What is HMB of New Food Ingredients?

History of HMB
In 1995, HMB passed the GRAS evaluation of the U.S. FDA and was approved to be used in medical nutritional foods and special diets; in 1997, the EU approved that HMB could be used as a general food ingredient; in 2009, Japan also included it as a food ingredient.
In 2011, calcium β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate was officially approved as a new resource food in China (Announcement No. 1 of 2011 by the Ministry of Health), and the scope of use is stipulated as sports nutrition food and formula food for special medical purposes. The consumption amount is ≤3g/day.
Announcement No. 7 of 2017 increased the scope of use of CaHMB, in addition to sports nutrition food and formula food for special medical purposes, HMB can also be applied in beverages, milk and dairy products, cocoa products, chocolate and chocolate products, confectionery and bakery products.
HMB, which stands for beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate, is a metabolite of leucine, and therefore functions similarly to leucine.
Leucine is an amino acid important for stimulating protein synthesis and slowing protein breakdown, and it is also one of the 3 branched-chain amino acids.
However, in contrast to leucine, HMB seems to prevent myo-protein breakdown better, but its myo-protein synthesis is not as effective as leucine’s. Therefore, the main function of HMB is to prevent myosin loss.
HMB Biosynthetic Pathway
Leucine’s is primarily used for protein synthesis, and about 20% of leucine is used for the synthesis of alpha-ketoisocaproic acid (alpha-KIC), which is then involved in the pathway of HMB and cholesterol production.
Leucine is a precursor of HMB. The efficiency of HMB production from leucine in the human body is only 5%. Therefore, meeting the body’s need for HMB requires exogenous intake of large amounts of leucine. This method is impractical and may have toxic effects on the human body.
Mechanism of action of HMB
The mechanism of action of HMB has not been clearly defined, and is currently thought to be related to the following factors: 1. Inflammation inhibits the transport of amino acids to muscle tissue for protein synthesis; HMB reduces the inflammatory response, thereby exerting a pro-protein synthesizing effect. 2.
2. HMB activates rapamycin-targeting protein (mTOR) and increases the expression of insulin growth factor (IGF-1), which promotes protein synthesis by facilitating the secretion of anabolic hormones.
3. cysteoaspartase is a protease that can play a role in the cleavage of proteins. hMB can reduce protein catabolism by inhibiting the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway and decreasing the activity of cysteoaspartase.
4.Myosatellite cells can differentiate to form myofibers when they are damaged.HMB can increase satellite cell activity and thus enhance muscle regeneration.
Application of HMB in food
HMB has been applied in many products in the international market. For example, Juven, which promotes protein synthesis launched by Abbott, Myoplex Muscle Armor, a sports nutrition muscle building supplement launched by EAS in the US, and Fracora, a muscle health supplement for the middle-aged and elderly produced by Japan’s Concorde, are all based on HMB as the core ingredient.
As a new food ingredient that can be added to beverages, HMB can be formulated with a variety of proteins, such as whey protein concentrate, milk protein concentrate, whey isolate, and plant proteins, as well as with vitamins and minerals to increase the functionality of the product.
Liquid milk and powdered milk with HMB can be used to help prevent and control muscle loss in the middle-aged and elderly population, as well as to provide muscle-healthy nutritional supplements for the athletic and fitness population.
HMB also has its own unique advantages in the field of fat loss and slimming. With HMB’s new concept of “healthy fat loss, muscle building and slimming” being responded to by various brands, companies can consider adding HMB to existing formulas to inject new vitality into their products. For example, yogurt and ice cream products.
HMB can also be used in nutritional bars and candies, such as the famous nutritional bar Maximuscle, added 20 grams of protein, 3.4 grams of creatine monohydrate and 1.6 grams of HMB, which is advertised as a product that reduces proteolytic breakdown and promotes post-exercise recovery while building muscle.