From peanut butter with added Omega 3-DHA and EPA for kids, to energy drinks for busy moms and memory-boosting supplements for baby boomers, consumers’ increased interest in Health & Wellness is resulting in new products in nearly every aisle of the grocery store.

In this three-part series we’ll take a look at the top three consumer drivers for the consumption of health & wellness products: overall health, promoting immunity and increased energy. Today we’ll kick things off with a look at the top driver, overall health.

Driver #1 Overall Health
According to Lynn Dornblaser, director CPG Trend Insight for Mintel, we are seeing a shift in Health & Wellness to overall health and well-being. We can see this reflected in a Natural Marketing Institute’s (NMI) survey, which states: 51% of Gen Y, 50% of Gen X, 57% of Boomers and 67% of Matures state they are “very motivated about maintaining/improving” their health.

Dornblaser says one way we see this shift to overall health in the marketplace is in the increase of dietary supplements. NMI reports almost half of the U.S. population considers vitamin and mineral use an integral part of living a healthy and balanced lifestyle, and 42% of supplement users say taking them is “very important” versus only 24% twenty years ago.

A study sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics found multivitamins to be the most commonly used supplement. NMI research puts the number at 71% who used a multivitamin last year.

Mintel consumer research also showed more than half of respondents who use vitamin or mineral supplements say they take them to supplement an already healthy diet, while close to a third of respondents take them to make up for poor diet.

Up Next: Driver #2 Promoting Immunity