Our world’s population is growing older. There are 703 million people aged 65 or over and this number is projected to reach 1.5 billion by 2050
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Our world is growing older: UN DESA releases new report on ageing, 2019
. At the same time, we’re also seeing a rise in chronic disease – by 2050, it is estimated that chronic diseases will account for 86% of deaths each year
World Health Organization, World health statistics 2023: monitoring health for the SDGs, sustainable development goals, 2023
. For medical nutrition providers, a growing patient population means a greater need to support people at a time they need it most. But patient adherence to medical nutrition programs is a challenge.
Nutrient-dense liquid formulations are increasingly popular to support patient adherence by providing high levels of protein and energy in compact formats. These solutions can especially benefit patients experiencing poor appetite, early satiety, fatigue, taste changes or nausea related to their illness. But with over half of patients in the US and Europe citing the thickness of a beverage as the reason for not finishing it
FMCG Gurus, ‘FrieslandCampina Medical Nutrition Report’, September 2019
, there’s a clear need for oral nutritional supplements with superior sensory properties – like good drinkability – combined with the best nutritional value available to support patient recovery.
Read on to discover how to take your innovation to the next level with high-quality whey protein specifically designed for the medical nutrition market.
As patients undergo the recovery process, lean muscle mass helps facilitate healing. Losing this lean muscle mass can contribute to reduced quality of life and delayed recovery. Maintaining muscle mass in patient population is a challenge for several reasons including the prevalence of disease related malnutrition (DRM) – 1 in 4 people admitted to hospital suffer from it
Ljungqvist, O. et al. Under nutrition: a major health problem in Europe. Nutr Hosp, 2009.
, and sarcopenia – age-related muscle loss. As we age, we need to consume higher levels of protein just to prevent muscle loss, but older patients often struggle to meet these dietary requirements.
In addition to providing patients with sufficient energy from calories, consuming adequate levels of protein, which is proven to maintain and rebuild muscle mass as well as support tissue repair, is hugely important for patient recovery. To help people get the protein they need to stimulate muscle protein synthesis healthcare professionals often prescribe oral nutritional supplements like compact drinks. While these drinks have historically been formulated with casein protein as it naturally tolerates high-heat treatments, we believe it’s time to go a step further in supporting patient recovery – with whey protein.
Whey protein has huge, untapped potential for the medical nutrition market. Whey protein has a particularly high content of the essential amino acid leucine, which is known to trigger muscle protein synthesis. It’s also digested more quickly than other complete dairy proteins, resulting in faster and higher levels of blood plasma leucine and other essential amino acids
Phillips et al., 2016; 2. Pennings et al., 2011
. As such, it could be hugely beneficial for patient recovery in formats such as high protein liquid drinks. So, why isn’t it being used to support patients during recovery?
Here’s the rub – whey proteins present a significant challenge for liquid medical nutrition. When you heat up most whey proteins to make drinks that can be stored for a long time, the proteins change in a way that can’t be undone. This can cause gelation and thickening, which results in products that are more difficult and unappealing for patients to consume.
As experts in protein, we look at difficulties and challenges in the market and use our unrivalled experience to come up with new solutions that help our customers make a real difference. That’s why we created Nutri Whey™ ProHeat, to open up a new era of possibilities in liquid medical nutrition.
Nutri Whey™ ProHeat is a heat-stable, neutral pH whey protein that can be easily incorporated into easily drinkable (e.g., low viscosity) compact liquid formulations with the superior sensory properties supporting patient adherence. While most medical nutrition drinks only use casein protein, whey offers medical nutrition brands an opportunity to stand out with higher leucine content and faster digestibility to support optimal muscle protein synthesis.
How does it do this? By harnessing the power of a patent-pending microparticulation process. To showcase the power of this ingredient in action, we created an application suggestion that packs in 15% of high-quality protein with a high proportion from whey protein, in a 2 kcal/ml solution, providing an elevated nutritional benefit and sensory experience to patients.
At FrieslandCampina Ingredients, we’re committed to making a difference in the lives of consumers. Since 1929, we have been creating high-quality ingredients from milk, harnessing the natural power of dairy to help people of all ages get the support they need. We know just how crucial it is for ingredients to deliver more than be science-backed, high-quality nutrition, they also need to have a great taste and texture and the final application must be highly functional. That’s why we’ve collaborated with our team of experts to create an ingredient that combines the best functionality with the best nutrition.
Using our unparalleled technological expertise and detailed application expertise, we’ve been able to create a highly nutritious ingredient that will unlock new innovations in medical nutrition. By partnering with us, you’ll not only be able to use high-quality protein to create compact, appealing supplements, but our team of experts will work with you to launch your new product quicker and with more market impact.
The medical nutrition market is ripe for innovation – especially when it comes to protein. Work with us to provide the right nutrition to the people who need it most, today. Download the Nutri Whey™ ProHeat application sheet or speak to our team of experts to discover how this powerful ingredient can help you elevate your next medical nutrition innovation.
For more than a century we’ve been creating quality ingredients delivered with passion. Whether we’re inspiring ideas from drinks to bars, or supporting how to manufacture products in better ways, our customers can count on us to deliver, time and time again.
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