PL Thomas goes to India for slimming botanicals

Full details of the ingredients will be made available at Supply Side West in a couple of weeks but in the meantime PL Thomas brand manager Eric Anderson gave NutraIngredients-USA.com a sneak preview.

Satiety ingredient​

One of the new slimming ingredients does not attack fat but eats away instead at the cravings that lead to weight problems. The new satiety ingredient is extracted from a commonly consumed spice and acts at the level of neurotransmitters to reduce hunger.

Anderson said other satiety ingredients tend to only have a short-term effect but this one offers a sustained daily effect when consumed twice a day. Two double blind clinical studies have been carried out to demonstrate this efficacy, one of which PL Thomas expects to be published shortly.

Anderson said dietary supplements and snack bars are likely applications for the ingredient. Beverages may also be suitable but only at the thicker end of the spectrum because the ingredient is not quite water soluble.

Partnership with Laila Nutra​

Alongside the satiety ingredient, PL Thomas is also launching another fat fighting ingredient at Supply Side West. For this ingredient PL Thomas has extended its partnership with Laila Nutra.

The alliance has already produced the 5-LOXIN joint health ingredient and is now moving into the slimming arena with an ingredient that works on adipose (fat) tissues to inhibit the accumulation of stored fat and promote the use of body fat as a source of energy.

Both in-vivo​ and in-vitro​ studies have been carried out to demonstrate these effects and Laila Nutra has submitted the human study for publication.

Laila Nutra developed the ingredient by screening over 300 herbs used in traditional Indian medicine before picking out three of the most effective fat inhibitors and working out the best ratio of the herbs. From there PL Thomas has taken up responsibility for sales and marketing work.

Anderson said the ability of the ingredient to inhibit fat accumulation and also tackle underlying health factors like cholesterol levels that affect risk of heart disease set it apart from the pack.

The ingredient is suitable for use in dietary supplements and plans are being considered to obtain FDA Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) notification.