With the pandemic we are suffering from 18 months now, stress and sleep concerns are key problems must of us are suffering. But sleep and stress disorders are nothing new. From Mesopotamia to Ancient Greece, from Incas to China, every civilisation was using some herbs to improve their mood and their sleep quality. But with the current situation, the market of food supplements for Sleep & Stress is growing.
By example, in France, from 2019 to 2020, the market grew more than a 5% (Synadiet 2020 report). Regarding Natural Products Insider, 14% of people living in USA are taking nutraceuticals to help to sleep better, and 13% to increase their mood.
“We’re seeing sleep and stress as the two biggest growth areas behind immunity,” stated Claire Morton Reynolds, a senior industry analyst at Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ).
“Google searches for ‘sleep supplement” grew in 2020, but in 2021 growth seems to be accelerating – January 2021 saw 37 percent year-over-year growth,” Matevž Ambrožič, marketing and PR director at PharmaLinea, tells NutritionInsight.
Following Nutraingredients USA, “Sales of stress management supplements, which includes mood support and sleep products, have increased over 35% year-on-year, according to data provided by SPINS.”
Typical valerian, Saint John’s worth, saffron, chamomile, Curcuma, Ashwagandha or lemon verbena are some of the natural options to help both Sleep & Stress from ancient time, with a worldwide covering for several thousands of years. 4000 years for Curcuma (in India), 3500 years for the saffron (Iran and China), 3000 years for valerian, are just a few numbers of the antiquity of those plants and the need of men to have something to feel and sleep better.
In this field, efficacy is a key concern and the best way to understand if a product works is by running clinical trials.
But there is a big question we need to answer: does sleep improvement act on stress reduction or is stress reduction that helps to improve quality of sleep?
We will answer soon…
Axel Salomon,
European Sales Director
Monteloeder S.L.
