Whey protein and branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) are common ingredients found in sports nutrition. However, these ingredients are not suitable for lactose-intolerant individuals and those suffering from kidney conditions or amino acid metabolism disorders.
Especially with the general population increasingly taking part in sports activities, sports nutrition companies now have a wider spectrum of consumers to cater to.
In fact, sports nutrition is becoming everyday nutrition, according to VITABOX, which took home the Product of the Year - Sports Nutrition at this year’s NutraIngredients-Asia Awards.
“Users have expanded from athletes to anyone who wants to maintain stamina and muscle. The goals have widened from simply building muscle to maintaining body composition, resisting fatigue, recovering, and not losing what you have,” Andrea Hsu, product manager, VITABOX told NutraIngredients. “And products have moved from tubs of powder to drinks, snacks and capsules. Sports nutrition is becoming everyday nutrition.”
VITABOX, a brand by Devotion International, was crowned the winner with its product VITABOX® TWK10® Lactobacillus plantarum capsules. There were two other finalists vying for the title, namely FitBoost by Carefore Global New Zealand and Numin by SLS Performance.
Lactiplantibacillus plantarum TWK10 is a probiotic strain isolated from traditional Taiwanese fermented vegetables and researched at the National Taiwan Sport University. It is commercialized by Kaohsiung-based Synbio Tech Inc and is backed by five human clinical studies.
Aside from Taiwan, the strain is recognized by South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) for making the claim “may help to improve endurance of exercise performance capability” and is also approved for use in foods by Thai authorities.
Benefits of a probiotic-only product
As the first probiotic strain to receive health food certification for anti-fatigue in Taiwan, Hsu said that the product’s benefits were two-fold.
“It helps delay the onset of exercise-induced fatigue, allowing the body to endure for a longer period during activity and it promotes recovery from post-exercise fatigue, so the body bounces back faster,” she said.
Since the product uses only TWK10 probiotic as the functional ingredient, it is a non-amino acid product suitable for people with kidney conditions or amino-acid metabolism disorders.
“A single-strain formula also means no amino acids or BCAAs, so the metabolic load is low, and people with kidney conditions or amino-acid metabolism disorders can take it,” she added.
In Taiwan, whey and chicken essence are the other popular sports nutrition products, but again, they might not be suitable for everyone.
“…Whey and chicken essence supply the building material for muscle — protein and amino acids — but that material only gets used if there is enough energy intake and activity behind it. Each also comes with its own barriers. Whey has lactose and taste issues. Chicken essence has its smell and sodium content. And because both are protein- and amino-acid-based, people who need to watch their kidney function cannot take them daily. For older adults, the lactose intolerant, and vegetarians, none of these is easy to keep up,” she explained.
Watch the video to find out more about the award-winning product, the clinical evidence behind TWK10 and how Taiwan’s sports nutrition market has evolved over the years.
