Market Trends, Opportunities for Dietary Supplements

With two-thirds of consumers "very/somewhat concerned" about their health, eight in ten taking action to manage their weight, 31 million Americans turning age 65 in the next decade, and a growing number of mothers concerned about preventing their children from developing diseases later in life (now their #3 concern), opportunities for marketers of dietary supplements have never been greater. Watching and working on a number of silent mega-market shifts can help provide clues to the opportunities ahead.

Au Naturel OTC

As FDA inquiries and frightening side effects continue to plague the Rx and over-the-counter (OTC) drug industries, consumers are quietly shifting to more natural solutions for common ailments and symptoms, particularly for children. Homeopathic sales, which have enjoyed double-digit growth over the past few years, are fast approaching a billion dollar U.S. market.

Six out of the top 10 best selling sleep aids in 2007 were natural/homeopathic solutions. Zimcam® topped the list of best selling nasal sprays and more natural remedies dominated the oral pain, insect bite, ear drop/treatment and other categories.

Around the globe, self-medication is on the rise and prevention represents the dominant U.S. health lifestyle. Condition specific herbs are among the fastest growing supplement categories, and natural products for children—from toothpastes to sore throat remedies—are enjoying explosive growth.

2nd Generation Linkages

As consumer familiarity and media attention about individual nutrients and ingredients increases and product usage moves mainstream, consumers are looking beyond the original health linkage in the limelight to secondary health benefit connections. Knowing which ones are most important to consumers, their timing and in what order they will emerge is of critical importance to supplement marketers.

Sloan Trends’ TrendSense™ Model indicates while heart disease is currently the strongest market opportunity for omega-3s, brain health and cholesterol, respectively, are the next most important market connections. What’s exciting is the arthritis link is now perfectly timed for very health-conscious consumers and the supplement and food markets.

Knowing when an ingredient is crossing over to functional foods can provide early warning for potential sales declines in dietary supplements. While probiotics has been one of the fastest growing supplements over the past five years, the growth rate is beginning to slow. Conversely, food products making a probiotics claim crossed the $1 billion sales mark in April 2008.

Watching for critical shifts in the mass market supplement business is also important. Calcium fell off the top 10 list of most sought-after ingredients in the supermarket this year and joint supplement sales moved ahead of calcium for the first time. Surprisingly, the combined sales of Bausch & Lomb’s two major eye supplements are quickly approaching sales of Centrum Silver.

Contemporized Conditions

As consumers and scientists become more sophisticated about preventing and treating major health conditions, the dynamics of condition-specific health markets continue to evolve and marketers must keep pace. For example, with Boomers moving into the age group when they are most likely to experience a heart attack or stroke, general heart health claims may no longer be enough. More specific concerns such as circulation, stroke and artery health are quickly emerging as viable markets.

Similarly, body fat is the new target in the weight management and anti-aging markets. Expect Boomers to embrace products that build lean body mass and fight the age-related loss of muscle tone. Eye immunity, due to heavy usage of contact lens, and night vision are other new vision segments. Primature (prime + mature) post-menopausal women with myriad new health issues such as increased risk of heart attacks and stroke, osteoporosis, insomnia and periodontal disease is another overlooked market.

Demo-Drivers

It’s not just all about the Boomers! With one-third of the population already older than age 55, the conditions afflicting older adults will move center stage. Sarcopenia, the loss of muscle mass, strength and function with age, may well be one of new condition-specific market opportunities with the highest potential of all time.

With America in the midst of the biggest baby boom in history, and the number of children under age 6 expected to explode, the market is ripe for a flurry of new concepts aimed at prevention and natural remedies for children. In addition to high obesity rates, one in eight children is already afflicted with two or more risk factors for heart disease and one in three children born after 2000 is expected to become diabetic.

Lastly, America’s 72 million Gen Y-ers are surprisingly health-minded. Their interest in vitamins/minerals jumped 10 points in the last two years. They’re also the heaviest users of functional foods, energy products and bars, and are set to drive an explosion in the sports nutrition market.

Elizabeth Sloan, Ph.D., is the president of Sloan Trends, a consulting firm that offers trend-tracking and predictions, strategic counsel and business-building ideas for food, supplement and food service/restaurant marketers. She has written more than 200 articles, co-authored two college text books on nutrition and has appeared on numerous radio and television programs, including The Today Show, Good Morning America and CBS and NBC newscasts.