The US patent No. 10,827,775 was issued in November and covers the use of astaxanthin to support heart function during exercise. The company says the patent will have potential for both cardiovascular health for athletes as well as active nutrition consumers.
Astaxanthin has shown intriguing cardiovascular effects in research for some time. A widely reported 2011 study showed that the carotenoid, which is most commonly extracted from the Haematococcus pluvialis algae species, boosted cycling time trial performance.
Study showed astaxanthin boosted cardiovascular efficiency
BGG supported its patent application with a study the company conducted on runners which was published in the open access journal ECronicon in 2017. This study found that the carotenoid boosted performance amount a cohort of 28 recreational runners at lower intensities. In particular, the group that was supplemented with 12 mg of astaxanthin for 8 weeks achieved the same output as the placebo group but at lower heart rates.
“The subjects in this study were able to perform the same amount of ‘work’—but at lower cardiovascular ‘strain’ after supplementing with Astaxanthin,” said Dr. Shaw Talbott, PhD, one of the study’s authors. Talbott said astaxanthin’s apparent ability to boost cardiovascular efficiency suggests further research avenues in support individuals already suffering from cardiovascular disease or elderly individuals experience lower cardiovascular output as a normal consequence of aging.
“BGG focuses on innovation by dedicating 5% of gross revenue to R&D. As a prime example of this policy, we are one of only a very small handful of Astaxanthin producers sponsoring clinical research to validate our product, and have published several Astaxanthin clinical studies over the last few years. This patent is another example of how BGG supports our customers through our investment in research and constant innovation; we’ve successfully opened up a whole new area of health benefits for our Astaxanthin customers to focus on,” said Yanmei Li, PhD, lead inventor of the US patent and BGG’s global chief scientific officer.
Expanding capacity
BGG, through its algae production subsidiary Algae Health Science, has been expanding its production capacity at its facility in Yunnan Province in southwestern China. The first phase of the expansion was slated to have been complete in fall of 2020, though there is no information on how the pandemic affected those plans. When the rest of the expansion of the closed tube facility is completed this year the company says its production capacity will have more than doubled.
Source: ECronicon
Published: November 06, 2017
Effect of Astaxanthin Supplementation on Cardiorespiratory Function in Runners
Authors: Talbott S, et al.