Cognitive function

Prebiotic in early life may benefit brain health into adulthood: Research

14-Jan-2016 By Louisa Richards

Researchers from the University of Oxford have demonstrated for the first time the brain modulating role of prebiotics in early life 'window of opportunity'. 

Higher Omega-3 Index linked to better processing speeds in teenagers

13-Jan-2016 By Stephen Daniells

Teenagers with higher blood levels of omega-3s may have better information processing speeds, compared with those with lower levels, says a new study.

Olive oil polyphenols may boost cognition: Nutrigenomic data

08-Jan-2016 By Stephen Daniells

Supplementing the diet with olive oil polyphenols may beneficially affect gene expression linked to brain function, says a new nutrigenomic study from Italy.

Oat extract may improve cognitive function and memory: Study

07-Jan-2016 By Will Chu

A wild green-oat extract has demonstrated cognitive function improvement in middle-aged adults, who exhibited increased speed of performance and episodic memory in a clinical study. 

Researchers look at lasting effects of early-life exercise on gut microbes, brain health & metabolism

07-Jan-2016 By Louisa Richards

The immature gut may be more sensitive to environmental influences and provide a 'window of opportunity' for better health, say researchers behind a study in rats. 

Omega-3 not omega-6 linked with lower depressive symptoms: 2000-strong Japanese study

05-Jan-2016 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Even in countries with higher fish intakes, omega-3 may lower depressive symptoms, according to Japanese research in over 2000 people.

What’s on NutraIngredients-USA's special edition calendar for 2016?

04-Jan-2016 By Stephen Daniells

From transparency to an in-depth look at the Ayurveda, omega-3s, probiotics, contract manufacturing, and the latest trends in sports nutrition and minerals, Nutraingredients-USA’s 2016 editorial calendar of special editions spans the hottest trends in...

GOED updates monograph to keep up with rapidly changing omega-3 industry

18-Dec-2015 By Hank Schultz

In an effort to keep up with a changing industry, GOED has published an updated version of the GOED Voluntary Monograph, which sets specifications for omega-3 oils.

Pine bark extract shows cognition for Boomers: Study

17-Dec-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Daily supplements of an extract from French Maritime Pine bark may improve decision making and attention span in people over 55, says a new study from Italy.

Sustainable seafood market extends 'whole fish' idea with line of supplements

14-Dec-2015 By Hank Schultz

Chicago sustainable seafood purveyor Wixter Market has developed that sustainability idea further by seeking to sell every part of the fish via a line of private label salmon oil omega-3 supplements.

Biotech start-up aims to unlock potential of the gut-brain axis

14-Dec-2015 By Stephen DANIELLS

Kallyope Inc. is aiming to harness the potential of the gut-brain axis to develop consumer products and transformational therapeutics that improve human health and nutrition.

SFI adopts Bacopa through ABC’s Adopt-an-Herb Program

11-Dec-2015

Soho Flordis International has ‘adopted’ the traditional Ayurvedic herb bacopa through the ABC Adopt-an-Herb Program.

Infants, the elderly & US Air Force personnel: Abbott exploring life stages when nutrition has the most impact

11-Dec-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Uncovering relationships between nutrition and cognition is a top global priority for Abbott, and the insights are helping the healthcare to giant create the next generation of brain health products.

‘Highly stressed’ people may benefit from grape juice’s brain boosting abilities

09-Dec-2015 By Will Chu

Including a glass of grape juice in the daily diet may boost memory function and performance particularly for those who lead a stressful lifestyle such as working mothers, suggests a new study.

EU injects €1m into ‘social cognition’ supplement research

08-Dec-2015 By Shane STARLING

A €1m EU-backed joint project between academia and industry is investigating the potential of probiotics and amino acids to boost brain performance among Europe’s increasingly ageing population.

CBD supplement line launches with test program to donate products to those who can't afford them

03-Dec-2015 By Hank Schultz

Another company offering a CBD dietary supplement has debuted, this time with a way to address the high cost of the products.

FDA sends five warning letters over supplements containing picamilon

02-Dec-2015 By Stephen Daniells

The US Food and Drug Administration has sent warning letters to five companies marketing dietary supplements containing picamilon, a controversial substance that has risen to prominence in recent months.

Product developers seek sweet spot in natural systems such as inflammation, blood pressure

02-Dec-2015 By Hank Schultz

The body is made of numerous overlapping systems. Keeping these in systems in balance, running neither too hot nor too cold, so to speak, is one of the key facets of good health and disease prevention. Finding dietary ingredients to aid in this is one...

Alpha-GPC may boost lower body force production in only six days: Study

02-Dec-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Supplements of alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine (A-GPC) may increase lower-body force production in less than a week, says a new study with implications for speed and power athletes.

Frutarom sees growth potential for fast-acting ingredients in cognitive health category

01-Dec-2015 By Elizabeth Crawford

Ingredient supplier Frutarom is refining the position of its green oat extract Neuravena as a fast-acting cognitive enhancer to fill what it says is an unmet need in the brain health category, which it claims is over saturated with products aimed at preventing...

Sustained release powdered CarnoSyn opens doors to new markets, applications for beta-alanine

30-Nov-2015 By Elizabeth Crawford

Natural Alternatives International’s new sustained release CarnoSyn powder significantly expands the appeal of the muscle-building and endurance-boosting beta-alanine ingredient beyond just hardcore fitness enthusiasts to women, the elderly and consumers...

“There is significant opportunity for relaxation beverages," Traditional Medicinals manager says

24-Nov-2015 By Elizabeth Crawford

Traditional Medicinals sees untapped potential for growth in the emerging calming beverage category, which consumers are turning to for help counterbalancing the effects of popular energy drinks and everyday stress.

Supplements may improve teenage behaviour in school: Oxford researchers

23-Nov-2015 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Giving nutrition supplements to teenagers may improve behaviour in schools, research from the University of Oxford has suggested.

Special edition: Inflammation

High potency omega-3s & curcuminoids: NBTY’s top scientists on what’s next in inflammation

13-Nov-2015 By Stephen Daniells

New product delivery formats, a long list of ingredients, and scientific consensus are driving developments in supplements positioned for inflammation, NBTY’s top scientists tell NutraIngredients-USA.

Evidence of omega-3s as depression treatment flawed, says review

05-Nov-2015 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

There is insufficient evidence to support the use of omega-3 supplements as a treatment for depression, a new Cochrane review has said.

Rhodiola rosea extract may improve anxiety, stress and mood: Human data

04-Nov-2015 By Stephen DANIELLS

Daily intake of a Rhodiola rosea L. extract may improve various measures of mood in people with mild anxiety, says a new study from England.

FDA's action in picamilon case sets bad precedent, CRN's Mister says

28-Oct-2015 By Hank Schultz

The declaration from FDA on picamilon that formed part of the lawsuit filed by the Oregon Attorney General sets a troubling precedent, said Steve Mister of  the Council for Responsible Nutrition.

Prebiotics could be used to battle neuropsychiatric disorders: Oxford study

28-Oct-2015 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Prebiotics may play a modulatory role in neuro-immuno processes and could reverse anxiety induced by inflammation, research in mice has suggested for the first time.

Oregon AG suit raises risk for ingredients with fuzzy legal standing, experts say

26-Oct-2015 By Hank Schultz

The lawsuit filed by the Oregon Attorney General raises overall risk for the supplements industry and could mean that a number of niche ingredients could disappear from the market, experts said.

Consumer confidence in supplements remains high, says CRN survey

26-Oct-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Eighty-four percent of US adults expressing overall confidence in the safety, quality and effectiveness of dietary supplements, according to the results of the newest survey commissioned by the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN).

Healthy Mediterranean style diet could block brain ageing

23-Oct-2015 By Nathan Gray

People who eat a diet rich in fish, fruits and vegetables but low in meat may end up with bigger brains and slow down the cognitive ageing process, say researchers.

Arctic Nutrition makes formal US market entry with omega-3, protein ingredients from herring roe

12-Oct-2015 By Hank Schultz

Norwegian firm Arctic Nutrition AS has achieved market penetration with the formal launch in the US market of its Romega phospholipid omega-3 ingredient sourced from herring roe. The ingredient made its market splash at the Supply Side West trade show...

Rimfrost says new concentrated krill oil ingredient injects innovation into stagnant category

09-Oct-2015 By Hank Schultz

Norwegian krill oil supplier Rimfrost AS says it is seeking to further differentiate krill oil from fish oil with the launch of a new ingredient concentrated for phospholipid content.

‘Heal all’ herb shows cognitive health benefits, for mice at least

07-Oct-2015 By Stephen DANIELLS

Daily consumption of extracts from Prunella vulgaris var. lilacina may enhance cognitive function in lab mice, says a new study from South Korea.

Sen McCaskill calls for vinpocetine and picamilon supplements to be pulled from shelves

06-Oct-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Senator Claire McCaskill, the ranking member of the US Senate Special Committee on Aging, has called for the FDA to suspend sales of supplements containing vinpocetine and picamilon pending an investigation.

Multi-ingredient formula shows good results in Mild Cognitive Impairment test

05-Oct-2015 By Hank Schultz

A multi-ingredient formula previously studied for cognitive effects has additional evidence to bolster its efficacy in cases of mild cognitive impairment with the results of a recent study. Participants in a long-term trial showed significant improvements...

FDA: Picamilon is not a dietary ingredient

05-Oct-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Dietary supplements containing picamilon are considered adulterated by the US Food and Drug Administration, because picamilon is not a legal dietary ingredient, the Agency has told NutraIngredients-USA.

Quality of vinpocetine, picamilon supplements questioned by Ole Miss-Harvard study

02-Oct-2015 By Stephen DANIELLS

A new analysis of over 50 dietary supplement products containing vinpocetine or picamilon has found that wide ranges in levels of the bioactives, with some products not containing anything at all.

Berries may enhance motor performance and improve cognition, says study

28-Sep-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Strawberries and blueberries may boost brain health by enhancing motor performance and improving working memory, says a new study.

Curcumin close to status where benefits implicitly understood by consumers, manufacturer says

24-Sep-2015 By Hank Schultz

Curcumin is becoming so well known among consumers that it has almost gotten to the point that the mere name on the label is enough to market its many benefits, said Cheryl Myers, of supplement manufacturer Europharma.

College students more likely than general population to use dietary supplements, says survey

23-Sep-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Sixty-six percent of students use dietary supplements at least once a week, says a survey of students from five universities.

Aker’s chief scientist: Let’s stop talking about bioavailability & focus on what happens to omega-3s in the body

21-Sep-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Studies investigating the bioavailability of EPA and DHA from different oil forms are a waste of time, says Aker BioMarine’s chief scientist. A real effort must be put into researching how EPA and DHA from different forms are taken up and used by the...

NeuroGum raises more than $10,000 in two days to take on the energy & cognition categories

16-Sep-2015 By Elizabeth Crawford

If Indigogo investors’ overwhelming interest in the upcoming launch of NeuroGum is any indication, the self-proclaimed focus-boosting gum could be a formidable competitor in the cognitive and energy food and beverage categories. 

Omega-3 supplements may help attention for kids with and without ADHD

16-Sep-2015 By Stephen Daniells

A daily dose of the omega-3s DHA and EPA may improve attention in kids with and without attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), says a new study from Unilever.

JAMA study links low vitamin D levels to ‘profound’ and ‘rapid’ cognitive decline

15-Sep-2015 By Stephen Daniells

Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency may have “substantial” accelerating effects on cognitive decline in the elderly, says a new study from UC Davis and Rutgers University.

$35 million for cognitive & metabolic resilience, women’s health & cutting edge technologies: NIH’s natural product research projects

10-Sep-2015 By Stephen DANIELLS

Five research centers will focus on topics ranging from high-throughput functional annotation of natural products to botanicals for women’s health, with funding coming from the National Institutes of Health’s Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) and the...

Omega-3s and cognition: dosage matters!

07-Sep-2015 By Adam Ismail

Yet another study questioning omega-3 efficacy has been picked up by the mainstream press. Why finger the nutrient when the dosage is all wrong? argues Adam Ismail, executive director of the Global Organisation for EPA and DHA Omega-3s (GOED), in this...

FDA sends warning letters to five marketers of bulk powdered caffeine

02-Sep-2015 By Hank Schultz

The Food and Drug Administration has taken another step in its war on powdered caffeine. The controversial ingredient linked to a pair of deaths was the subject of a slew of new FDA warning letters to companies selling the substance to consumers.

Cannavest gets CBD oil products on natural channel retail shelves amid mounting losses

02-Sep-2015 By Hank Schultz

Cannavest, a Las Vegas, NV-based company active in the CBD marketplace, has reported a sharp increase in losses in its second quarter, 2015 earnings statement. But the company also hit the retail market with its PlusCBD Oil product and secured significant...

With no study showing how CoQ10 eases statin side effects, it's two steps forward, one step back for ingredient

01-Sep-2015 By Hank Schultz

A recent article in The New York Times that hinged on the side effects of statins had nothing to say about CoQ10, despite widely available information about the ingredient’s potential benefit in dealing with these side effects.