Future Of Healthcare In India: The Nutraceutical Revolution

The foundations of any nutraceutical product lie in its promise of holistic nutrition and long term health benefits. It ensures that the product is free of preservatives, artificial colours, flavours and gluten which further guarantees a progressive developmental growth curve. Nutraceutical industry works on the principle of inbound philosophy - educating their audience and empowering them to make well-informed and rational health care choices. Nutraceuticals offer a healthy lifestyle to its customers by providing both natural and synthetic alternatives for drugs which channelize inner healing by detoxing free radicals.

Nutraceuticals are formulated after extensive research in various domains as - body responsiveness, absorption and reaction spectrum, vitamin intra reaction and gastronomic response, which gives them credibility over allopathic traditional medicine usually associated with the long term deteriorating bodily health conditions.

Paradigmatic Shift In Consumer Conscious

People are becoming more aware of the chemicals present in medication which leave long term side effects, and to avoid that people are shifting to nutraceutical alternatives which provide long term health benefits. Organic and natural alternative foods have secured a large share of the stage over pharmaceutical choices. Nutraceutical compositions have received considerable interest due to their potential nutritional, safety and therapeutic effects.

Basis years of research, product innovation is also rendered possible in the nutraceutical landscape in this day and age. Nutrient specific healthcare solutions are easily accessible to the masses with the help of new-age technologies; these further help in recognising the key ingredients which target a particular ailment and personalizing a product which escalates the treatment of hereditary diseases, long term illness and nutritional deficiencies. With the promise of holistic nutrition and better research for targeted ailments, the industry has witnessed a preference shift from pharmaceuticals to nutraceutical supplements.

Fear Of Traditional Medicine

Anxiety pertaining to pills/allopathy is not unknown where we are dubious about the long term derogatory effects of synthetic supplements and There is a fear of the decline of heath to an irrecoverable point - patients shift to homoeopathic/Ayurvedic natural or home-based remedies which promise holistic health. The rising popularity of these alternative supplements is attributed to their sustainability, good shelf life and weather adaptation along with taste.

These alternative medications/supplements can have a natural premise or be in the form of synthetic botanicals. Nutraceuticals offer both long term and short term benefits - improve health, delay the ageing process, prevent chronic diseases, increase life expectancy and support the bodily functions.

The famous Jewish philosopher, scholar and physician- Moses Maimonides had once quoted that “No illness which can be treated by diet should be treated by any other means.”

Role Of Technology In the Nutraceutical Industry

An asset for the healthcare sector is the integration of disruptive tech like Artificial Intelligence in most operations - majorly analysis and subscription-based models - which help in the complete diagnosis of the patient and provide customized solutions specific to their ailments.

One major use of AI in pattern recognition would be the identification of the composition used in traditional medicine and replacing them with substitute salts present in other natural sources to develop a more cost-friendly medication/supplements. These nutraceutical products are extensively researched on - to overcome the challenge of sustaining a higher number of vitamins in their composition and building them to be resistant to water loss in weather fluctuations.

Nutraceutical Industry - Industrial Revolution 4.0

With growing demands of natural supplements - Research and Development of unprecedented products with the help of material innovation and tech- organic, herbal and even innovative supplements in the form of gummies are on the rise globally with people experimenting their supplement choices. According to a 2018 Assocham Knowledge report, the Indian nutraceuticals market is expected to grow from $4 billion to $18 billion in 2025. A common scepticism of allopathy and food fads make nutraceuticals extremely popular today.

Divij Bajaj

Guest Author The author is CEO/Founder of Power Gummies (Aesthetic Nutrition Pvt LTD).