Dietary supplement industry reacts to GLP-1 era

The role of the gut microbiome

The GLP-1 era has affected multiple sectors, from food and fitness to dietary supplements. San Francisco-based biotechnology company Pendulum Therapeutics said it is actively involved in the GLP-1 conversation by focusing on the gut microbiome's role in metabolic health. Its Pendulum Glucose Control product and new GLP-1 Probiotic are designed to improve gut health and enhance GLP-1 levels naturally. 

"Our flagship product, Pendulum Glucose Control, is specifically formulated to nutritionally help manage type 2 diabetes by improving gut health, which has a direct impact on GLP-1 production and regulation," said Adam Perlman, MD, MPH, FACP, chief medical officer at Pendulum. "Additionally, we are excited to introduce our new GLP-1 Probiotic product, designed to enhance GLP-1 levels through targeted probiotic strains that have been shown to support natural GLP-1 production."

Dr. Perlman added that the company is conducting clinical trials and research to further understand how itsprobiotic formulations can enhance GLP-1 levels naturally.

“By aligning our products with the latest scientific findings, we aim to provide evidence-based solutions that contribute to the ongoing discourse around GLP-1 and metabolic health,” he said.

Muscle health

Creatine Hydrocholoride (HCL) brand CON-CRĒT is addressing the challenge of weight gain as consumers transition off GLP-1 drugs by promoting lean muscle maintenance through its products. Founder Mark Faulkner​ emphasized the importance of maintaining muscle health while losing fat while on GLP-1 medications. 

"One of the challenges for people on GLP-1 drugs is weight gain when they stop taking the drugs," he said. "A key to mitigating this is to maintain lean muscle while losing fat. Creatine is well-understood to positively impact muscle health."

Faulkner added that GLP-1 drugs are changing the way many Americans lose weight, and he expects CON-CRĒT Creatine HCL to be key to helping maintain this weight loss in a healthy manner. 

In order to educate consumers and retailers, CON-CRĒT launched a PR campaign with registered dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick of the Cleveland Clinic. As part of this program, Kirkpatrick drafted a blog post for CON-CRĒT’s website, which the company shared with retailers for their education and use. It is also supporting retailer displays for people taking GLP-1 drugs.

Muscle loss and digestive distress

Clinical nutrition company Unjury said its products are formulated to optimize efficacy and minimize the side effects of GLP-1 use by tackling challenges such as muscle loss and digestive distress. It underscored the importance of specialized nutrition in supporting metabolic consequences of GLP-1 use and improving protein synthesis—highlight that dietary supplements will play a significant role in the GLP-1 world, offering personalized solutions for managing metabolic health conditions.

"Unjury has a long-standing legacy and commitment to addressing the increasingly important protein needs and solutions for patients and consumers," said John P. Troup, PhD, chief science officer at Unjury. "We are using our advanced clinical insights and formulating products that can optimize efficacy while minimizing the side effects of GLP-1RA use, including sarcopenia and digestive distress.

“While many would believe that protein alone can do this, our recent clinical data demonstrates that the profile of the protein and its specific ratio with slow-release carbohydrates results in better outcomes, minimizing or can eliminating the problem of muscle loss and improving digestive and metabolic function."

Muscle mass, appetite and metabolism​

Nutrition21 emphasized the importance of a holistic approach to weight management, including preserving muscle mass, managing appetite and regulating metabolism via chromium picolinate.

“Chromax, Nutrition21’s chromium picolinate ingredient, has been clinically shown to help support important aspects of metabolic health and weight management," said Jordan Miller, vice president of marketing at Nutrition21. "When incorporated into a diet and exercise regimen."

Chromax can help support healthy carbohydrate and glucose metabolism, maintain muscle mass, and also help manage cravings and appetite. Miller noted that chromium picolinate is an often-forgotten nutrient that holds valuable benefits for those pursuing weight loss goals, whether that includes GLP-1 use or not.

“The GLP-1 story is still in its early days, and obesity rates continue to rise,“ he said. "Given this, it is likely that medications like GLP-1s are here to stay for a while. There are vast opportunities for brands to innovate and create products that support GLP-1 users as they go on and off of these medications, helping them reach their desired health goals and maintain weight lost, while helping to preserve muscle mass and proper body composition."

Big names getting in on the trend

Nutrition retailers are also responding to the rise of GLP-1 drugs with their own set of offerings. In April, GNC established an entire section dedicated to assisting GLP-1 users in managing the common side effects and challenges associated with treatment. 

During a recent NutraCast episode​, GNC CEO Michael Costello said, "GLP-1s are a new thing in the marketplace. We [been] living with it over a few years, mostly with diabetic folks…and now with folks losing weight. The fact that there's a new need state, there's a new problem that consumers are facing in their health, we need to jump on that because we need to be the solution across the whole store, across all the different issues that folks have, to be relevant with our consumers.”

In May, The Vitamin Shoppe launched Whole Health Rx​, which offers supplements, expert guidance and prescription medications–including GLP-1 drugs. 

Nestlé Health Science launched its GLP-1 nutrition support platform​ a month later to address the lifestyle and diet modification needs of individuals on GLP-1 drugs. The company, which leverages a nutrition portfolio that includes Garden of Life, Boost, Nature's Bounty, Nuun and Vital Proteins, said its standalone website, GLP-1Nutrition.com, offers expert nutrition insights and a community platform for individuals to share their experiences and support each other on their health journey.

It also highlighted the need for increased collaboration between medical and nutrition societies to provide guidance on nutrition for GLP-1 users.

Calls for collaboration grow louder 

Commenting on the new requirements introduced by the GLP-1 era,Susan Kleiner, PhD, RD, owner, High Performance Nutrition said there is a clear need for lifestyle-diet modification education for people on GLP-1 drugs.

"They need support while on the drugs and then if and when they reduce or suspend taking them they’ve got to adjust their diets or they gain a lot of weight back," she said. "So even though patients struggle at first and it’s not necessarily a great time for education, if they adapt over time, they are ultimately ready to learn. In fact when the ‘food noise’ diminishes, they can finally begin to think about habit change."

She added that The Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics​ should have already published a position paper on counseling these patients and that medical and nutrition societies should have joint papers about the need for referral to registered dietitians and other nutrition professionals.

"I hope there are sessions at continuing medical education conferences and programs promoting best practices in this direction,” she said.

CON-CRĒT’s Faulkner echoed a similar sentiment, mentioning the need for better guidance from the medical community on nutrition and supplementation for GLP-1 users. 

"Because the whole GLP-1 craze is so new, we haven’t seen a coordinated effort by the medical community to guide patients on nutrition and supplementation," he said. "This is needed, and I think it will come. Certainly, an increase in protein consumption, along with creatine, should be at the forefront of any approach to best use GLP-1 drugs, as well as the optimization of dosing should be done better (using the lowest possible dose for efficacy). Too many people are taking them and not having their health fully improved." 

He added that the market really needs to look to dietitians to guide the healthiest use of GLP-1 drugs given the lack of nutrition training provided in medical school.