Have you ever wondered what’s driving the boom in the B vitamin market?
This segment is transforming rapidly to reflect the rise in savvy, health-conscious consumers seeking more tailored nutritional solutions.1
A prominent driver for this is the increasing demand for B vitamin supplements that support overall wellness and address potential nutritional deficiencies.
People are becoming more aware of the essential role folate (vitamin B9) plays in several essential body functions too, including DNA synthesis and repair, energy metabolism, cognitive function, mood regulation and overall vitality.2
There is also a growing uptake of folic acid in nutritional supplements among women and those proactively pursuing preventative health solutions, particularly related to prenatal health.1 In the pregnancy sector, folate continues to be in high demand among expectant mothers and for post-partum care, with nearly 70% of pregnant women in the US taking prenatal vitamins.3
Yet traditional folic acid supplements may have limitations, from both an optimal health and potentially a safety standpoint. Choosing the right form of folate during both the prenatal and postnatal stages is therefore crucial.
Enter choline-enriched folate – an innovative solution set to revolutionize prenatal supplementation. This newcomer to the market has the potential to set new standards in supporting women throughout pregnancy by addressing common limitations of existing folate products.
Vitamin B9: The architect of life
Let’s start with the basics. Folic acid, or folate, are both referenced under the common name vitamin B9, one of the key B vitamins. Folate, also known as L-5-Methyltetrahydrofolate (L-5 MTHF), supports one-carbon metabolism and plays a vital role in methylation reactions – a process where methyl groups (CH3) are delivered to a target molecule.
This has both important structural and functional roles, from providing methyl groups to help create the building blocks of DNA (for example, thymidylate), to adding methyl groups to DNA to help control how genes are expressed.4 Folate helps maintain the integrity and stability of genetic materials, ensuring cells follow a well-designed blueprint, promoting health and overall wellbeing.5
Folate is responsible for:2
Folate vs. folic acid: What is the difference?
The term folate generally refers to an active, reduced form of vitamin B9, which is naturally occurring and found in foods such as asparagus, dark leafy greens and some meat. The primary form of folate found circulating within our bodies, as well as in breast milk, is L-5-MTHF.6
Folic acid, on the other hand, is an inactive form of vitamin B9, found in dietary supplements and fortified foods such as breakfast cereals, bread and yeast. As it doesn’t exist in significant quantities in nature, folic acid requires enzymes to metabolically activate it within the body.
As a result, folic acid is found to be less bioavailable than L-5-MTHF. Furthermore, up to 40% of people in the US have genetic variations that affect enzymes related to folate metabolism and this makes it harder for their bodies to produce enough of the active form.7
As our bodies have a finite capacity to convert folic acid into the metabolically active form, unchanged folic acid molecules can build up and circulate within the body, so-called unmetabolized folic acid (UMFA).7 While the long-term effects of UMFA are uncertain, some evidence links UMFA to outcomes such as impaired immune function.8
Folate needs vary depending on age and life stages, but the body’s requirements significantly increase during pregnancy and lactation. Astonishingly, the need for folate increases by 50% in pregnancy and during lactation stays 25% higher than in women who are not pregnant or lactating.9
From diet alone, more than half of pregnant women and nearly one quarter of lactating women in the US do not get enough folate to meet their needs.10 This does not even factor in challenges related to bioavailability and genetic variation. As such, dietary supplements are critical in closing this nutrient gap, however technical challenges related to the use of L-5-MTHF may impact their efficacy.
Quality in the industry: Challenges of working with L-5-MTHF
Despite the biological advantages of L-5-MTHF, most product forms on the market today can be challenging to work with for formulators and manufacturers. Data from the National Institutes of Health reported that certain technical failures are common among dietary supplements containing L-5-MTHF. Over 40% of the products tested failed dissolution criteria, and shelf-life testing showed variances ranging from – 42% to >100%.2,11
So, how do we bridge the gap and ensure consumers receive the necessary amount of folate for optimal wellbeing? Choline-enriched folate is the answer.
What is choline-enriched folate?
Folate and choline are both essential nutrients that have important metabolic interrelationships that are crucial for pregnancy.12 Choline-enriched folate is an advanced solution that combines folate with choline to optimize supplement efficacy, enhancing both the quality and stability of prenatal supplements. Combining these nutrients to form a choline-enriched folate salt delivers multiple advantages. Together they are a powerful pair and can help to address essential nutritional needs from early pregnancy to postpartum recovery.
Folate is vital for DNA synthesis, cell division, and overall health. Its role is especially critical during pregnancy to support fetal development and reduce the risk of birth defects. One molecule of folate delivers a single methyl group to support various structural and functional roles in the body.
Additionally, choline complements folate by providing a further three methyl groups per molecule. In a choline-enriched folate, one folate molecule is combined with two molecules of choline to provide a total of seven methyl groups to support methylation processes, crucial for optimal health and development during pregnancy.
Methylation acts like the body’s ‘on and off’ switch in DNA by adding methyl groups to DNA and other molecules. This influences gene expression, detoxification, and cellular repair. Fetal development is perhaps the most dynamic life stage, and delivering adequate methyl groups to support cell division through effective supplementation is critical for healthy pregnancies and overall vitality.
What stands out for new product formulations?
For manufacturers, ensuring stability and solubility of products in dietary supplement applications is essential for maintaining efficacy, safety, and consumer satisfaction. Unstable ingredients can degrade over time leading to diminished potency and necessitating increased overages to meet label claims throughout the product’s shelf life.
Choline-enriched folate salts exemplify a solution to these issues by offering enhanced stability and solubility to address common formulation challenges. This enables more precise dosing, better adherence to regulatory standards, and potentially reduces production costs for folate-based dietary supplements.
Next generation of folate and choline?
Earlier this year, Balchem launched Optifolin+TM – a patented choline-enriched folate for the US dietary supplement market. Combining the power of folate (L-5-MTHF) with the company’s leading brand of choline (VitaCholine®), this new, cutting-edge solution offers seven times more methyl groups than other L-5-MTHF products on the market, along with stability and solubility enabling ease in product development for supplement manufacturers.
By partnering with Balchem, manufacturers can tap into the company’s expertise to develop the next generation of folate supplements, helping consumers to achieve their wellness goals through supplementation.
To learn more about Optifolin+TM visit Optifolin+TM | Balchem Human Nutrition and Health.
References
1. Vitamin B Industry Overview. Emergen Research. October 2023.
2. Folate. National Institutes of Health.
3. Bailey, R. L.; Pac, S. G.; Fulgoni, V. L.; et al. (2019). Estimation of Total Usual Dietary Intakes of Pregnant Women in the United States. JAMA network open, 2(6), e195967.
4. Menezo, Y.; Clement, P.; Clement, A.; et al. (2020). Methylation: An Ineluctable Biochemical and Physiological Process Essential to the Transmission of Life. International journal of molecular sciences, 21(23), 9311.
5. He, Q.; Li, J. (2023). The evolution of folate supplementation - from one size for all to personalized, precision, poly-paths. Journal of translational internal medicine, 11(2), 128–137.
6. Dror, D. K.; Allen, L. H. (2018). Overview of Nutrients in Human Milk. Advances in Nutrition. (Bethesda, Md.), 9(suppl_1), 278S–294S.
7. Chita, D. S.; Tudor, A.; Christodorescu, R.; et al. (2020). MTHFR Gene Polymorphisms Prevalence and Cardiovascular Risk Factors Involved in Cardioembolic Stroke Type and Severity. Brain sciences, 10(8), 476.
8. Troen, A. M.; Mitchell, B.; Sorensen, B.; et al. (2006). Unmetabolized folic acid in plasma is associated with reduced natural killer cell cytotoxicity among postmenopausal women. The Journal of nutrition, 136(1), 189–194.
9. Institute of Medicine. Food and Nutrition Board, 1998. Dietary Reference Intakes for Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Vitamin B12, Pantothenic Acid, Biotin, and Choline.
10. USDA. Food Surveys Research Group: Beltsville, MD.
11. Pandey D, et al., abstract. Nutrition 2024. Posters - June 2024. The abstracts from Nutrition 2024 due to be published in Current Developments in Nutrition.
12. Caudill M. Folate and Choline Inter-relationships: Metabolic and Potential Health Implications. Folate in Health and Disease. 2nd edition, 2010.
