’s health benefits – one area that is particularly exciting for us is mood [health].”

Perinatal probiotics
Both companies state that they support the use of certain, tested biotic strains during pregnancy, under the consultation of physicians and considering each woman’s particular needs.

Fonterra further explains that many of their probiotics meet the specific health needs of women across many areas and times of health, including during pregnancy and postpartum.Some of Nutiani’s probiotics benefit women during the perinatal period and support metabolism and skin health.

“Our HN001 and HN019 strains have been clinically researched to show safety for both mothers and infants and children,” says Fong. 

“A randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial on 423 pregnant women (recruited at 14-16 weeks gestation) found that women receiving the Nutiani HN001 probiotic strain had significantly lower postnatal depression scores, according to the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale.’ The effect was such that women who took HN001 had 1/30th the risk of postnatal depression compared to women who took the placebo.”

“A range of effects”
A major section of probiotic innovations is supporting digestion and gut health, as well as how they can be used to modulate immune responses through the gut-immunity axis.

“Probiotics are a solution that can meet consumer needs for digestive health support,” says DuBow. “Specifically, our ES1 Bifidobacterium longum CECT7347 strain provides positive gut modulation, as well as much-needed digestive support.”

“Data from preclinical and early clinical studies suggest that ES1 has potential to help support digestive and gastrointestinal health, as well as gut function, in gluten-sensitive individuals. Plus, in vitro trials with B. longum ES1 have shown potential to modulate immune responses and have positive effects on gut barrier integrity.”

Moreover, he adds that the company’s spore-forming probiotic, DE111 (Bacillus subtilis), has been shown to support immune function and digestive health and regularity in numerous studies.

Accelerating active nutrition
Another growing market probiotics are tackling is the need for women-specific active and sports nutrition offerings, with Innova Market Insights reporting a steep increase in supplements and sports nutrition launches with women’s health claims since 2017.

Knowledge and research within the probiotic space and wider microbiome category continues to expand, opening new opportunities for health and wellness brands to address consumers’ demands for tailored solutions and balanced wellness support, including the evolving health and wellness goals of women.ADM’s probiotic strains have shown to benefit digestion, immunity, active health and weight management, among others.

Women are increasingly seeking convenient solutions to support active lifestyles, DuBow highlights. 

“A study of female athletes participating in resistance training was conducted to assess the benefits of combining DE111 probiotic with a post-workout recovery beverage over ten weeks. Compared to the control group which consumed only the post-workout recovery beverage without the probiotic, the DE111 group reported an average decrease in body fat percentage.”

“Moreover, our award-winning BPL1 (Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis CECT8145) probiotic and its heat-treated BPL1 counterpart are noteworthy for targeting factors relevant to aspects of metabolic health. Emerging evidence suggests that BPL1 – in combination with diet and exercise – may help support positive changes to body composition and other factors associated with metabolic health.”

Fong spotlights that Fonterra’s probiotic strains have been shown to have similar metabolic effects.

“Specifically in female populations in pre-through-post-natal states, HN001 was shown in clinical research to have benefits in metabolic health and mood,” he says.

Supporting the gut-skin axis
A final area of probiotic support is the gut-skin axis. Recent research shows that products in supplements for skin health almost tripled from 2017 to 2021.

Additionally, Innova Market Insights reveals that beauty from within and skin health claims in supplement product launches grew 22% from 2018 to 2022, with supplements taking up the largest positioning at 81%.

“Our Nutiani HN301 strain was shown in a clinical trial to improve skin redness, itching and dryness in adult subjects with atopic dermatitis, a skin condition some studies show impacts around 10% of the global population,” says Fong. “The study also showed that subjects’ quality of life improved.” 

“This skin health benefit is a subset of the rapidly growing segment of ingestible beauty, and research suggests that women who find relief for troublesome skin conditions report better overall happiness,” he concludes.

By William Bradford Nichols