You’re not just what you eat, says Nestle

It used to be what you ate. But now food scientists say how you eat, digest and use the subsequent energy are just as important to the overa...

It used to be what you ate. But now food scientists say how you eat, digest and use the subsequent energy are just as important to the overall health and shape of a person’s body. ‘‘Sitting, slowly eating, enjoying your meal with a glass,’’ said top food scientist Raphael Badoud over lunch, nodding to a small glass of white wine by his plate. ‘‘It has an impact on how the nutrients are absorbed in the stomach. Eating on the go is different.’’

Badoud is head of competitive scientific information and analysis at the Nestle Research Centre (NRC), the biggest R&D establishment at the world’s top food group.

In the hills above Lausanne, the NRC—with its team of biologists, chemists, physicists, doctors, veterinary surgeons, mathematicians, pharmacists, sensory analysts, nutritionists and toxicologists from more than 50 countries—is slowly pushing the food sector towards a border which overlaps the beauty and health care industry.

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Inneov Fermete is a beauty product which Nestle has developed in association with L’Oreal of France and is available in France, Spain, Italy and Switzerland.

Costing around 40 Swiss francs ($31) for a month’s supply, the makers say it delays and reverses skin wrinkling caused by ageing. They say results can be seen in three to six months.

The product was developed from lycopene, found in the common tomato. It is poorly assimilated by the body and Nestle’s trick was to make it more absorbable by adding a milk powder formulation and turning it into a pill.

In addition to products designed to make you look beautiful and feel more healthy, the NRC looks at ways to improve the texture and taste of Nestle’s existing products. Coffee is big business, accounting for an estimated 15 per cent of Nestle’s 89 billion Swiss francs ($68.99 billion) in sales last year.

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The NRC is also looking at food molecules and their impact on health and other areas such as body composition, energy expenditure and vitamin absorption.

Some ingredients offer potential protection for the stomach, healthy ageing and better mental performance. Nestle has already developed yoghurt products that include compounds that help the digestive system or reduce cholesterol.

Research also includes pet food. Nestle nutritionists are working on products that contribute to a pet’s longevity, foster a more healthy skin and coat, and prevent arthritis.

The food scientists say they are still some way from the pharmaceutical industry.

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‘‘The pharmaceutical industry wants to treat disease. We want to prevent disease and promote health. We have not found a cure. We are not there…yet,’’ said Badoud.

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