From Unifarco a patent for supplements

The development process of the new formulations covered by the 3-Syn-Boost patent began with the study by Unifarco's R&D department of alternative ingredients and their mixtures, in specific weight ratios, that could be used in place of classical excipient mixtures within food supplements.

Through a rheological analysis (the study of the behaviour of a material when it flows and deforms), carried out in collaboration with Unired and the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Padua, a predictive methodological approach was identified for the development of new products and/or the restyling of those already made with alternative excipients, acting in the prototyping phase of tablets and capsules and verifying the physical-chemical stability of the new formulas.

After examining the flow characteristics of various ingredients that could be used as alternative excipients and conducting a stability study, Unifarco's R&D department selected 3 substances with beneficial actions from whose combination the 3-Syn-Boost patent was born plant-derived polysaccharides with prebiotic properties; prebiotics known for their ability to support intestinal flora, used as diluents and binders; plant-derived lipids, useful for the smoothness of powders and for optimising the physical performance of tablets thanks to their lubricating action.

'The decision to work on inert excipients came about for several reasons, the main one being to try to make the supplements as functional as possible,' comments Elena Casanova, food supplements R&D manager at Unifarco. 'For technological reasons, a good percentage of the ingredients in the formula have an ancillary function. These are excipients, generally inert ingredients, which have precisely the function of ensuring that the tablets have certain technological characteristics that enable their workability and also their performance once taken. Our challenge has been to maintain these characteristics, trying to minimise the inert component and thus increase the contribution of functional ingredients, which can provide an additional health benefit'.