Nordic Naturals enters probiotic space to address ‘critical, foundational digestive health issue’

05-Nov-2013 - Last updated on 05-Nov-2013 at 16:12 GMT

Omega-3 specialist Nordic Naturals has entered the probiotics space with the launch of its Nordic Probiotic product to promote digestive system balance and immune support.

While the company’s primary focus is on omega-3 essential fatty acids, Tone Larsen, Product Development Manager for Nordic Naturals told us that the company also wants to be responsive to the need for select, high-quality nutrients with proven efficacy that complement our omega oils.

“Omega-3s are foundational to cellular health,” said Larsen. “In the same way, probiotics are essential to digestive health. With statistics showing that 60 to 70 million people suffer from some sort of digestive issue, we felt it was a critical, foundational health issue we needed to address.”

Keri Marshall, MS, ND, Chief Medical Officer for Nordic Naturals, added that the current standard American diet, along with therapies that diminish our intestinal flora, warrant maintaining healthy levels of bacteria in the gut.

Probiotics are defined as "live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host".

Product specifics

The new formulation from Nordic Naturals contains a blend of four strains: L. acidophilus DDS-1, B. longum, B. lactis, and B. bifidum.

“Lactobacillus acidophilus DDS-1 is considered the probiotic ‘super-strain’,” explained Larsen. “The combination of strains in Nordic Probiotic represents the two principal genera of probiotic bacteria. Together, they support both upper and lower intestinal health.”

So how is Nordic Naturals differentiating its new product from the crowd? “Nordic Probiotic is 100% free of allergens (dairy, wheat, gluten, corn, and soy), animal products, and GMOs. Most probiotics are grown on dairy or soy,” said Larsen.

“It is also unique in that it is a blend of both probiotics and prebiotics. Prebiotics stimulate the growth of friendly bacteria in the gut. Our product is also shelf-stable and requires no refrigeration. That means it’s convenient for people who are on the go, which seems to include most everyone these days.

“While we do not disclose proprietary information about our product formulations, I can share that we use super low-moisture capsules that are made from vegetable cellulose. In fact, this product is 100% vegetarian. It complements our growing vegetarian product line that includes Baby’s DHA Vegetarian, Algae Omega, Nordic GLA, and Vitamin D3 Vegan.”