Tharos launches sleep supplement with fruit-derived antioxidant
claims to aid restful sleep through all its phases and promote
alertness during the daytime.
Nytex contains Procidin, Tharos' new antioxidant derived from wild blueberries and certain varieties of grape.
As well as being a potent antioxidant, Procidin benefits several of the body's functions - including the immune system, the cariovascular system and the urinary tract - thanks to the occurrence of natural phytochemicals called proanythocyanidins.
The company claims that Nytex is the first sleep supplement to contain Procidin and that this ingredient is just one of its benefits.
"Nytex is different because it is the first product that addresses all the phases of sleep, from preparing for sleep to waking up feeling refreshed. Other products may only address one phase," Nikos Linardakis, managing director of Tharos told NutraIngredients-USA.com.
To promote relaxation, it contains extract of Valerian root and suntheanine amino acids which are thought to restore restful sleep.
Vitamin B complex helps induce sleep while melatonin promotes deep, calm sleep and keep the circadian cycles in tune. The effects of melatonin, which is naturally produced by the pineal gland, are enhanced by anti-oxidant vitamin E.
Whether generated by pollution, other environmental factors or the body's natural processes, the highest levels of oxidants are present in the body after 5pm. By fighting off free radicals, anti-oxidants help restore the body's internal balance and lend support to the immune system.
"Clinical studies have shown that antioxidants help reduce oxidative stress," said Linardakis.
The claims surrounding Nytex and Procidin have not been evaluated by the FDA but a first round of studies is being conducted by Dr Alexander Golbin, director of the Sleep and Behavior Medicine Institute in Chicago.
The results of Golbin's study are expected to be published in three to six months time, but it is not yet know in which journal they will appear.
The introduction of Nytex coincides with a call from researchers at Northwest University to investigate whether intervention in sleep disorders could help extricate America from the current obesity crisis.
"While there is a growing awareness among some sleep, metabolic, cardiovascular, and diabetes researchers that insufficient sleep could be leading to a cascade of disorders, few in the general medicine profession or in the lay public have yet made the connection," wrote Joseph Bass, assistant professor of medicine and Fred Turek, professor of biology and director of Northwestern's Center for Sleep and Circadian Biology in the 10 January issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
