Vitafoods Europe 2024 live: Nexira elevates metabolic health with organic prebiotic launch

15 May 2024 --- Nexira launches a new product at Vitafoods Europe, inavea Cinnamon & Acacia, for glycemia modulation or blood glucose management. The new ingredient is an organic and carbon-neutral prebiotic, combining Acacia fiber and cinnamon extract, standardized to 25% polyphenols.

The company underscores the link between glycemia management and healthy weight, highlighting how consumers take a holistic approach to weight management as part of a healthy diet and lifestyle. 

On the show floor, Nutrition Insight meets up with Leslie Lannebere, marketing manager in Nexira’s health division.

“This year we’re going to focus on metabolic health — it is a key trend on the market. The vision of Nexira regarding metabolic health is about encompassing both healthy weight and healthy blood sugar,” she highlights. 

“Nexira is proud to extend the Inavea range of prebiotic fiber, which is organic and carbon neutral. We are extending that range with a new addition, inavea Cinnamon & Acacia, which is a combination of co-processed acacia fiber and Cinnamon polyphenols. This combination has shown promising results on the prebiotic activity and on the modulation of the glycemia and insulinemia.”

Scientific backing 
Research supports the prebiotic activity of inavea Cinnamon & Acacia, indicating that the combination modulates the gut microbiota, significantly increases short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), like propionate, and promotes the growth of healthy bacteria such as Parabacteroides distasonis. 

According to Nexira, propionate and Parabacteroides distasonis are recognized healthy markers for metabolic health. 

Leslie Lannebere, marketing manager in Nexira.An in vivo study supports the synergistic effect of the new ingredient, with a positive and significant modulation of glycemia and insulinemia — the presence of an abnormally high concentration of insulin in the blood. 

“On inavea Cinnamon & Acacia, the latest findings are an improvement of the production of the short chain fatty acid, a positive modulation of glycemia and insulinemia, as well as enrichment in new bacteria that is popular within the scientific community — Parabacteroides distasonis,” Lannebere explains.

“What is great with that product is that it’s going to work as a prebiotic agent, a prebiotic activator and the endpoint conferred to the host according to the definition of a prebiotic. It’s going to bring a positive modulation on the glycemia and insulinemia of the host.” 

Metabolic health focus 
At the show, Nexira presents its range of natural ingredients for healthy weight, a key component in metabolic health and blood sugar management. Products include Carolean, a weight management solution that the company launched last year. 

Metabolic health is generally defined as having optimal levels of blood sugar, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, blood pressure and waist circumference. 

“We can see a lot of trends around miracle pill solutions. There are two options — either you complain, or you propose a new solution. Nexira proposed a solution to support the weight management category and the metabolic health category in the natural way,” says Lannebere.

Prebiotic grape extract 
The company also features new research results on its VinOgrape Plus natural grape extract. Results from a new study demonstrate that the ingredient contributes to significant SCFA production, including acetate, and an improvement of the gut diversity index. 

“We have been active on the scientific side, recently releasing results on our in vivo study on both VinoGrape Plus and inavea Cinnamon & Acacia showing the prebiotic activity, whether it’s about the production of short-chain fatty acids, whether it’s about the diversity index or the overall improvement of the gut microbiota,” she details.

“We have also been able to show the improvement of, or the enrichment in Akkermansia muciniphila, a bacteria that has recently gained traction and popularity across Europe through VinoGrape Plus.” 

VinOgrape Plus is rich in antioxidant compounds and has shown a prebiotic effect by significantly modulating the gut microbiome profile. Last year, Nexira detailed the microbiome impact of VinOgrape Plus, noting that an in vivo study found that mice who took the ingredient had a different microbiota profile. 

Akkermansia muciniphila is described in the literature as “beneficial bacteria,” linked to reducing fat mass and inflammation. This finding suggests that the ingredient has a beneficial role in addressing metabolic disorders. 

By Jolanda van Hal, live at Vitafoods Europe 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland