In the News
Endurance Products Company Named 2023 Corporation of the Year by American Association of Naturopathic Physicians
MenaQ7® Vit K2 Supports Normal Blood Pressure: New Evidence
MSU researchers discover link between cholesterol and diabetic retinopathy
Endurance Products Company Named 2023 Corporation of the Year by American Association of Naturopathic Physicians
Endurance Products Company is thrilled to announce that it has been awarded the prestigious title of the 2023 Corporation of the Year by the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) at its recent annual convention. The highly-coveted award recognizes Endurance's exceptional leadership in delivering top-quality products to naturopathic doctors and consumers, as well as its long-term commitment to the AANP and the naturopathic community. Endurance's remarkable contributions to naturopathic medicine, particularly with its revolutionary products, have set the company apart and earned it this esteemed recognition.
The 2023 Corporation of the Year award is a testament to Endurance Products Company's dedication to advancing dietary supplements through innovative and effective solutions. For 45 years, the company has been at the forefront of providing water-soluble nutrients through its proprietary vegetable wax matrix technology. This cutting-edge approach has revolutionized the body's ability to maximize nutrient absorption and maintain their benefits for extended periods, greatly improving clinical outcomes.
"We’re proud to announce that Endurance Products Company has been selected as the 2023 Corporation of the Year by the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians! This prestigious award holds special significance for us as we celebrate our 45th year in existence. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the AANP and its members for this incredible honor," expressed Joe Brunner, President of Endurance Products Company.
In addition to its exceptional product offerings, Endurance has demonstrated unwavering support for the naturopathic community by actively collaborating with esteemed professionals and organizations like the AANP. The company's sustained-released supplements and extended-release niacin, featuring a vegetable wax matrix, have not only reduced side effects but also proved to be instrumental in promoting enhanced patient care.
As part of its commitment to knowledge-sharing and continuous growth, Endurance Products Company sponsored a webinar this February in collaboration with Dr. Martin Milner, a renowned naturopathic cardiology expert. Dr. Milner shared decades of invaluable experience with fellow doctors, furthering the collective understanding and expertise in the field.
Endurance Products Company remains dedicated to pushing the boundaries of innovation in the dietary supplement industry, and their receipt of the 2023 Corporation of the Year award serves as a testament to their tireless efforts. The company's mission to provide superior products that improves the lives of patients resonates deeply with the AANP's core values.
About Endurance Products Company:
Since 1978, Endurance Products has been collaborating with scientists at universities and other research institutions in the United States and around the world. The result is a portfolio of research presented at scientific conferences or published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. We continue to support the efforts of leading researchers who are eager to explore the full potential of ENDUR-ACIN® and other products featuring our proprietary wax matrix tablet delivery for optimal health.
For more information, please visit Endur.com.
MenaQ7® Vit K2 Supports Normal Blood Pressure: New Evidence
Gnosis by Lesaffre is proud to announce there is further substantiation that vitamin K2 protects cardiovascular function for post-menopausal women -- daily supplementation of vitamin K2, menaquinone-7 (MK-7; as MenaQ7â) can improve elastic properties of vessels and promote healthy blood pressure in women with increased arterial stiffness, as shown in a soon-to-be-published post-hoc analysis. Further, an abstract discussing these results and why they are critical for millions of women was presented on 27 August at the esteemed European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress by lead author and PhD student Femke de Vries.
The poster, entitled “Beneficial effects of one-year menaquinone-7 supplementation on vascular stiffness and blood pressure in post-menopausal women,” is a secondary analysis/post-hoc deep dive of Gnosis by Lesaffre’s one-year clinical study in healthy men and women consuming 180 mcg MenaQ7â daily found beneficial effects on elastic properties of the vascular system in post-menopausal women.[2]
Arterial stiffness is a measure of cardiovascular function in blood pressure, and it appears that improving K2 status, improves these two measures, elevating overall cardiovascular health in menopausal women. Estrogen and progesterone protect cardiovascular function in women, but after menopause when these hormones are dwindling rapidly, women are more prone to hypertension and vascular stiffness, as well as accelerated vascular aging, thereby increasing the risk of developing CVD.
Menaquinone-7 (MK-7) serves as a cofactor for vitamin K-dependent protein carboxylation. The vitamin K-dependent matrix Gla protein (MGP) is synthesized in the vasculature and has been shown to inhibit vascular calcification and stiffness.
In the post-hoc analysis of the double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical intervention trial, the authors sought to discern the effects of MK-7 supplementation on vascular stiffness in women who were pre-, peri-, and post-menopausal. The trial included 166 women (age 40-70 with low K2 status) who consumed 180 mcg MK-7 daily or placebo for one year. Pre-, peri-, and post-menopausal women were subdivided according to arterial stiffness.
The measurements -- regional carotid-femoral (cf-PWV) and carotid-radial (cr-PWV) pulse wave velocities, vessel wall characteristics [e.g., intima-media thickness, arterial diameter, and local carotid artery PWV (caPWV)], and arterial blood pressure -- were taken at baseline and after one year of vitamin K2 supplementation. Post-hoc analyses showed a significant reduction in circulating inactive MGP in plasma levels of MK-7-supplemented pre-, peri-,and post-menopausal women.
At baseline, vascular parameters (intima-media thickness, carotid artery diameter, and caPWV) were significantly increased in post-menopausal women compared to pre- and peri-menopausal women. MK-7 supplementation significantly attenuated vascular stiffness in post-menopausal women; those post-menopausal women with a high stiffness index showed significantly improved vascular markers (decreased blood pressure at brachialis, decreased blood pressure at carotid artery, increased distensibility coefficient, and increased compliance coefficient) after MK-7 supplementation.
The authors write, “Our results confirm that hormonal changes affect the vasculature and that post-menopausal women [exhibit] increased vascular stiffness reflected by functional vascular damage. Further, MK-7 supplementation significantly attenuates arterial stiffness in post-menopausal women, in which women with increased stiffness benefit most on blood pressure.“[1]
“This abstract strengthens the proof that K2 as MenaQ7â supports healthy cardiovascular function in aging women and can serve as an inexpensive tool for protecting heart health,” says Prof. Leon Schurgers, lead researcher on the post-hoc analysis and chair of the Gnosis Vitamin K2 Scientific Advisory Committee.
“Gnosis is thrilled that this review of our one-year study has uncovered an important revelation,” adds Sophie Legrain-Raspaud, Gnosis Research & Application Director. “We have espoused the importance of Vitamin K2 for cardiovascular health with our substantial body of evidence, but to have these findings presented at such an esteemed event as the European Society of Cardiology only punctuates the importance of this vital nutrient for the betterment of human health.”
The original one-year study confirmed that MGP is integral in the inhibition of calcification in the cardiovascular arteries[2], adding to the ground-breaking evidence from the 3-year intervention study that demonstrated that higher K2 intake may reduce arterial stiffening and that this effect becomes more marked in the third year.[3]
The abstract has been published in the European Heart Journal and is available on ESC 365, the cardiology knowledge hub. The post-hoc analysis will be published in a peer-reviewed journal later this year.
References
1 https://esc365.escardio.org/ESC-Congress/programme
_______
About Gnosis by Lesaffre
Gnosis by Lesaffre harnesses the power of microorganisms and biotransformation processes like fermentation to cultivate nutritional actives, probiotics, and nutritional and functional yeasts that benefit human health and well-being. The team draws on its focused research and application capabilities to collaborate with nutraceutical and pharmaceutical brands to develop game-changing products for their customers.
Gnosis by Lesaffre – Exploring Life to Improve Living. http://www.GnosisByLesaffre.com
About Lesaffre
A key global player in fermentation for more than a century, Lesaffre, with a 2,7 billion euro turnover, and established on all continents, counts 11,000 employees and more than 90 nationalities. On the strength of this experience and diversity, we work with customers, partners, and researchers to find ever more relevant answers to the needs of food, health, naturalness, and respect for our environment. Thus, every day, we explore and reveal the infinite potential of microorganisms.
To nourish 9 billion people, in a healthy way, in 2050 by making the most of our planet’s resources is a major and unprecedented issue. We believe that fermentation is one of the most promising answers to this challenge.
Lesaffre – Working together to better nourish and protect the planet. www.lesaffre.com
MSU researchers discover link between cholesterol and diabetic retinopathy
Advancements that could lead to earlier diagnosis and treatment for diabetic retinopathy, a common complication that affects the eyes, have been identified by a multi-department research team from Michigan State and other universities.
Their findings were recently published in Diabetologia, the official journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes. Additional contributors are from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Case Western Reserve University and Western University of Health Sciences. The study was funded by the National Eye Institute.
Researchers found that diabetes, age-related health conditions and other metabolic disorders can lead to a buildup of cholesterol in the retina. This tends to crystalize and contribute to the development of diabetic retinopathy.
Crystalized deposits are very reflective and can be seen in images of the retina. This is important because noninvasive retina evaluations can be done by most optometrists, creating an opportunity for earlier diagnosis for more people.
“Retinopathy is the leading cause of preventable blindness and one of the most feared complications of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes,” explained Julia Busik, MSU professor emeritus of physiology. “Within 20 years of developing diabetes, every individual with either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes will have some degree of retinopathy. Current treatment approaches are very invasive and are only directed at the very late stage of retinopathy.”
“We are actively pursuing what can be done to lower cholesterol in the retina,” said Tim Dorweiler, a doctoral candidate in the Molecular, Cellular and Integrated Physiology Program at MSU and first author of the paper. “The retina is a very isolated organ, just like the brain, and both have a blood barrier that separates them from the rest of the body. This is what makes the retina hard to study and extremely complex.”
George Abela, chief of the MSU Division of Cardiology, said that these cholesterol crystals are like the crystals found in atherosclerotic plaque that can form in arteries and cause heart attacks, a finding discovered in his lab at MSU. He helped the research team identify ways to scan retinas using modified tissue preparation for scanning electron microscopy. This also helps researchers analyze the composition of the crystals, which typically result when there is too much cholesterol in one place.
There is also hope that new treatments to address crystals formed by cholesterol could be less invasive than current options for diabetic retinopathy. And there are questions about other areas of the body where these crystals could be treated to prevent other diseases.
By Dalin Clark
Read on MSUToday.