The Virality of Gut Health

With the hashtag #GutTok clocking in more than 900 million views on TikTok as the beverage girlies incorporate prebiotic sodas into their sleepy girl mocktails and other users chomp on digestive-friendly snacks in between taking their supplements, interest in gut health has never been higher.

The reason? Post-pandemic, consumers are increasingly more health-conscious, at the same time as digestive diseases are on the rise across the U.S., with the National Institutes of Health estimating that between 60 and 70 million Americans are affected. 

“You unfortunately cannot ignore gastrointestinal symptoms and they happen every day, multiple times a day,” said Sam Jactel, founder and chief executive officer of Ayble, a virtual platform that provides customized nutrition guidance for those with gut health issues. “From the patient’s perspective, that is a major, major need that is consistent, that is painful.”

This has led to a rise in digestive supplements, foods and treatments which differ from typical vitamins, as they address a serious issue for consumers, from those looking to promote a healthy microbiome to those looking to treat more severe diseases, like ulcerative colitis.

And while consumers may look to this category for a range of reasons, the gut plays a key role in overall wellness. According to several studies, at least 90 percent of serotonin (the neurotransmitter associated with happiness) is created in the gut. Therefore, a healthy gut not only impacts physical health but mental health.

It’s also proving to be a big business, with a report from Mintel showing that the United States digestive health market was expected to reach $5.7 billion in 2022 and nearly $6.5 billion by 2027. Furthermore, 45 percent of consumers have added probiotics to their daily routine, according to the firm.

As for what’s on offer, while probiotics are synonymous with the category — and remain one of the most popular products on the market — several key trends have arisen that are driving the digestive health category, including the introduction of postbiotics, the rise of functional foods, the use of artificial intelligence for a personalized nutrition approach and fun, irreverent messaging to connect with consumers. 

Ingredients-wise, postbiotics, which Harvard Health Publishing defines as what’s left after the gut digests pre- and probiotics, are causing the most buzz within the overall digestive conversation, with more than 3 million views on the hashtag on TikTok.

“The next thing that’s coming is postbiotics,” said Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, gastroenterologist, gut health content creator and chief scientific officer at nutrition brand Methodology. “Prebiotics + probiotics = postbiotics. Ultimately, it’s the postbiotics that are having the effect in your body, so the natural way to approach this is to just feed your gut… In terms of the supplements space, they’re now starting to figure out how to actually create those postbiotics. It could boost beyond what you’re doing with your diet or what you’re doing with a probiotic or prebiotic supplement.” 

Whie Dr. Bulsiewicz noted that postbiotics are newer to the category and require more testing to ensure their efficacy, consumers are increasingly interested in the ingredient, as data from Spate shows that searches for the term have grown more than 47 percent year-over-year. 

Beekeeper’s Naturals, known for its propolis-infused immunity products, has employed postbiotics through tributyrin in its newest product 3-in-1 Complete Gut Health supplement, $45. According to the brand, this postbiotic is meant to “fuel the cells that line your gut barrier to decrease intestinal permeability.” 

“Postbiotics are really important in understanding a complete picture of the microbiome. You need to address all three layers. You need a prebiotic, probiotic and postbiotic,” said Beekeeper’s Naturals founder Carly Stein.

With its 3-in-1 product, Beekeeper’s Naturals, which recently closed a $14 million funding round, is also opting for a multibenefit approach, as its messaging focuses on the gut microbiome’s impact on skin, brain and immune health. The product also employs the brand’s hero ingredient propolis, which is known for its immune health benefits. Reports from Mintel show that consumers are seeking digestive health products that also provide other benefits, most notably energy, immunity and relaxation.

Ritual, a supplement company, also launched its supplement Synbiotic+, $54, which amassed several million dollars in revenue in a few months, according to the brand. 

And while brands like Seed, a microbiome supplement company, have entered the market focused solely on gut health, experts say digestive solutions will be key for wellness brands across the board.

“A lot of companies that not necessarily were focused on gut health have made it a staple within their product portfolio,” said Mark Lacy, an investment banking director at Raymond James, pointing to Ritual as a key example. “When you think about moving forward and the next five years of trends, even the companies that aren’t initially focused on it will have some sort of core stock keeping unit.” 

But as consumers are seeking ease through multibenefit products, they are increasingly looking for the ease of functional foods and snackable supplements, as pill fatigue continues to be a top concern. Although capsules are still the largest format within the vitamin, mineral and supplement space, other formats are growing quickly.

BelliWelli, which recently raised $15.4 million, has built its brand on functional foods that don’t hurt the stomach and are safe for those diagnosed with GI conditions. Furthermore, as several studies published in the Journal of Neurogastroenterology and Motility show that women are often twice as likely to experience digestive issues and disorders, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), the brand has doubled down on reaching this consumer specifically. 

“What would be a really great on-the-go snack that a lot of women would like?” said BelliWelli cofounder and chief operating officer Tyson Woeste on the impetus of the brand. “It’s going to have these aspects of not hurting your stomach, but there’s also this other opportunity of making a fun, irreverent brand that pops, that doesn’t take itself so seriously in the aisle.”

Furthermore, the brand has doubled down on its irreverent, humorous messaging. For example, it often uses the tagline ‘Hot girls have IBS,’ which was used throughout its marketing when it launched at Sprouts last year. As this phrase has gained traction, it now has more than 26 million views on the hashtag on TikTok showing how the taboo around the subject is being broken down.

In the way of functional foods, a crop of “better-for-you” prebiotic sodas are also developing a niche within the gut health market, including Poppi, Olipop, Culture Pop and Wildwonder. 

Poppi, which is aiming to take on “big soda” while also creating a gut-friendly beverage, employs apple cider vinegar for its digestive health benefits. For functional foods, the goal is twofold: creating a product that addresses an issue and competing with traditional options on the market. For Poppi, the key driver has been taste.

“They [consumers] want something that’s easy to understand, it tastes good and gives them the health benefits. It’s that, ‘I want to have my cake and eat it too,” said Poppi cofounder and chief brand officer Allison Ellsworth.

Similar to BelliWelli, Poppi’s fun and taboo-breaking approach to the category has garnered brand success — the brand’s vibrant packaging, viral TikToks and influencer support have been key. 

“Our branding, in-store, everything that we do, we lead with taste, flavor and fun. That is because people love gut health. They want to be healthy, but at the end of the day, they’re not going to sacrifice on taste,” said Ellsworth.

For the brand, which raised $25 million last December, retail has been key. Most notably, the brand is currently available at Target, Walmart and Whole Foods among others, and is expected to reach 30,000 stores this year.

With functional foods top of mind, nutritional brands like Sakara Life and Methodology have put an emphasis on gut health-boosting ingredients in their plans too.

Supplement and lifestyle brands are also looking to varying formats to address the growing demand for functional gut solutions, as they launch new products. For example, this month TryWell is launching Apple Cider Vinegar gummies, $18, meant to support overall immunity, boost metabolism and lower cholesterol. Several brands, like Hum, Cymbiotika and Goli, also have digestive gummies featuring apple cider vinegar. Arbonne is launching BioticSticks, $45, berry-flavored melt-in-your-mouth probiotic sticks. 

While product innovation is key for many brands, technology is also driving the category in terms of personalization. A slew of brands have launched blood and saliva-based tests to determine food sensitivities, though experts are unsure of their efficacy.

Ayble, a personalized gut health app that launched in April, has employed machine learning, along with its gastrointestinal database and demographic and clinical information, to provide users with customized diet pathways, removing trigger foods. Through machine learning and artificial intelligence, Ayble can ensure its algorithm is becoming stronger over time.

“We’re taking a data science approach to it. We anonymize and we aggregate,” said Jactel. “We use this data that we gather from you as you go through our program. We use that to inform our recommendations for the next user.”

Ayble is now reimbursed by several insurers and has partnered with brands like Parsley Health to expand its reach.

With an array of products and solutions on the market, experts expect consumers to experiment within the category and take a holistic approach when creating a gut health routine.

“It’s creating this wellness ecosystem with a basis on prebiotics and the microbiome,” said Lacy, predicting continued innovation in the vitamin, mineral and supplement space, along with additional functional foods and services.

Furthermore, as this market addresses an ever-increasing medical issue and the stigma around GI issues continues to dissipate, it’s not expected to slow down, according to experts.

“There’s still a lot of stigma. There’s still a lot of taboo in the GI space and the fact that we’re doing research in this space, companies are coming out and solving the problem,” said Jactel. “That will continue…. People are going to try a lot of different things altogether.”

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