Last week’s big news included the Alliance for Natural Health (ANH) petitioning the U.S. FDA to reverse its suppression of 118 nutrient-disease health claims, dsm-firmenich’s new research grant opportunity for longevity in APAC and quality control considerations for mushrooms.
ANH petitions FDA to roll back suppression of 118 nutrient-disease health claims
The Alliance for Natural Health USA (ANH) filed a petition with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to allow 118 ‘government-backed’ disease risk reduction health claims.
At the center of the issue is the 1997 Food and Drug Administration Modernization Act (FDAMA), which allowed health or nutrient claims on foods if “a U.S. governmental scientific body with public health protection or research responsibility directly relating to human nutrition or the National Academy of Sciences has published an authoritative statement, currently in effect, about the relationship to which the health claim refers or that identifies the nutrient level to which the nutrient claim refers”.
The FDAMA added that the claim must accurately represent the authoritative statement and must be easily understandable by the public.
In 1998, the FDA issued guidance outlining its interpretation of what constitutes an “authoritative statement” and required that health claims meet the Significant Scientific Agreement (SSA) standard. The guidance noted that, “Not all pronouncements by the designated scientific bodies would meet these criteria.”
This guidance is “at odds with the plain meaning of the statute’s terms,” according to the ANH petition, which was filed with industry partners Living Fuel International, Health Ranger Store, Inc., Sanacor International, Inc. and Evolution Nutraceuticals, Inc. dba Cardio Miracle.
“The agency’s interpretation contradicts the statute which exempts health claims based on authoritative statements from SSA review in advance of market entry and permits continuous use of the claim in the market until such time, if ever, when the Secretary promulgates a rule following notice and comment rulemaking that modifies or revokes the claim or a federal court in an enforcement action acts against the claim,” the petition stated.
dsm-firmenich launches research grant to advance healthy longevity in APAC
Global ingredient powerhouse dsm-firmenich announced the launch of a nutrition research grant to advance the knowledge of healthy longevity and nutrition supplementation in the context of Asia-Pacific (APAC).
The grant, totalling €250k (US$ 290k), will be given to five winning research proposals. Each proposal will receive a funding of €50k (US$ 58k) over a period of 18 months.
The research proposals need to examine the potential benefits of nutritional ingredients supplementations on helping people to age slower and age better through preclinical or clinical studies.
These nutritional ingredients could range from omega-3 fatty acids, polyphenols, vitamins, biotics and more.
Speaking to NutraIngredients, Tina Low, senior vice president, APAC, dsm-firmenich Health, Nutrition & Care, said that the purpose of the research grant was to further the understanding of healthy longevity in the context of APAC.
This is especially important as much of the existing scientific literature on healthy longevity comes from the West.
“The proposal will need to address research gaps on nutrition and health topics among the region’s diverse populations, meaning it is research from APAC for APAC,” she said.
As such, one of the key selection criteria is that the researchers involved have to belong to an academic institution in APAC.
The second criteria is that the research proposal will have to target at least one out of the following four hallmarks of aging: 1) mitochondrial dysfunction, 2) chronic inflammation, 3) cellular senescence and 4) dysbiosis.
The closing date for applications is Nov. 14. The grant award winners will be announced next April, and a grand award event will take place next July.
Professor warns of blind spots in fast-growing mushrooms market
Medicinal mushrooms are gaining the interest of previously plant-focused consumers, businesses and academics alike. But with new-found glory comes fast-growing concerns around quality control.
This was the message shared with attendees of the 73rd International Congress and Annual Meeting of the Society for Medicinal Plant and Natural Product Research (GA) held in Naples from Sept. 1 to 3.
Professor Ulrike Lindequist, head of the department for pharmaceutical biology at University Greifswald in Germany, told attendees that this topic requires great focus, asserting: “for a long time plants were in the foreground, but I think the situation is changing”.
Mushrooms are rich in several bioactive compounds and health promoting properties: polysaccharides such as beta-glucans, a number of terpenes, nucleoside derivatives, amino acids and vitamins.
Discussing the challenges posed by growing consumer interest for both the pharmaceutical and supplement industries, Professor Lindequist said: “We have to decide what are the best suitable fungi components—mycelium, fruit bodies or spores, and what are the responsible bioactive compounds.
“We need quality standards and methods to control standards,” she said. “We need more information about mode of action, correct doses, applications, possible interactions, and we need good quality evidence.
“And to answer these questions a lot of money, time and engagement is necessary. Patent protection could be helpful to invest more money but it is difficult to achieve.”
