Sports nutrition: Tackling e-sports, age-related muscle loss and mental performance

15 Feb 2021 --- The sports nutrition category today more broadly encompasses e-sports players, a physically active elderly population and everyday consumers seeking accessible health benefits. 

This widening inclusivity has given rise to the next generation of functional F&B offerings with protein, electrolytes and slow-release carbohydrates. 

FoodIngredientsFirst speaks with experts from Beneo, Arla Foods Ingredients (AFI), FrieslandCampina Ingredients (FCI) and Agropur to reveal insight on the latest offerings within this dynamic space, which include concentration and memory enhancement, lactose-free and organic positionings.

Gamification in nutraceuticals 
Once considered a niche market, e-sports is now a thriving category which generated more than US$950 million in 2019, as highlighted by Beneo. 

“As interest in e-sports continues to rise, this is an area that’s prime for sports nutrition. As with other more traditional sports, performance and endurance are key for e-sports athletes, opening up a whole new audience for sports nutrition manufacturers,” highlights Konstantin Grissmer, product manager of functional carbohydrates at Beneo.

“COVID-19 has accelerated this trend with a significant increase in gamer numbers as a result of the pandemic – especially in US, French, UK and German markets,” he adds.

“This target audience has diverse needs, both mental and physical, from improved concentration to help them react quickly, through to alleviating back and neck pain, fatigue and headaches, caused from being in front of a screen for prolonged periods of time.”

Click to EnlargeSlow release carbohydrates like Beneo’s Palatinose offer a balanced supply of glucose energy for focus. (Credit: Beneo)The same can be said for the growing number of leisure gamers who aspire to boost their performance in a similar way to e-athletes, just like in traditional sports, Grissmer concedes. 

“This factor should be taken into consideration for NPD to ensure that this audience isn’t excluded and that products can offer mainstream appeal.”

Many products have been formulated for a quick energy boost through rapidly available carbohydrates such as maltodextrin, sucrose or glucose syrup in combination with caffeine or taurine.

“These will not deliver the sustained energy e-athletes need to maintain concentration for a long period of time,” warns Grissmer.

“Slow release carbohydrates like [Beneo’s] Palatinose offer a balanced supply of glucose energy to help them to stay focused, with a lower rise in blood glucose levels over the longer time,” he details. 

“Scientists have also found that products containing Palatinose can help enhance a person’s mood and memory skills – two very important factors when it comes to e-sports.”

“E-athletes” are under enormous pressure to perform at their best and recent research has argued that some of these individuals may have developed better eating patterns compared to the general population as many actively seek out nutraceuticals that help them excel. 

Organic goes long
Organic sports nutrition is tipped for growth this year, aligning with clean label demands that have been bolstered during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Of course, active consumers want functional benefits, but they also want products with an organic, natural or wholesome positioning,” supports Mathias Vangsøe, health and performance nutrition development manager at AFI.

Click to EnlargeLacprodan MicelPure by AFI is a micellar casein isolate for applications such as high-protein powders and RTDs.In a recent survey cited by AFI, 43 percent of European consumers said naturalness was an important factor when purchasing ready-to-drink (RTD) high-protein beverages. The evidence also suggests that consumers associate organic status with health and naturality.

“One of the biggest milestones for us in 2020 was the launch of our first organic product – Lacprodan MicelPure, a micellar casein isolate for applications such as high-protein powders and RTDs,’” highlights Vangsøe.

“It will be a major focus for us in 2021 helping manufacturers extend their portfolios with products that are both organic and packed with high-quality protein. This ingredient will furthermore be non-GMO verified in North America.”

Eating like an athlete
AFI continues its investments in clinical trials and scientific studies to investigate the benefits of whey in a wide range of population groups, which may benefit from sports nutrition as much as traditional athletes do.

“For example, findings from two separate human clinical trials, published in several scientific papers, have shown that Lacprodan HYDRO.Rebuild, in combination with resistance exercise, can help counteract sarcopenia,” explains Vangsøe.

Lacprodan HYDRO.Rebuild is a hydrolyzed whey protein that offers highly accessible content of essential amino acids – particularly branched-chain amino acids such as leucine, which are important for muscle synthesis.

Click to EnlargeFrieslandCampina Ingredients’ Hypotonic Clear Protein Water “cracks the puzzle” of synergizing protein benefits with hydration (Credit: FCI).The ingredient is specifically designed for seniors who want to stay physically active and prevent age-related muscle loss.

“In the most recent study, 66 older women received 35 g of Lacprodan HYDRO.Rebuild or a control and undertook resistance training over a 12-week period,” Vangsøe continues.

“The improvements in skeletal muscle mass and functional capacity were significantly greater in the group receiving Lacprodan HYDRO.Rebuild than in the control group.”

Hydration muscles up
“With organized sports and gyms around the world unavailable for a significant portion of the year, what we have seen is an increase in people searching for ways to take their health into their own hands,” underscores Floris Daamen, market segment manager at FCI.

“As more people began exercising at home – including those who weren’t regular exercisers before but wanted to improve their health because of the pandemic – our priority continued to be helping our customers create innovative solutions that responded to these changes.”

FCI’s protein gel concept was recently launched. It is formulated with its sweet whey protein isolate Nutri Whey Isolate Clear, with a clean flavor and aroma profile. It is marketed toward easy-to-use, on-the-go formats, such as squeezable pouches and spoonable pots.

“The concept aligns perfectly with many trends influencing the sports nutrition market, including single-serve and snackification, consumption on the go and compacting – with one serving able to supply the same amount of premium quality protein as a 500 mL RTD beverage,” Daamen details.

“In line with the desire to take health and wellness even further, future innovation should also focus on the ‘protein plus’ trend,” he adds. “A good example of this is the Hypotonic Clear Protein Water concept.”

Click to EnlargeAgropur is developing lactose-free whey protein concentrate for sports nutrition applications.Hypotonic Clear Protein Water is formulated with FCI’s Nutri Whey Isolate Clear, which “cracks the puzzle” of synergizing protein benefits with hydration. The clear beverage ingredient contains both electrolytes and carbohydrates.

Protein’s front and center appeal
Innova Market Insights’ forecasted Top Trends for the years 2020 and 2021 “Transparency Triumphs,” “Macronutrient Makeover” and “In-Tune with Immune” evidence the category-spanning shifts in consumer focus upon health, sustainability and traceability claims.

“The sports nutrition consumer has evolved from ‘I will consume anything if it helps my body’ to ‘I will consume it if it tastes good and has clean, natural ingredients and is good for my body and my environment,’” says Anand Rao, VP of Ingredients Innovation at Agropur.

Agropur observed a dampening of demand for protein in the sports nutrition market during the initial lockdown period. However, the market remained buoyant due to mainstream awareness of protein’s essential properties even outside the gym.

“The most noticeable trend is that consumers are more often recognizing that milk and whey proteins have superior digestibility and amino acid composition when compared to alternative proteins,” he adds.

“They’re also consuming whey proteins to improve the body’s immune functions in addition to nutrition.”

Agropur offers bitterless hydrolyzed proteins with high absorption properties for effective muscle recovery. “We are also developing lactose-free WPC 80 for sports nutrition applications,” comments Rao.

By Benjamin Ferrer

To contact our editorial team please email us at editorial@cnsmedia.com