Plant Extracts for Functional Beverages

2024.03.22

Extracts from plants play a pivotal role in the realm of functional beverages. As consumers demand more from their drinks, the addition of healthy and nutritious ingredient. It has become an inevitable trend for the development of energy drinks to inject healthy functions into drinks, and be more nutritious and diversified. Which plant extracts are the most popular components of energy drinks?

Maca extract

Maca contains alkaloids, glucosinolates, vitamins, proteins, amino acids, polysaccharides, minerals and a variety of natural plant active components. The various alkaloids of Maca can regulate the functions of adrenal gland, pancreas and ovary and balance the hormone level in the body. Abundant taurine and protein can regulate and repair physiological functions, improve qi and blood and relieve menopausal symptoms; Iron, protein, amino acids and mineral zinc can help strengthen the immune system, improve the body's resistance to disease, fatigue, and improve anemia symptoms.

Guarana extract

Guarana, also known as Brazilian cocoa, is a seed containing 2.5% to 7.0% guarana, a central nervous system stimulant, increases heart rate and contractile force, inhibits platelet aggregation, promotes gastric acid secretion, causes polyuria, relaxes external blood vessels and bronchial smooth muscle, promotes catecholamines release, and indirectly inhibits histamine release. Unlike traditional caffeine supplements, guarana contains natural caffeine, which stimulates the nerves gradually and slowly, lasts longer, and is mild and harmless. Long-term consumption can refresh the mind, nourish the Yin and invigorate the Yang, control appetite, relieve abdominal pain, restore physical strength, replenish energy, and strengthen the body.

Kola nut extract

The kola nut is native to tropical Africa. The indigenous people have long chewed and eaten kola nuts as stimulants and fatigue restoratives. The main ingredients are cacao alkaloids, essential oils, glycosides and colocine. In addition, kola nuts can speed up the body's metabolism and burn fat.

Acai berry extract

Acai berries are America's favorite diet food and are native to Brazil. Basicberry is rich in various vitamins and antioxidants, which have very obvious effects on the human body, mainly reflected in antioxidant, anti-free radical, enhance skin immunity, anti-aging, maintain oily skin oil and water balance, reduce cholesterol and other aspects.

Acai is not only A diet and anti-aging food, it is rich in dietary fiber and high value of fat, but also rich in A variety of essential nutrients: potassium, calcium, iron, vitamin E and vitamin A.

Cranberry extract

Cranberries are increasingly recognized and loved for their visual benefits and for their ability to prevent hardening of the blood vessels. Often eat huckleberry, can reduce free radical damage to the eye lens and retina, prevent retinopathy; It can also enhance the flexibility of capillaries, promote the microcirculation in the eye, and thus improve vision. Additional bilberry can prevent cancer to change, also have ameliorative effect to chronic second liver.

Lycium berry extract

Chinese wolfberry is already a commonly used health food in China, but it is a very popular emerging ingredient in western countries. Lycium barbarum has been used as a medicinal material to nourish liver and kidney. At the same time, it has immune regulation effect, promoting effect on hematopoietic function, anti-aging, anti-mutation, anti-tumor, regulating blood fat, protecting liver and anti-fatty liver, regulating blood sugar and blood pressure.

It can be predicted that "functional ingredients derived from nature" will lead the future development direction of energy drinks. For example, ginseng extract, green tea extract, honeysuckle extract, chrysanthemum extract, walnut extract, sesame seed extract, sea-buckthorn extract, bitter gourd extract, Maca extract and other natural extracts familiar to domestic consumers are used to develop energy drinks with Chinese characteristics. Through blueberry powder, cherry powder, asay fruit powder, pineapple powder, mango powder, coconut powder, acerola powder, mulberry powder and other popular foreign markets, the development of natural energy drinks with exotic flavor

With the further expansion of the energy drink market, more natural plant extracts will be used as ingredients in energy drinks, bringing new vitality to the plant extract industry.