Joint Health
According to the Arthritis Foundation, 46 million Americans have some kind of arthritis, which can limit every day activities such as walking, dressing and bathing. In addition, many people without arthritis experience pain and joint stiffness associated with normal wear and tear and stress on the joints.
Concern about joint health among Americans is high. Baby boomers who are entering their 50s and 60s and beginning to develop osteoporosis and arthritis are the most obvious group concerned about this problem, but statistics show that younger consumers also are taking bone and joint health quite seriously. Among the general population, 71% are concerned about preventing arthritis or joint disease and 41% say they or a household member is currently manage joint pain or stiffness. After age 35, arthritis and joint disease is one of the top six conditions of high concern. Also, arthritis and joint disease is the number one condition that consumers say they would treat (68%) or prevent (69%) with supplements.
Joint health represents the number one condition specific supplement category being used by American adults. According to the Nutrition Business Journal, consumer sales of joint health specific supplements were $1.2 billion in 2006, up 2.5% from the previous year. The market for dietary joint supplements is almost certain to grow substantially over the next several years. Joint-care ingredients that are backed by research should be extremely successful as consumers are increasingly concerned about efficacy and safety of the ingredients in their dietary supplements. Glucosamine and chondroitin have become commodity ingredients and many manufacturers and retailers are looking for ways to offer consumers a new generation of joint-health products that are proven safe and effective and based on solid science.
InterHealth’s patented ingredient, UC-II, is an undenatured or native form of type II collagen found in the cartilage of joints. Type II collagen is the principal structural protein in cartilage that is responsible for its tensile strength and toughness. UC-II works with the immune system to control inflammation and support joint health. The recommended small 40 mg daily dosage of UC-II allows manufacturers to formulate effective stand-alone products with a small tablet size for greater consumer compliance. The small dosage also allows manufacturers to easily add value to multi-ingredient formulations of existing or new joint health products.