2025 was a year of contradictions—and of clarity. Consumers say they live healthily, yet their behaviors tell a different story. At the same time, technology and science are converging to make healthspan measurable and actionable.
The paradox: Healthy in name, disrupted in practice
Lumina’s data (Nov 2024) shows 83% of consumers claim a healthy lifestyle, but 68% regularly use drugs that disrupt the gut microbiome—including antibiotics, proton pump inhibitors, metformin, laxatives and GLP‑1 therapies. These interventions, while clinically valuable, can fuel sleep issues, mood instability and metabolic complaints.
Brands cannot assume “leading a healthy lifestyle” equals low need for supplements. The hidden impact of medication creates demand for gut-supportive solutions, stress resilience, and metabolic recovery strategies.
The 2026 Brief: From Signals to Systems
- Close the paradox gap. Address microbiome disruption from medication with gut-supportive and resilience solutions.
- Own stress–sleep–mood with measurable outcomes. Pair validated improvements (sleep efficiency, stress scales) with app-based habit loops.
- Build heathspan extension strategies. Map products to Hallmarks of Aging, show pathways (NAD⁺, NRF2, autophagy) and prove functional benefits.
- Leverage GLP‑1 adjacency. Develop companion product for nutrient intake, side effects and recovery, integrated with digital adherence.
- Operationalize health tech. Treat wearables and apps as precision retail—link tracking and engagement to metrics consumers already monitor.
Sleep, stress and mood: From wellness trend to core health goals
Across markets, sleep is the most prevalent health goal, followed by stress and mental well-being—especially among younger cohorts. Lumina data shows 54% of the population cite ‘getting better sleep’ as a health goal, followed by ‘healthy aging and longevity’, ‘managing stress’ and ‘supporting mood and mental health’. These concerns are no longer peripheral—they’re central to health strategies.
Consumers are acting. Fifty-seven percent use health or fitness apps or trackers on their phones, computers or through other devices. Nineteen percent engage with mind & mood apps like Calm and Headspace. This creates a clear route for personalized protocols and habit tracking, which creates an opening for turning supplements into part of a measurable routine.
Cognition and healthy aging: Awareness is rising
The shift from lifespan to healthspan is real. Fifty-seven percent of consumers are familiar with the term “healthspan”, and 63% are familiar with at least one Hallmark of Aging—a concept that only recently entered mainstream conversation. The awareness of cellular senescence is big in China, while chronic inflammation and dysbiosis are known terms in the United States. Top aging concerns include physical strength and mobility, energy and stamina, and mental clarity and focus, with regional nuances as the Chinese prioritise organ and tissue health. (Lumina Intelligence presented at the NutraHealthspan Summit, November 2025)
Consumers are increasingly ready for fact-based, science-led storytelling—and for products that link cellular pathways (NAD⁺, mitochondrial function) to outcomes they feel: energy, mobility, mental clarity.
GLP‑1 and the metabolic white wpace
GLP‑1 drugs dominated headlines in 2025, and Lumina’s research shows 10% of the population takes GLP-1 drugs regularly, with another 12% having taken them at least once in the previous two years. The GLP-1 journey companion supplements have changed the retail space, and the gastrointestinal side effects (nausea, diarrhea, constipation) have been named as a leading reason for discontinuation among non-diabetics.
This opened a lane for “companion products”—solutions that support nutrient intake, preserve lean muscles and bones, skin elasticity and gut during treatment and post‑GLP‑1 to reduce weight re-gain. Sarcopenia was also named a key concern related to aging, for both men and women. GLP-1 drugs have renewed consumer interest in weight loss solutions, satiety, blood sugar, management digestive remedies, reviving opportunities for biotics.
Beyond GLP‑1, 24% to 28% of consumers prioritize weight management, yet only around 5% use biotics for weight loss, 6% to aid in heart health and 11% to address digestion—a gap that signals opportunity for metabolic wellness innovation.
Metabolic health has been also listed among the top three health-related concern as people age, especially significant for women in their 20s, 50s and 80s.
Tech turns measurement into action
If there’s one metric consumers can own, it’s VO₂ Max—a proxy for mitochondrial fitness now available on most wearables and increasingly linked to all-cause mortality risk. Combine that with Lumina’s finding that 39% track fitness, 28% monitor overall health and 19% use mood apps, and the picture is clear: Digital health is no longer optional. In France, 15% to 22% of supplement and sports nutrition sales already flow through recommendation apps—proof that tech is now a distribution and adherence engine.
Bottom line: Consumers want control—and now have the tools to measure it. The brands that connect science, technology and lived outcomes will define the health economy in 2026.
