Why Foondiert® whahaha
Ingredients
Foondiert® products are
proprietary formulations based on
clinical research conducted with the strictest scientific rigour. The ingredients used are of the highest quality and
bioavailability and are often
patented. With such care given to what goes in to a Foondiert® product it follows that we are equally committed to
what stays out.
Proprietary formulations
Foondiert® products are all proprietary formulations ensuring that we maintain complete control over the entire product development process. This is in contrast to products on the market that are produced by manufacturers in bulk and then offered for sale to businesses that add a label, product name, and price before selling them on to their own customers. We are responsible for every aspect of Foondiert® products, from the selection of raw materials, the formulation of the ingredients, and the certification of products to decisions about dosage forms and manufacturing processes.
Clinical research
Clinical research as it relates to health claims: Foondiert® products only issue health claims approved by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). A health claim is any statement that health benefits can result from consuming a given food supplement or its components such as vitamins or minerals. There are EU-wide regulations for the use of health claims for food supplements. It is the responsibility of the EFSA to verify the scientific substantiation of health claims submitted for authorisation. These regulations are intended to ensure that health claims are sufficiently substantiated by clinical research and scientific evidence.
Example: Quatrefolic® (L-5-MTHF) - an important ingredient in three of our products
Folate describes the many different forms of vitamin B9 available. We chose L-5-MTHF because is the biologically active form of folate and is naturally present in the body. This means it is immediately bioavailable without first being metabolized, and so there are no conversion losses. Also, the widely used approach to increase folate levels with synthetic folic acid can be ineffective for people (approximately 57% of the population) who have a disease or genetic mutation that hinders the absorption or conversion of food-based folate and folic acid to its usable form, L-5-MTHF. Moreover, and perhaps most importantly the quality of the studies into the effects of L-5-MTHF in the body is world-class.
That is only one case of how clinical research drives our decisions - every single component used in a Foondiert® product serves as a further example.
Health claims: Foondiert® products only issue health claims approved by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). A health claim is any statement that health benefits can result from consuming a given food supplement or its components such as vitamins or minerals. There are EU-wide regulations for the use of health claims for food supplements. It is the responsibility of the EFSA to verify the scientific substantiation of health claims submitted for authorisation. These regulations are intended to ensure that health claims are sufficiently substantiated by clinical research and scientific evidence.
Example: The Foondiert® oral spray "Vegan Vitamin D3
The EFSA approved health claims for vitamin D are that it has a role in the process of cell division and contributes to:
- the normal function of the immune system
- Normal blood calcium levels
- the maintenance of normal muscle function
- the maintenance of normal bones
- the maintenance of normal teeth
The EFSA also defines conditions of use and restrictions of use for each of the above claims. For example, the EFSA states that a claim may be issued only for food which meets certain prerequisites for the source and amount of vitamin D it contains.
bioavailability
One of the attributes that we require of all ingredients we consider for a Foondiert® product is that the bioavailability is best in class. There is a common misconception that the terms bioavailability and absorption are interchangeable. In the context of food supplementation, the bioavailability of a nutrient is the amount of the dose that reaches systemic circulation. This is determined by several processes in the body that include absorption, but also distribution, metabolism, and excretion. Bioavailability determines the amount of an ingested nutrient that is available for use in normal physiologic functions. Therefore, a nutrient's health benefits are limited by its bioavailability in the body.
Example: CAVACURMIN® - the premium curcumin complex in three of our products Curcumin is the primary bioactive substance and principal curcuminoid in turmeric (Curcuma longa), and is known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties.
In the past, supplying the body with beneficial amounts of curcumin was difficult because it is not soluble in water and has poor bioavailability. Patented CAVACURMIN® provides a natural solution. To optimise bioavailability, unlike in standard curcumin formulations, each curcumin molecule is encapsulated in a cyclodextrin shell (a naturally occurring oligosaccharide with a hydrophobic cavity) and transported to the digestive tract where it is absorbed by the epithelial cell membrane. The result is that 40 times more curcuminoids are absorbed from the intestine into the blood when compared to pure turmeric extract (that's an increase of 4000%) enabling a smaller dose to be ingested for the same effect. This method means that only two capsules of our Curcumin Support Complex, containing CAVACURMIN®, deliver the same amount of curcuminoids as 2700 mg turmeric extract (with 95% curcumin).
There are different approaches to improving the bioavailability of curcumin. A frequently used method is combining curcumin with piperine which can irritate the stomach's mucous membrane and also effect the absorption of certain medications. Other methods include using polysorbates, micelles and other chemical surfactants or emulsifiers from allergenic sources, such as soy lecithin.
Human Clinical Study - Absorption of Total Curcuminoids Over Time.
One hour after ingestion of CAVACURMIN® , the curcuminoid concentration in the blood was significantly higher and remained at a high level for twelve hours.
Human Clinical Study - Relative Absorption of Total Curcuminoids (AUC)
CAVACURMIN® has a bioavailability that is about 40 times higher than that of pure curcumin extract. This allows the considerably higher effectiveness at much lower doses.
Patented ingredients
Many of the components in Foondiert® products are patented ingredients. This is because in the context of food supplements, specifically in the case of plant extracts and botanicals, patented ingredients offer certain advantages:
- They are trademarked and registered to a standard dose
- A standardized dose ensures the efficacy they have been clinically-proven to provide
- Manufacturers ensure that every batch is produced using the same process
- Researchers often prefer to use patented ingredients in their clinical studies because standardization allows for ease of replicability
It is common for companies to engage in "borrowed science" which means they use non-patented ingredients while referring to studies that have been conducted only on patented ones. While this may be perfectly legal, Foondiert® products use both the research and the ingredients themselves.
Example: Affron® - the patented saffron extract in our product "Balance Support Complex".
Affron® is a premium saffron ingredient standardised to 3.5% Lepticrosalides, which are the complex of bioactive compounds responsible for the beneficial properties of affron®. It is precisely because of the branded nature of this ingredient and the patented production process that we know that we are always getting the same amount and high quality of Lepticrosalides per dose.
For more information about branded ingredients used in the Foondiert® range including, clinical trial results, publications and original sources please visit:
AFFRON® (Spain): https://pharmactive.eu/ingredient/affron_r-improves-your-mood/
CAVACURMIN® (Germany): https://www.wacker.com/cms/en-de/products/brands/cavacurmin/cavacurmin.html
L-OptiZinc® (Switzerland): https://www.capsugel.com/consumer-health-nutrition-products/l-optizinc
Quatrefolic® (U.S.A.): https://www.quatrefolic.com/
Vitashine® (England): https://www.vegetology.com/
What stays out
Foondiert® products are free of: gluten, lactose, additives and fillers, magnesium stearate, allergens, artificial aroma, all animal products and are non-GMO.
