Unsurprisingly, Millennial and Gen X women represent the beverage industry's most strategic consumer segments. In the US, more than 87 million female shoppers are of an age where they have a growing set of wellness priorities and immense purchasing power to address those needs. While their interests span everything from sleep to focus to stress support, one emerging area stands out: hormonal balance. Because, coinciding with this growing need state is the transition into perimenopause, a major life-stage shift that is quickly gaining traction among consumers and brands alike. Despite rising awareness, few products are aimed at meeting the specific needs of this shift, creating a timely opportunity for innovation in functional beverages.

Hormonal Harmony is the New Face of Female-Focused Products

The topic of perimenopause is gaining significant traction. Google Trend data suggests that the demand for perimenopause-related information is growing four times faster than for menopause. In fact, over the last year, it outpaced heart health and obesity as a top search topic for women's health. Social media conversations around women’s health reflect this trending growth. The advanced social listening data from Brightfield Group reports that over the last five years, across more than 70 million tracked social posts captured from Instagram, TikTok, and X, more than 5 million mentions were of women’s health. Of those, 231K were perimenopause-related, with a substantial connection to hormonal balance. Perimenopause now has a 5% share of voice on social media, surpassing conversions on obesity/weight loss [i].

What’s Influencing the surge in interest?

• Women are experiencing perimenopause earlier in life
• Older Millennials and Gen Xers are aging into perimenopause
• Increase in attention, combined with a reduction in stigma
• Women are now connecting issues such as brain fog, mood changes, and sleep problems to perimenopause

When it comes to symptoms during perimenopause, women experience a broad range of conditions, especially compared to other life stages. Disrupted sleep, brain fog, low energy, mood fluctuations, digestive issues, and changes to skin, hair, and nails. While many products attempt to address these concerns one symptom at a time, consumers are beginning to look at the root of the problem for more hormone-focused solutions. To understand how to meet that need, it’s important first to explore what’s happening in the body during perimenopause.

Perimenopause in the “Age of Xenoestrogens”

Hormone fluctuations are a natural part of aging. Yet for women approaching their 40s and beyond, the body produces a bigger shift—changing its predominant form of estrogen from estradiol (used during reproductive years) to estrone, a more stable, long-term form of estrogen. However, for many women, this transition does not feel as graceful as it should. This is largely related to a condition called estrogen dominance, where excess levels of estradiol create an imbalance that can noticeably impact numerous health conditions [ii].

Complicating things further is exposure to added estrogen intake through diet, medications, and the environment. However, arguably the most significant contributor to estrogen imbalance is the effect of xenoestrogens. These synthetic chemicals mimic estrogen in the body (specifically estradiol) [iii-v]. Year over year, we are recognizing how many substances lead to the absorption of xenoestrogens, such as pesticides, preservatives, microplastics, and other PFUAs. In order to maintain a healthy hormone balance, these various forms of estrogen need to be effectively metabolized and removed from the body to avoid accumulation.

A Note On Men’s Health

Often overlooked in hormone conversations are men who also produce a small amount of estrogen through the conversion of testosterone. But when estrogen levels in men get too high, especially with the intake of xenoestrogens, it can disrupt hormonal balance and even suppress natural testosterone production [vi].

CelluThrive™: A Science-Backed Ingredient for Hormone Balance

While many products aim to address these symptoms individually, CelluThrive™ offers a more holistic approach to help address hormonal imbalance at the root of the problem. CelluThrive™ works by enhancing the body's natural detox pathways responsible for metabolizing and deactivating excess estrogens and xenoestrogens [vii]. Backed by over two decades of research, CelluThrive™ has been clinically shown to drop estradiol levels by 56% compared to the placebo [viii]. Additional research demonstrates CelluThrive’s ability to combat specific gut bacteria, called β-glucuronidase, that like to disrupt the detoxification process and recirculate estrogen and other chemicals back into the body. The added effect resulted in a 23% reduction in estradiol concentration in the bloodstream [ix], which means CelluThrive™ helped the body effectively remove metabolized estrogens, prohibiting them from getting recirculated/reactivated back into the body. Furthermore, CelluThrive™ aids in the removal of toxic compounds, including microplastics, PFUAs, and food additives, which are key sources of xenoestrogen intake [x-xi]. Therefore, CelluThrive™ is not only a powerful hormone support ingredient, but also provides additional liver support that women are seeking.

CelluThrive™ is a GRAS-affirmed ingredient that is easy to work with in various delivery systems. The recommended effective serving size for CelluThrive™ is 500mg-1 gram for daily hormone support.

• CelluThrive™ CDG (Calcium D-Glucarate): The slow-release form ideal for capsules and tablets.
• CelluThrive™ PHG (Potassium Hydrogen Glucarate): The 100% water-soluble form perfect for powdered beverages, shots, and RTDs.

For over 20 years, Applied Food Sciences (AFS) has brought inspiration and innovation to functional ingredients. CelluThrive™ is a perfect example of a science-backed health ingredient supported by years of clinical studies and multiple patents. Beverage manufacturers looking to make an innovative wellness product can inquire and request samples of CelluThrive on the AFS website.

The Takeaway: Formulate for Balance

Women are rewriting the wellness narrative, and brands have an opportunity to lead the way. By addressing hormone health at the root, not just the symptoms, products formulated with CelluThrive™ are considered a trusted hormonal support system for life’s biggest transitions.

Ready to create what women are really asking for?

Visit appliedfoods.com/ingredients/celluthrive to request a sample or talk to our formulation team.