Sneaky sports nutrition: New 'energy spray' coats the mouth and tricks the mind
Available in Israel and with expansion plans for Europe, Fit4style Energy Spray is a wearable mint-flavoured spray which claims to maintain stamina for up to 75 minutes with no caffeine and just six calories meaning it won't strain the digestive system.
Delivering just 1.3 grams of carbohydrates and mint extract that coats the mouth, Noam Kaplan, CEO of Matok V’Kal, says the spray tricks the mind into thinking the body is being nourished.
He says: “The innovation is backed by a growing body of research and recommendations by global sports groups that found that, in a workout of up to 75 minutes, there is no need to consume carbohydrates; it is sufficient to have their presence in the mouth.
"By tricking the mind into believing it is being nourished — relying on the sensation of food energy without actually providing it — the information is converted into actual energy.”
Several studies have shown that simply rinsing the mouth with certain carbohydrates can improve physical performance by activating areas of the brain and fooling the body into generating a short burst of extra energy. How this works is still unclear, but the effect has been labelled the 'carbohydrate mouth-rinse effect'.
The new product contains peppermint extract which contributes to the energy increase drawing on the findings of a double-blind clinical study showing that oral ingestion of peppermint oil creates instant effects on physiological parameters and exercise performance after five minutes, with incremental improvement after one hour.
The spray is currently available in Israel but the company plans to target the European market by collaborating with a food or sport nutrition company.
Sports expansion
Matok V'Kal Ltd is a producer, marketer and distributor of sugar substitutes for the sports nutrition category and the dinner table.
The spray is the first product in the firm's new Fit4style sports energy line.
The company is looking to collaborate with sports nutrition companies in Europe to penetrate this market successfully.
