Joint, women health shine in flat supplement category

Drug Store News,  March 5, 2001  by Bruce Buckley

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* Amerifit Nutrition has introduced several glucosamine/chondroitin formulations as part of its FlexAble line, including chewables and a drink mix. The line also includes a formulation that mixes glucosamine with MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) and curcumin, and a nighttime product (FlexAble PM) that adds valerian extract to the formula. David Belaga, vice president of marketing, said the new PM product is just breaking into distribution this month. "Actually, all these supplements work better at night because your body is no longer physically active," he said.

* Twinlab markets a host of glucosamine/chondroitin liquid and solid formulations under different brand names (Joint Fuel, Joint Factors, Joint Rescue, Glucosamine Fuel and MaxiLife). Some of the formulations contain minerals, vitamins and other nutritional ingredients, including zinc, manganese, vitamins C and E, selenium and tumeric.

* Rexall Sundown, which claims market leadership in the category, has added vitamins C and D plus calcium to glucosamine/chondroitin in a new Osteo-Bi-Flex Bone & Joint Care formulation.

* McNeil Consumer Healthcare has introduced Aflexa, a glucosamine-only product.

* Bayer's One-A-Day Joint Health brand uses a combination of glucosamine and vitamins C and E.

For retailers, one good aspect of the joint/bone market has been the lack of price resistance on the part of consumers. It is an OTC category with relatively high price points, yet shoppers continue to buy the products without complaint.

"I think when you can get an immediate benefit from a product, cost becomes a relatively unimportant factor," said Shopko's Grueneberg. "When you see joint care up 29 to 30 percent, it's evident that people are saying they don't mind spending $30 or $40 for a bottle because if they take it for six weeks, they're going to feel some sort of benefit. If I put out a $40 bottle of vitamin C, you can take it until you turn orange and you're not going to feel anything."

Grueneberg feels some of the responsibility for the falloff in the overall supplements market rests with manufacturers, who "sat back and enjoyed" the boom years but failed to do the research to carry the momentum forward.

"Unfortunately in this category studies take a long time to do and validate," he said, "and meanwhile we're all sitting back and saying, 'Now what do we do?"'