Premix solutions for holistic “Beauty From Within”

Men or women, Gen Z, Millennials or Baby Boomers, everybody wants to look good, regardless of gender and age. According to a worldwide survey by Euromonitor International, more than half of respondents see beauty primarily in a healthy appearance. And this comes mostly from within. More and more consumers are becoming aware of how important nutrition is for healthy skin, hair, and nails. They understand that a healthy, balanced lifestyle has an effect on their appearance, and so they look for foods, beverages, and nutritional supplements that support holistic beauty. To meet this demand, SternVitamin has developed the new “Beauty From Within” premix line.

Holistic beauty combines wellness, health, and beauty

For many years wellness, health, and beauty were separate categories, but now they are increasingly merging into one another. Holistic beauty has established itself as a long-term trend. Consumers are looking for beauty products that alleviate stress, boost wellbeing, help with sleep issues and thus support a healthy appearance. With SternHolisticBeauty, SternVitamin has developed a unique premix that follows this holistic approach.

This premix for instant drink powders is specially tailored for holistic beauty. Its micronutrients and other functional ingredients support the gut immune system and the microbiota that work through the gut-skin-brain axis to strengthen the skin barrier and improve skin health. The lavender extract it contains helps with relaxation and stress reduction, while its pantothenic acid supports mental performance.

The skin as a calling-card

SternVitamin’s new premix line is centred on solutions for various skin needs. After all, glowing skin is the very essence of a healthy appearance. But unfortunately, the process of skin ageing starts as early as at age 25. External influences like environmental pollution and sunshine, as well as individual factors like stress, lack of sleep, and unbalanced nutrition, further exacerbate the natural ageing of the skin. It is no wonder that dark eye circles, lines, and wrinkles are among the most frequently mentioned skin problems. With combinations of selected vitamins, minerals, and functional ingredients, SternVitamin’s premix solutions support the natural beauty of the skin. A key factor, for example, is optimal moisturisation. This is exactly what SternHydroSkin helps with. The premix for capsules contains vitamins C and D that help maintain the skin barrier and counteract skin dryness. Vitamin B3 has a stimulating effect on ceramide synthesis, which is important for a healthy skin barrier. Moreover, hyaluronic acid and pomegranate extract have positive effects on skin elasticity, hydration and wrinkles.

SternSolarGuard protects against the skin’s worst external enemy – the sun. UVA radiation is a major cause of skin ageing, wrinkling, and roughness. This is due to oxidative stress and the damaging effects of free radicals. The vitamins C and E and trace elements zinc and selenium in the premix protect the skin from UV-induced oxidative stress. Vitamins C and E have also been demonstrated to counteract UV damage and skin ageing. The combination of citrus flavonoids and rosemary extract in the premix can provide additional protection against the sun’s harmful radiation. This premix was designed for capsules, and like SternHydroSkin, it is suitable for products targeting men and women in all age groups.

“Beauty sleep” is not just an expression – the skin regenerates during sleep. SternBeautySleep supports restful sleep and skin renewal. This premix for capsules contains the minerals zinc, magnesium, calcium, and selenium, which boost sleep duration. Beyond that calcium is involved in the skin’s cell cycle. Like zinc, the vitamins C and E in the premix reduce UV-induced skin ageing. Valerian, hops, and passionflower reduce the time it takes to fall asleep and improve sleep duration. SternBeautySleep is ideal for women and men under stress.

For beautiful skin, hair, and nails

The Beauty From Within range is completed by SternGlow and SternBeautyGummy. Both premixes contain micronutrients and functional ingredients that provide for beautiful skin, hair, and nails. SternBeautyGummy is specially intended for the trendy gummy application. All SternVitamin premixes can be incorporated into different applications. SternVitamin tailors each premix to customer order. The micronutrient specialist also develops customised concepts for individual foods and food supplements in close cooperation with the customer.

At this year’s FIE fair SternVitamin will be presenting selected premix solutions to address current trends. The focus is on three micronutrient premixes that have been incorporated into various applications. The SternCogni+ premix, whose functional ingredients boost cognitive performance in old age, is presented in gummies, a trending application. The company meets the Beauty from Within trend with an instant beverage powder fortified with the SternHolisticBeauty premix. Meanwhile, SternVitalityV offers something new for the booming plant-based market: incorporated into a vegan coffee drink the micronutrients provide new energy.

Micronutrients for cognitive performance and memory

According to the United Nations, by 2050 the number of over 65-year-olds will increase by almost 50 percent in Europe and North America, and life expectancy is also rising. This makes it even more important to maintain physical and mental health for as long as possible, to lead an active and healthy life into old age. Studies show that best agers and seniors are particularly susceptible to micronutrient deficiencies. This affects cognitive performance and memory. With its SternCogni+ premix SternVitamin picks up on the Healthy Ageing trend. It contains vitamins B3, B6, B12 and biotin, which contribute to normal functioning of the nervous system, and support memory performance in combination with choline. Zinc improves cognitive performance. As an example of a trending food supplement form, the premix is presented in gummies.

Holistic beauty as a future trend

For many years wellness, health, and beauty were discrete categories, but recent years have accelerated the change towards a merging of the categories. Holistic beauty is the long-term trend now. Consumers are looking for beauty products that alleviate stress, boost wellbeing, and help with sleep issues, for a healthy appearance. With SternHolisticBeauty, SternVitamin has developed a unique premix that follows a holistic approach. Its micronutrients and other functional ingredients support the gut immune system and the microbiota that work through the gut-skin axis to strengthen the skin barrier and improve skin health. The lavender extract in the premix helps with relaxation and stress reduction, and pantothenic acid supports mental performance. At FiE SternVitamin is presenting SternHolisticBeauty in the form of an instant drink powder. It features a pear and vanilla flavour tailored especially for the Holistic Beauty market, developed in collaboration with sister company OlbrichtArom.

Fortified plant-based coffee drink for new energy

SternVitamin’s answer to the ongoing plant-based boom is SternVitalityV. This premix contains B vitamins, vitamin C, and pantothenic acid, which reduce fatigue and exhaustion, while simultaneously providing new energy. Iodine and calcium provide additional power. This micronutrient combination comes in a plant-based coffee drink. It can help students, professionals, and fair attendees maintain their mental performance throughout the day, reduce nervousness, and stay focused. This enriched coffee drink was developed in cooperation with sister company Planteneers.

Health is one of the twelve megatrends recently defined by the Future Institute in Frankfurt. It informs all facets of daily life and dominates entire lifestyles. “Physical well-being has grown in importance to be a key resource since the COVID-19 pandemic,” say the futurologists of the institute. Nutrition plays a central role in this. The focus is on plant-based products. “Plant-based alternatives are considered not just good for one’s own personal health, but also for the environment and the entire planet,” according to the researchers.

Various scientific studies have shown that vegetarian and vegan diets offer multiple health benefits. These include less obesity, lower cholesterol, and lower risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. However, an all-vegan diet brings with it the disadvantage of critical supply of certain micronutrients. Among these are vitamins B12, B2 and D, and calcium, iron, selenium, and zinc, as well as the amino acid lysine and certain omega-3 fatty acids. To prevent deficiencies, many plant-based products are fortified with micronutrients. SternVitamin takes this a step further and develops premixes that not only prevent deficiencies, but also meet certain target-group-specific needs, such as strengthening the bones, the immune system or gut health. “Customer interest in micronutrient premixes for plant-based products is growing,” notes SternVitamin Product Manager Dr Christina Mesch. “So together with our sister company Planteneers we have developed further concepts for plant-based drinks that address the current health trend.”

New oat drinks for mental power and the immune system

SternVitalityV and SternDefenceV are new to the product line. SternVitality is for a coffee oat drink with important micronutrients to support mental performance. The vitamins and minerals of the premix reduce tiredness and fatigue, and provide new energy. SternDefenceV was developed for a fruity oat drink and contains vitamins, minerals, and botanicals. B-vitamins are important for antibody synthesis and can act as immunomodulators. Sea buckthorn, vitamins B2, C and E, and the trace elements selenium and zinc protect the cells from oxidative stress, while vitamin D contributes to the growth, maturation, and activity of immune cells.

Strong bones, healthy heart

In addition to these new premix concepts, SternVitamin has also reviewed its existing premixes SternBonesV and SternHeartV and updated them in accordance with the latest science. SternBonesV is for a vanilla oat drink with a combination of vegan vitamin D3, vitamin K2 and calcium which helps maintain bone health. B-vitamins further protect the bones.

Mental stress can negatively affect vascular function and impact heart health. Since flavanol-rich cocoa has been demonstrated to improve blood flow in stressful situations and helps maintain elasticity of blood vessels, SternHeartV is incorporated into a chocolate oat drink. It contains additional vitamin K1 for vascular health and vitamin C, which improves the elasticity of the aorta and raises “good” HDL cholesterol. Meanwhile, B-vitamins contribute to a normal homocysteine metabolism, the formation of red blood cells, muscle function and a strong nervous system – likewise important for heart health.