Water-Dispersible Resveratrol Expands Food, Drink, and Cosmetic Applications

Evolva's Veri-te CWD 90 cold-water-dispersible ingredient. Photo from Evolva.

Resveratrol is not new in the dietary supplements market, but Evolva (Reinach, Switzerland), supplier of the Veri-te resveratrol brand, is invigorating the ingredient category with innovative new science and delivery technologies. During April’s SupplySide East trade show in Secaucus, NJ, Evolva debuted a cold-water-dispersible version of Veri-te that expands the ingredient’s applications in beverages, food, and even cosmetics. Evolva says that investing in innovative delivery systems like these, plus new science, will be key to growing Veri-te’s audience.

Evolva rebranded the resveratrol ingredient portfolio under the Veri-te brand name last year. The company highlights Veri-te’s high purity, guaranteeing a purity level of 98% or greater. The firm says that because Veri-te resveratrol is produced via fermentation, it sidesteps environmental contaminants that some other resveratrol ingredients, which are typically extracted from Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica), are confronted with through production via traditional agriculture and extraction.

Evolva is set on expanding the market for Veri-te. Sally Aaron, Evolva’s senior vice president of health and wellness ingredients, says the new Veri-te CWD 90 cold-water-dispersible ingredient makes it easy for formulators to use resveratrol in beverages. The ingredient also has a neutral flavor that doesn’t impact product taste. Aaron says that, to the company’s knowledge, it is the first cold-water-dispersible resveratrol ingredient on the market, “especially at such a high level of active ingredient.” The ingredient comprises 90% resveratrol.

Aaron says Evolva created the cold-water-dispersible form following requests from its customers who wanted to use the ingredient in beverages and who, in general, were seeking “new ways to deliver the active ingredient.” (Without enhanced dispersibility, resveratrol is generally not soluble in water, she notes.) In addition to beverages, the new ingredient’s dispersibility can ease formulation in other types of products, too, including foods and cosmetics, she says. “It can benefit any system in which you need the ingredient to go into solution more quickly, anything for which you need the system to disperse in water quickly,” she says.

The focus on innovative delivery systems is part of Evolva’s ongoing growth strategy for Veri-te. “What we really want to do with the brand going forward is to continue on the path of ingredient innovation,” Aaron says.

The rest of the firm’s strategy revolves around investing in new Veri-te research. Aaron notes that there have been more than 200 clinical trials on resveratrol, “with very positive results reported from those clinical trials.”

Evolva has several studies ongoing, including those exploring newer health indications for resveratrol. While the majority of past research on resveratrol’s health benefits has centered on cardiovascular health, Aaron says that emerging areas of scientific interest include impacts on bone health, cognitive health, and blood glucose. “New opportunity spaces are opening up because of resveratrol’s role not only as an anti-inflammatory ingredient but also its ability to work at the cellular level,” Aaron adds.

Currently, Evolva is funding a trial in Australia at the University of Newcastle (Callaghan, Australia) to study any potential benefits of Veri-te supplementation on bone health in postmenopausal women. The trial is a 24-month study in 170 postmenopausal women, with the active group assigned to take 75 mg of Veri-te twice daily. This study follows a 2014 four-week study¹ on Veri-te in 24 obese men in which researchers saw benefits to bone mineral density.

Resveratrol is said to balance the rate of bone formation and bone resorption (bone loss). Due to aging, as well as factors such as obesity-related low-grade inflammation and menopause-related hormonal changes, the rate of bone resorption can overcome the rate of bone formation, leading to overall loss in bone mineral density. Resveratrol, however, can stimulate the creation of new bone-forming cells, the company says. Aaron says that bone health is a relatively new research area where resveratrol is concerned.

Brain health is another emerging area of scientific study for resveratrol. Last winter, Evolva announced its collaboration with UK researchers at Northumbria University’s Brain, Performance, and Nutrition Research Centre to conduct human intervention studies on Veri-te’s potential effects on the gut-brain axis. Researchers will study impacts on parameters such as obesity, gut health (via microbiome populations), systemic inflammation, cognitive function, and more. The first trial is being conducted in 100 overweight and obese subjects to study the interplay between resveratrol and the gut microbiota.

In addition to benefits to cognitive performance, Evolva is also exploring Veri-te’s potential impact on mood, Aaron says. At the upcoming Vitafoods Europe trade show, Emma Wightman, PhD, lead researcher for the aforementioned study and a senior lecturer at the University of Northumbria, will conduct a presentation on the potential role of resveratrol on cognition and mood in hypoxia and the link between resveratrol supplementation, the gut microbiota, systemic inflammation, and brain function.

Finally, Aaron says, Veri-te’s benefits for blood glucose regulation is also a promising area of study and one that’s been a bit under the radar. The company points to recent meta-analyses indicating that resveratrol can lower fasting glucose, insulin, and insulin resistance in subjects with type 2 diabetes.^2,3 In addition, the company points to research showing that resveratrol can improve the cardiovascular health of diabetes sufferers, including by helping to maintain healthy blood pressure.⁴

Aaron says that Evolva’s two-pronged strategy for Veri-te-investing in both the science and formulating/delivery system applications-will help invigorate the resveratrol category. It’s happening already, she says. “In the last three years, we’ve seen a real increase in products that have launched with resveratrol. It’s becoming more common that people say, ‘Okay, if I’m going to put an antioxidant product on the market, resveratrol is one of the key ingredients that I need to have in it.’” She also notes that, more often these days, resveratrol is being included in innovative ingredient combinations instead of being used as a standalone ingredient only.

“I think it’s becoming more of a ‘must have’ ingredient because the science is so well-established,” she concludes.

Also read:

Getting Better with Age: Taking a Fresh Look at Resveratrol

Evolva Introduces High-Purity, Sustainable Resveratrol Brand

Resveratrol Stars in New Nutricosmetic Dissolvable Film Strip

References:

1. Poulsen MM et al., “Short-term resveratrol supplementation stimulates serum levels of bone-specific alkaline phosphatase in obese non-diabetic men,” Journal of Functional Foods, vol. 6 (January 2014): 305-310
2. Zhu X et al., “Effects of resveratrol on glucose control and insulin sensitivity in subjects with type 2 diabetes: systematic review and meta-analysis,” Nutrition and Metabolism. Published online September 22, 2017.
3. Liu K et al., “Effect of resveratrol on glucose control and insulin sensitivity: a meta-analysis of 11 randomized controlled trials,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 99, no. 6 (June 2014): 1510-1519
4. Fogacci F et al., “Effect of resveratrol on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized, controlled, clinical trials,” Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. Published online January 23, 2018.