Sabinsa unveils LeanGuard for supplements

The company is presenting LeanGard for use in dietary supplements at the Slimming Ingredients Conference in Berlin this week.

The ingredient is commercially ready and the company said it would most likely see its first sales in the United States.

Sabinsa hopes to market the proprietary ratio of its clinically researched ingredients, Forslean, Garcitrin and Bioperine, as a branded ingredient recognizable to consumers in an increasingly competitive weight loss market.

Approximately one third of Americans are obese and Euromonitor International estimates the US weight management supplements market to be worth $3.93bn, while the European market is valued at $0.93bn in 2005.

Sabinsa wants to differentiate itself from those products that promote rapid weight loss at any physical cost for cosmetic purposes and instead highlight the body of science behind its combined ingredients.

"We're trying to approach this from a health stand-point rather than just a superficial stand point," Sabinsa president Todd Norton told NutraIngredients-USA.

Sabinsa's ingredient is designed to promote lean body mass, suppress appetite and enhance thermogenic activity.

"LeanGard is a combination of three patented and clinically tested ingredients that Sabinsa has had for years and has combined into a proprietary blend to combine different facets of weight management issues," said Norton.

ForsLean is an extract derived from Coleus forskohlii roots and helps to build lean body mass and optimize body composition through cAMP (cyclic adenosine monophosphate) activation.

Garcitrin contains calcium salt hydroxycitric acid (HCA) and garcinol, a polyisoprenylated benzophenone isolated from Garcinia cambogia and Garcinia indica .

These fruits are thought to reduce fatty acid, lipid synthesis as well as to improve lean body mass.

Standardized piperine Bioperine is extracted from black pepper and has been shown to increase the absorption of nutrients in nutritional supplement formulations.

Forslean helps to build lean body mass and maintain healthy body composition through a cAMP mediated action.

While LeanGard has not been put to clinical trial yet, there is a protocol currently being designed for a weight management study, according to Norton.

"Standing alone the ingredients have all proved themselves safe and effective," he said.

For the time being, the ingredient is geared to the US dietary supplement market due to regulatory issues.

"Right now the product is positioned as a dietary supplement but the forward view is that there may be other applications in the future," said Norton.

"It still doesn't cross the threshold in some instances, so there's still a little bit of work to do."

The company would like to get Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) status for the ingredient for use in functional food, as well as get it through regulatory hoops for use in supplements in Europe.

Dr. Lakshmi Prakash, vice president of innovation and business development with Sabinsa, will present LeanGard Friday at Slimming Ingredients in Berlin.