black and white photo of a zoomed in part of the gut cellular wall

What is Bioavailability and Why Does it Matter?

What exactly is bioavailability?


Bioavailability is the extent and rate to which an active ingredient, drug, or substance, from a product taken (such as a supplement or drug) is absorbed by the body and reaches your system.

And, bioavailability is affected by a number of different factors, including:
  • the physical properties of the substance (particularly the solubility)
    • physiological aspects (e.g., enzyme activity, gastric emptying rate, circadian effects, etc.)
      • the type of dosage form (formulation)
        • food intake at the time of taking
          • variability of personal bio-mechanisms (e.g., weight, metabolism, microbiota, gut health and more)
            If a supplement has high bioavailability, it increases the proportion of nutrients absorbed by your body. This in turn, increases the chances that these nutrients reach the target areas in your system and deliver beneficial effects where they’re needed the most.
             

            Why does it matter to you?

            Any given substance will only take effect if it can be absorbed by the body.

            Millions of supplements are taken each day for a range of health benefits, but much of the nutritional value within the ingredients simply can’t be absorbed in the gut due to a low bioavailability of these products. So, all that goodness passes through your body and is flushed away.

            High-quality bioactive ingredients typically struggle to dissolve easily in water, so unless your supplement has a way of overcoming this (ours do!) then you’re not going to get the full benefits of the ingredients you’re taking.

            Sometimes supplement makers try to compensate by adding oil, but this increases the bioavailability only marginally and only a fraction of the ingredients will enter your bloodstream and reach your cells, where it’s needed.

             

            What exactly is SoluSmart®?

            SoluSmart® is our unique activation technology that significantly multiples bioavailability.

            Put simply, it helps your body absorb much more of the goodness in our products than you would with a standard supplement (around 5-20 times higher gut absorption and bioavailability). So, you can get a much bigger impact from the super-powerful natural ingredients in our drinks.

            SoluSmart® works by using 100% natural plant lipids to form multilaminar vesicles – tiny taxis that can transport ingredients through the gut wall and into your system (see diagram below).

            SoluSmart® graphic from iüLabs comparing SoluSmart with Liposomes, showing how iüLabs has a higher loading capacity than other supplements


            The ingredients within a SoluSmart® concentrate are fully dissolved (100% solubility), to activate the drink you simply add water and shake. This instantly creates millions of fresh vesicles able to carry ingredients into your bloodstream and from there to your organs and cells. Watch the short animation and read more here.

             

            SoluSmart® bioavailability compared with standard supplement technology on the market:



            iüLabs supplement blood concentration levels showing how SoluSmart® increases the bioavailability of ingredients


            Learn more about SoluSmart®: https://iulabs.co/solusmart-absorption-technology/
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