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New Herbalife Nutrition Studies Presented at ASN 2018 Aim at Helping Consumers Make Healthier Food Choices

HLF | June 13, 2018

New Herbalife Nutrition Studies Presented at ASN 2018 Aim at Helping Consumers Make Healthier Food Choices

Herbalife Nutrition (NYSE: HLF), a premier global nutrition company whose purpose is to make the world healthier and happier, today announced results from two studies presented during Poster Sessions at the American Society for Nutrition (ASN) Annual Meeting in Boston, from June 9-12.

“We are dedicated to advancing our scientific leadership within the nutrition industry by bringing forth some of the best minds along with technology and are thrilled to support ASN,” said Dave Pezzullo, chief operating officer, Herbalife Nutrition.

Nutrition Rich Food Index

The first study, titled “The Impact of FDA’s Updated Nutrient Daily Values on Nutrition Rich Food (NRF) Index,” was presented by Simon Sum, DCN, RDN, ACSM-CPT, FAND, manager, Product Science and R&D at Herbalife Nutrition.

The study’s objective was to examine the impact of changes in daily values (DVs) from the new labeling regulations, issued by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2016, on the Nutrition Rich Food Index of the nine major USDA food groups (milk and milk products; meat, poultry, fish and mixtures; eggs; legumes, nuts and seeds; grain products; fruits; vegetables; fat, oils and salad dressings; and sugar, sweets and beverages). The term “nutrient density” was introduced as a concept for identifying foods that ideally contain a spectrum of key essential nutrients and limit the so called “negative” nutrients. The Nutrition Rich Food Index is a validated and formal metric tool in measuring the nutrient density of individual foods, as well as meals.

“Our research determined that the changes to the daily values were found to have a significant impact on the NRF index scores for many of the frequently consumed food items in major food groups other than vegetables. This study is a further validation of the importance of nutrient density in maximizing nutrition, while limiting excessive calories,” said Sum. “While the impact on the NRF index of each food item may not affect the Index of the food group as a whole, the Index and other nutrient density scores should be updated constantly to reflect current regulations and the nutrients of current public health concerns.”

Within the study, calculated Nutrition Rich Food Index scores were found to be statistically lower with the new daily values than the old daily values among the most frequently consumed food items in six groups, including milk and milk products; meat, fish, poultry and mixtures; legumes, nuts and seeds; grain products; fruits; and sugar, sweets and beverages. No significant changes were found for the food items in the vegetable group.

Meanwhile, using new daily values resulted in a significant increase in calculated Nutrition Rich Food Index scores relative to those using old daily values in the food items in the groups of eggs and fat, oils and salad dressings.

Probiotics and Survival Post-Digestion

The second Herbalife Nutrition study presented at ASN, titled “Comparative Survivability of Bacillus coagulans (GanedenBC ³⁰ ) in Different Formulations versus Probiotic Species in Commercial Yogurts under Simulated in vivo Digestive Conditions,” was presented by Troy Smillie, Ph.D., senior scientist, R&D and product science at Herbalife Nutrition. GanedenBC ³⁰ is found in Herbalife Nutrition’s Simply Probiotic.

Although various probiotics have been added to commercial yogurts for many years, it has been difficult to determine an accurate level of survival post-digestion. The objective of this study was to evaluate the rate of survivability of spore-forming Bacillus coagulans GBI-30, 6086 (GanedenBC ³⁰ ), as compared to probiotic species in select yogurt products through simulated in vitro gastric and intestinal conditions.

The study determined that in the simulated gastric conditions, GanedenBC ³⁰ , powdered form, had a statistically higher survival rate as compared to 22 out of 25 yogurt species. When GanedenBC ³⁰ was prepared in a liquid food form, it had a statistically higher survival rate as compared to 24 out of 25 yogurt species under simulated gastric conditions. Under simulated intestinal conditions, GanedenBC ³⁰ displayed a higher percentage of significant survival rates with either formulation, 48% and 12%, respectively, as compared to commercial yogurt species.

“Our results support that spore-forming GanedenBC ³⁰ strain, in two different formulations, had a higher level of survivability in a simulated gastric environment than most non spore-forming probiotic species found in traditional yogurt cultures,” said Smillie. “The survival rate of GanedenBC ³⁰ was statistically significantly higher when it was prepared in a liquid food form as compared to the powdered form under simulated gastric conditions.”

About Herbalife Nutrition

Herbalife Nutrition is a global nutrition company whose purpose is to make the world healthier and happier. The Company has been on a mission for nutrition – changing people's lives with great nutrition products & programs – since 1980. Together with our Herbalife Nutrition independent distributors, we are committed to providing solutions to the worldwide problems of poor nutrition and obesity, an aging population and skyrocketing public healthcare costs, while supporting the rise in entrepreneurs of all ages. Herbalife Nutrition offers high-quality, science-backed products, most of which are produced in Company-operated facilities; one-on-one coaching with an Herbalife Nutrition independent distributor; and a supportive community approach that inspires customers to embrace a healthier, more active lifestyle. Herbalife Nutrition's targeted nutrition, weight-management, energy and fitness, and personal care products are available exclusively to and through dedicated Herbalife Nutrition distributors in more than 90 countries.

As a global supplier of herbal supplements, Herbalife Nutrition uses more than 150 botanical ingredients, including soybeans, tea and aloe. The company has a robust, science-based product development process guided by a team of more than 300 scientists, 36 of them Ph.Ds., to assure the quality of the products. The Company has invested more than $300 million during the past six years in its manufacturing facilities and now makes approximately 65 percent of all its nutrition products in-house.

Through its corporate social responsibility efforts, Herbalife Nutrition supports the Herbalife Family Foundation (HFF) and its Casa Herbalife Nutrition programs to help bring good nutrition to children in need. Herbalife Nutrition is also proud to sponsor more than 190 world-class athletes, teams and events around the globe, including Cristiano Ronaldo, the LA Galaxy and numerous Olympic teams.

Herbalife Nutrition has over 8,300 employees worldwide, and its shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HLF) with net sales of approximately $4.4 billion in 2017. To learn more, visit Herbalife.com or IAmHerbalife.com.

Herbalife Nutrition also encourages investors to visit its investor relations website at ir.Herbalife.com as financial and other information is updated and new information is posted.