SupplySide Global 2026: Kyowa Hakko champions women’s health with Setria and Cognizin

Kyowa Hakko is the official women’s health sponsor of the ongoing SupplySide Global trade show (Oct 28–30). The company highlights how its two flagship ingredients — Setria Glutathione and Cognizin Citicoline — align with key areas in the category, from women’s healthy aging and immunity to mental energy, focus, and memory. 

Live at the show in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, Nutrition Insight speaks with Katie Emerson, senior manager, scientific affairs at Kyowa Hakko USA. 

“Cognizin is backed by research supporting mental energy, focus, attention, and memory, while Setria brings an antioxidant foundation with relevance to areas such as healthy aging and immune support,” she details.

The company is also showcasing creative ways in which brands have added Cognizin Citicoline into everyday foods and beverages, says Emerson. Visitors can try Astreas Energy Truffles, Mosh High Protein bars, and Fields Good Focus cookies that contain the ingredient.

“Those products make the conversation about functional food innovation much more tangible — and delicious,” says Emerson.

Kyowa Hakko is also celebrating 20 years of Setria in 2026. Emerson highlights the formulation opportunities offering new relevance for this established ingredient. “Research showing that oral Setria can raise glutathione levels in plasma and red blood cells has given brands a concrete foundation for product development.”

“Today, the range of applications is particularly exciting. Recent launches include P90X Pre-Workout; Just Ingredients Hair, Skin, and Nails Supplement; and Panda Liposomal Glutathione.”

She says that this variety illustrates consumer interest in bringing glutathione into different wellness routines. “Healthy aging, immune support, and sports recovery are among the areas keeping the conversation moving forward.”

Women’s health nutrition gaps

Kyowa Hakko is also using its role as the women’s health sponsor to talk with visitors about how cognitive support, healthy aging, and other wellness priorities can fit into products designed with women’s needs in mind.

Visitors can try Astreas Energy Truffles, Mosh High Protein bars, and Fields Good Focus cookies with Cognizin Citicoline.“It’s a chance to talk with brands about both the science and the experience they want to create for consumers,” says Emerson.

She says there is a “clear appetite” for more targeted supplement options among women, highlighting a Nextin Research survey of 1,255 US women in which 68% said there should be more products available to support women’s specific health needs.

Emerson points to cognitive health as an opportunity that stands out in the consumer survey. “Among women aged 40–59, 54% defined good health as having a sharp mind, yet only 36% expected cognitive health to be included in ‘women’s health.’ That suggests we have an opportunity to broaden the conversation.”

“For Kyowa, that means exploring how Cognizin for cognitive support and Setria for antioxidant support can fit into products developed around women’s everyday priorities.”

She also sees market potential for format innovations, as almost half of the survey respondents aged 40–59 said they would be motivated to try gummies if they offered the benefits or ingredients they wanted. “We’re interested in helping brands connect relevant science with products women want to make part of their routines.”

Interconnected wellness

Emerson also observes opportunities to explore complementary roles for the two core ingredients within a broader product line or a thoughtfully developed multi-ingredient formula.

“People experience their health as a whole,” she adds. “Staying focused, having energy for daily life, and aging well can all matter to the same person, so it makes sense for brands to consider those priorities together.”

“The key is giving each ingredient a clear purpose, supported by its own evidence. A broader approach to wellness should make the product more useful and easier to understand.”

Kyowa Hakko notes that Setria raises glutathione levels and that increased glutathione may support detoxification, immune health, respiratory health, healthy aging, and sports recovery.

Emerson points to cognitive health as a gap in women’s health solutions, as consumers define good health as having a sharp mind.Meanwhile, the company says that Cognizin Citicoline is studied to support mental energy, focus, attention, and memory.

Earlier this year, Nutrition Insight spoke with Emerson about a proof-of-concept study showing acute cognitive benefits of the company’s citicoline. She explained that the study used electroencephalogram bands to track brain wave responses at one and four hours after a single dose, with Cognizin participants scoring higher on attention, quick-wittedness, and social engagement versus placebo.

Gut-brain axis advances

In an October 27 session, Emerson shared how the gut-brain axis and Cognizin can help shape craveable, format-specific mood foods for calm focus, stress resilience, and better sleep.

“Food influences nearly everything we do,” she tells us. “Think about the last meal you ate. How did you feel afterward? Were you refreshed and energized, or did you feel sluggish, overly full, sleepy, or even uncomfortable enough that it affected your ability to focus and function normally?”

“What we eat can shape how we feel throughout the day. That is what makes the future of functional foods and beverages so exciting,” says Emerson. “If food can provide benefits beyond basic nutrition — such as supporting cognitive function, immune health, energy, or stress resilience — then the role of our next meal becomes much more interesting.”

She says that research in this area is evolving quickly and is beginning to ask questions such as, “How is the gut connected to the brain, and how can specific nutrients influence that communication?”

Emerson explains that the gut and brain communicate through several interconnected pathways, including the nervous, immune, endocrine, and microbial systems. “One of the most important communication routes is the vagus nerve, which provides a direct signaling connection between the gut and the brain.”

She expects that this is where much of the next generation of research is heading. “Scientists are looking beyond whether a nutrient simply affects the gut and asking whether those changes can influence signals that ultimately affect how we think, feel, respond to stress, and perform.”

As scientists better understand gut-brain connections, Emerson says that functional foods and beverages can become much more targeted.Moreover, as scientists better understand these connections, she says that functional foods and beverages have the potential to become much more targeted, not just delivering nutrition, but supporting specific aspects of human health and performance.

Product format developments

Emerson says that cognitive support can fit into many moments throughout the day, and new delivery formats are making that easier. Examples include launches featuring Cognizin in high-protein bars, focus cookies, and energy bites.

“These launches show how brands can bring an ingredient familiar from the supplement aisle into foods and beverages people already enjoy,” notes Emerson.

Although Cognizin offers a stable ingredient, she notes that formulators still need to create products that deliver taste, texture, convenience, and an appropriate ingredient dose.

“Brands also need to explain the benefit clearly. The challenge is bringing the science and the eating or drinking experience together in a product people will want to come back to.”

According to Emerson, these Cognizin launches show how much room there is for creativity. Looking ahead, she expects more innovation in familiar foods and convenient formats that make functional ingredients easier to incorporate into everyday life.

“For Kyowa, the opportunity is to help brands connect an ingredient’s research with a product people understand and enjoy,” she adds. “That means starting with the intended benefit and consumer, then discussing how the ingredient fits the format and how to communicate its role clearly.”

“At SupplySide Global, we get to bring those conversations to life through finished products, sampling, and direct discussions with the brands developing what comes next,” Emerson concludes.