India’s dietary supplement and health foods retailer Fitday has detailed how it plans to offer new in-store services, including hair scalp and skin condition screening, as it embarks on ambitious plans to open 50 new stores nationwide.
In this round-up of recent scientific developments, we highlight new findings on how animal protein is more beneficial than plant protein in increasing lean mass, new findings on COVID-19 and vitamin D deficiency and more.
The supplementation of caralluma fimbriata extract has been shown to reduce calorie intake, waist circumference, and weight loss in a 16-week study funded by Gencor Pacific.
Pre-diabetes and diabetes are factors which could increase the risk of COVID-19 infections and mortality, and therefore the consumption of certain functional foods could be beneficial, says the guest who stars in the 17th episode of Nutra Champion podcast.
A combination of probiotic strains could improve glycaemic control when taken by patients with diabetic nephropathy, a 12-week RCT conducted in China has shown.
Sales of pregnancy related supplements, such as folic acid, have seen a slowdown in China as more women delay marriage and childbirth, according to new insights released by Ali Health.
Nearly seven in 10 Koreans said they had bought and consumed health functional foods last year, according to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) involving 1,500 men and women aged 19 and above.
In this round-up, we look at what brands are up to. For Swisse, it is embarking on halal-certification for its products as it expands its presence in South East Asia, while CP Foods is working on hemp-based ready-made foods as the country relaxed restrictions...
Protein bar brand SOBAR, produced by California-based Zeno Functional Foods, is gearing up to launch in the US and expand into Asia this year with its reformulated products that are said to reduce alcohol absorption.
South Korean supplement brand Mannas is eyeing an expansion into Singapore, Taiwan and Japan with its dietary supplements for diabetes and obesity, which contain its brown marine algae extract functional ingredient, derived from Ecklonia cava.
A decade long study conducted in Australia has found that calcium supplementation combined with a long-term healthy diet was associated with lower rates of obesity, while those who maintained a healthy diet combined with multivitamins, minerals (MVM)...
In this round-up, we look at how Japanese health and wellness retailer Welcia-BHG plans to expand its presence in Singapore, GN Corporation's clinical trial on using beta glucan as an adjunct treatment for COVID-19 treatment and more.
Japanese health supplement, personal care and beauty product retailer Welcia-BHG is on track to expand its offline presence in Singapore, with five new stores planned for this year, despite concerns on how COVID-19 could affect foot traffic.
New Zealand’s healthcare professionals have expressed interest in receiving training on herbal medicine and acupuncture, as the prevalence of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) grows in the country.
A total of 964 cases of public interest litigation have been filed against individuals and companies for the illegal production, marketing and sales of health foods in China in the last 15 months.
About 10 per cent of complementary medicines in Australia did not manage to transit to the new list of health indications permitted by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and have been cancelled.
In this round-up, we shine the spotlight on trends across APAC’s health and nutrition market, including the use of BCAA-leucine, astaxanthin for muscle health in elderly, clean nutrition trends in India, and the rise of ‘light and strong’ functional foods...
Individuals consuming Thai ginseng for 12 weeks saw a significant reduction to their visceral fat and total fat areas, according to the findings of a new RCT.
India nutraceutical company Onelife Nutriscience will be using freshly injected funds to develop more plant-based, vegan and organic products to meet growing consumer demand.
See February's 10 most-read stories, including Malaysia's dietary supplement association plans in tackling unauthorised sales on third-party e-commerce sites, China's regulations on health foods filing, Blackmores financial performance...
Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) supplementation has no significant effect in lean mass preservation and insulin sensitivity in obese adults undergoing weight loss, said researchers from Singapore.
Medlab has embarked on clinical trials at varying stages for a number of its probiotics, including those targeted at alleviating depression, mucositis caused by cancer treatment, as well as addressing non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
In this round-up, we look at new developments concerning health foods registration regulations and the NPD efforts companies are making in the area of beauty-from-within and probiotics.
South Korea’s import of health functional foods was up 23.4 per cent last year, higher than the three-year annual average of 21.4 per cent, with the US taking the top spot in product volumes.
South Korea will start the third phase of its mandatory traceability programme for special purpose foods, while international brands selling co-enzyme Q10, fish oil and melatonin into China for the first time will still need to enter the market via the...
See January's 10 most read stories, including new data on how the gut microbiome is linked to severity of COVID-19, Indian firm Windlas Biotech's launch of an artemisinin supplement as an adjunctive to COVID-19 treatment and more.
The Malaysian Dietary Supplement Association (MADSA) says its brand members are being disadvantaged by ‘unauthorised’ online retailers selling their products at lower prices – and is calling on the government to clampdown on the situation.
A China nutricosmetics and skincare company Shawya has underlined its plans for this year, which includes upgrading the formula of its flagship whitening supplement brand Whiteasy and developing new product range, such as a sleep and anti-hair loss supplement.
Trade body Natural Health Products New Zealand is urging the government to prioritise the regulatory reforms concerning natural health products, amid fears that dated, 36-year-old current regulations could be extended by another five years.
Australian company Omni Innovation is shifting its focus to the prescription retail channel for its blood glucose control product, as it seals a new partnership deal with fellow Australian pharmaceutical firm Myopharm.
Abbott is studying if the intake of an oral nutrition supplement containing HMB, alongside individualised dietary counselling for six months, could exert long-term benefits - even after supplementation has stopped.
Four-month-old Indian start-up Biosustain Labs, Asia’s only finalist of this year’s PepsiCo’s Greenhouse Accelerator, has outlined how it hopes its probiotics for gut and immune health will spur it to success.
Japan’s health food industry needs to better ensure that functional foods are advertised accurately and include validated efficacy information, according to a new report.
South Korea has announced that general foods can make functional claims so long as there is sufficient scientific evidence backing the claims, but experts have said they do not believe that it will be to the detriment of the nation’s functional foods...
Regulatory authorities across APAC are primed to announce new directions or updates to monitor the dietary supplements industry in 2021…Here’s what you need to know.
Problems with registration and ingredient compliance are some of the most common mistakes that nutraceutical firms have made when exporting their products to South Korea, according to a regulatory consultancy firm.
Vietnam, India and the regional halal market are on the radar for supplement companies when it comes to their expansion plans, according to a raft of top companies.
A pH and heat resistant technology for encapsulating probiotics – backed by a recently published study – is eyeing growth in APAC countries such as Singapore and Japan.
See our top 10 most read trends stories of 2020, including the bestselling nutraceuticals amid COVID-19, new immune health product launches, and consumption behaviour in China.
The business environment has been hard hit by COVID-19 and small players are usually the most affected, but two APAC nutra start-ups are flourishing amid the crisis.
Companies advertising their dietary supplement products in New Zealand should avoid pitfalls such as making therapeutic claims, using imagery that implies therapeutic purposes, or overpromising a health outcome.
See our top 10 most read regulatory stories of 2020, including COVID-19 lockdown and essential business status, South Korea’s control on imported krill oil and more.
The ‘humanisation’ of pets is shaping increasing demand for premium, sustainable, hypoallergenic and human-grade ingredients in pet food and treats in the Asia-Pacific region.
Danone has launched Aptamama – a probiotic product for preventing lactation mastitis in breastfeeding mothers. The product is exclusively sold in China.