Nutritional eye composition for application in the field of food and beverages and method of preparation

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of functional food, in particular to a nutritional eye composition applied to the field of food and beverage and a preparation method thereof, which is composed of the following components in parts by weight: xanthophyll ester 0.1-5 parts, zeaxanthin 0.02-1 part, vitamin A 0.0005-0.01 part, vitamin B2 0.001-0.05 part, vitamin B12 0.00001-0.001 part, zinc gluconate preparation 0.5-10 parts, selenium preparation 0.0005-0.01 part, anthocyanin extract 1-20 parts, astaxanthin extract 0.05-5 parts, Omega-3 fatty acid 0.5-15 parts, and taurine 1-50 parts. Through the scientific combination of the three groups of components of core macular protection, basic whole structure nutrition, and deep microcirculation synergism, the nutritional eye composition covers the whole-dimensional eye health needs such as macular blue light protection, ocular surface mucosa maintenance, corneal health protection, optic nerve nourishment, fundus microcirculation improvement, and lens antioxidant protection, and the components synergize with each other rather than simply add up the effects.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of functional food technology, specifically to a nutritional eye composition and its preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry. Background Technology

[0002] With the widespread use of electronic screens, eye strain, dry eyes, blurred vision, and photophobia caused by prolonged close-range use of the eyes have become common health problems across all age groups. At the same time, prolonged screen time is often accompanied by central nervous system fatigue such as mental exhaustion and difficulty concentrating. This dual fatigue of the eyes and mind severely impacts the quality of daily work, study, and life.

[0003] Currently, most eye care products on the market are in the form of dietary supplements such as tablets and capsules, requiring specific timed consumption, resulting in poor daily adherence and difficulty in achieving routine and convenient supplementation. Existing food and beverage products with added eye care ingredients generally suffer from four core defects: First, their formulas are often simplistic, focusing only on basic eye care ingredients like lutein, failing to cover the full spectrum of eye care needs, including macular protection, ocular surface maintenance, optic nerve nourishment, and improvement of fundus microcirculation, resulting in limited and unsystematic eye care effects; second, they do not address the synergistic improvement of eye fatigue and mental fatigue. In scenarios involving prolonged eye use, dual fatigue occurs simultaneously, and existing products can only relieve mild eye discomfort, failing to improve mental fatigue and thus failing to meet users' core needs; third, the choice of stimulating ingredients is unreasonable, often using high doses of synthetic caffeine, which, while fast-acting,... However, it is prone to causing side effects such as palpitations, insomnia, and fatigue. Moreover, there is a lack of synergistic effect between the ingredients, the bioavailability of the eye-protecting ingredients is low, the storage stability is poor, and it is easy to cause problems such as oxidative degradation, off-taste, and flavor incompatibility when added to various foods and beverages. Fourth, the existing formulas have not achieved a scientific combination of eye-protecting ingredients and refreshing and anti-fatigue ingredients, and cannot achieve all-dimensional eye health protection while gently refreshing the mind. It is difficult to adapt to the daily high-frequency food and beverage scenarios and cannot achieve daily supplementation of eye-protecting effects. Therefore, we propose a nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage field to solve the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide a nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry, in order to solve the problem that the existing formulas mentioned in the background art do not achieve a scientific combination of eye-protecting ingredients and refreshing ingredients, cannot achieve all-dimensional eye health protection while gently refreshing, are difficult to adapt to the daily high-frequency consumption of food and beverages, and cannot achieve the problem of daily supplementation of eye-protecting effects.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: a nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry, comprising, by weight, the following components: 0.1-5 parts lutein ester, 0.02-1 part zeaxanthin; 0.0005-0.01 parts vitamin A, 0.001-0.05 parts vitamin B2, 0.00001-0.001 parts vitamin B12; 0.5-10 parts zinc gluconate preparation, 0.0005-0.01 parts selenium preparation; 1-20 parts anthocyanin extract, 0.05-5 parts astaxanthin extract, 0.5-15 parts Omega-3 fatty acids; and 1-50 parts taurine.

[0006] Preferably, the mass ratio of lutein ester to zeaxanthin is (3-10):1.

[0007] Preferably, the mass ratio of taurine to astaxanthin extract is (1-10):1.

[0008] Preferably, the zinc gluconate preparation is selected from at least one of zinc gluconate gluconate and zinc citrate gluconate, and the selenium preparation is selected from at least one of yeast selenium and selenomethionine.

[0009] Preferably, the anthocyanin extract is selected from at least one of blueberry, European blueberry, and black goji berry anthocyanin extracts, the astaxanthin extract is Haematococcus pluvialis extract, and the Omega-3 fatty acid is selected from at least one of DHA and EPA.

[0010] Preferably, by weight, it is composed of the following components: 1 part lutein ester, 0.2 parts zeaxanthin, 0.002 parts vitamin A, 0.01 parts vitamin B2, 0.0002 parts vitamin B12, 2 parts zinc gluconate gluconate, 0.002 parts yeast selenium, 5 parts blueberry anthocyanin extract, 0.2 parts Haematococcus pluvialis astaxanthin extract, 2 parts DHA, and 10 parts taurine.

[0011] Preferably, the composition is a microencapsulated powder, wherein lutein ester, zeaxanthin, astaxanthin, and Omega-3 fatty acids are microencapsulated using food-grade wall material, which is selected from at least one of modified starch, gum arabic, and maltodextrin.

[0012] Preferably, the composition is added to the food or beverage at a mass fraction of 0.05%–1%, and the beverage includes at least one of energy drinks, coffee, tea, dairy products, and electrolyte drinks, and the food includes at least one of soy products, baked goods, and dairy products.

[0013] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are: This invention utilizes a scientifically formulated combination of three components: core macular protection, basic structural nutrition, and deep microcirculation enhancement. It covers all dimensions of eye health needs, including macular blue light protection, ocular surface and mucous membrane maintenance, corneal health protection, optic nerve nourishment, fundus microcirculation improvement, and lens antioxidant protection. The components work synergistically rather than simply adding up their effects, comprehensively improving various symptoms of eye fatigue such as blurred vision, dry eyes, eye strain, and photophobia, achieving end-to-end eye care.

[0014] This invention utilizes taurine to achieve comprehensive eye protection while providing a long-lasting and gentle refreshing and anti-fatigue effect, addressing the core pain point of overlapping eye fatigue and mental fatigue in scenarios involving prolonged use of the eyes. Simultaneously, it can alleviate central nervous system fatigue and eye fatigue, forming a synergistic effect with eye-protecting components and significantly enhancing the overall anti-fatigue effect.

[0015] This invention promotes the absorption and utilization of fat-soluble eye-protecting ingredients such as lutein esters, zeaxanthin, and astaxanthin by adding zinc gluconate, significantly improving the bioavailability of active ingredients. At the same time, the synergistic antioxidant system constructed by anthocyanins, astaxanthin, selenium, and natural polyphenols can effectively protect easily oxidized components such as anthocyanins, astaxanthin, unsaturated fatty acids, and vitamins in the composition, greatly improving the storage stability of the composition in various food and beverages and preventing the degradation and inactivation of active ingredients.

[0016] The composition of this invention is scientifically formulated and has no obvious astringent, fishy or other unpleasant odors. It can be widely added to various foods and beverages, including but not limited to energy drinks, carbonated drinks, coffee drinks, tea drinks, dairy products, electrolyte drinks, soy products, bread, baked goods, dairy products, etc. The addition method is simple and does not affect the original flavor of the product. It can realize the normalized and convenient supplementation of eye protection and anti-fatigue effects without the need to take special dietary supplements, which greatly improves user compliance.

[0017] All components of this invention are made from food-grade raw materials, comply with national food safety standards, are scientifically formulated, contain no high doses of irritating ingredients, have no side effects with long-term intake, are suitable for daily high-frequency food and beverage intake scenarios, and can be continuously supplemented for long-term maintenance of eye health. Detailed Implementation The technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0018] Example 1 The functional composition for eye protection and fatigue relief in this embodiment comprises, by weight, the following components: 1 part lutein ester, 0.2 parts zeaxanthin, 0.002 parts vitamin A, 0.01 parts vitamin B2, 0.0002 parts vitamin B12, 2 parts zinc gluconate gluconate, 0.002 parts yeast selenium, 5 parts blueberry anthocyanin extract, 0.2 parts Haematococcus pluvialis astaxanthin extract, 2 parts DHA (Omega-3 fatty acid), and 10 parts taurine.

[0019] Example 2 The functional composition for eye protection and fatigue relief in this embodiment comprises, by weight, the following components: 3 parts lutein ester, 0.6 parts zeaxanthin, 0.005 parts vitamin A, 0.03 parts vitamin B2, 0.0005 parts vitamin B12, 5 parts zinc citrate gluconate, 0.005 parts selenomethionine, 10 parts bilberry anthocyanin extract, 1 part Haematococcus pluvialis astaxanthin extract, 8 parts EPA+DHA (Omega-3 fatty acids), and 30 parts taurine.

[0020] Example 3 The functional composition for eye protection and fatigue relief in this embodiment comprises, by weight, the following components: 0.5 parts lutein ester, 0.1 parts zeaxanthin, 0.001 parts vitamin A, 0.005 parts vitamin B2, 0.0001 parts vitamin B12, 1 part zinc gluconate gluconate, 0.001 parts yeast selenium, 2 parts black goji berry anthocyanin extract, 0.1 parts Haematococcus pluvialis astaxanthin extract, 1 part DHA (Omega-3 fatty acid), and 5 parts taurine.

[0021] Application Example 1: Application of the Composition in Energy Drinks 3g of the composition from Example 1 was added to every 1000mL of energy drink, with the remainder being conventional beverage components (water, white sugar, citric acid, flavoring, etc.), and the finished product was prepared using conventional beverage preparation processes. The resulting energy drink has both eye-protecting and anti-fatigue effects, a harmonious taste without any unpleasant odor, good stability of active ingredients, and no significant degradation after 6 months of storage at room temperature.

[0022] Application Example 2: Application of the Composition in Baking Bread Add 5g of the composition from Example 2 to every 1000g of bread flour, and prepare the bread using conventional bread-making processes. The resulting bread has eye-protecting and fatigue-relieving effects without affecting its taste or texture, and the retention rate of active ingredients during baking is over 85%.

[0023] Application Example 3: Application of the Composition in Yogurt Add 2g of the composition from Example 3 to every 1000g of yogurt, and prepare according to conventional yogurt fermentation process. The resulting yogurt has both eye-protecting and anti-fatigue effects, does not affect the yogurt fermentation process or taste, and shows no significant degradation of active ingredients after 30 days of refrigerated storage.

[0024] Experiment Example 1: Verification Experiment on the Relief Effect of Visual Fatigue Forty subjects with visual fatigue who used computers for ≥8 hours daily were randomly divided into four groups of 10 each. Each group consumed one bottle (500mL) of a beverage prepared with the composition of Example 1, a beverage prepared with the composition of Comparative Example 1, a beverage prepared with the composition of Comparative Example 2 (Example 1 without lutein esters and zeaxanthin), and a commercially available energy drink from Comparative Example 3. The visual fatigue symptom rating scale was used to assess the symptoms. The results are as follows: The total visual fatigue score of the Example 1 group decreased by 76.8%, and symptoms such as dry eyes, eye strain, blurred vision, and photophobia were significantly reduced. All symptoms were significantly improved, and the subjects reported a significant improvement in mental state and concentration, with no discomfort such as fatigue or insomnia. In Comparative Group 1, the total score decreased by 41.2%, which only relieved some eye discomfort and had no significant refreshing effect. The subjects reported no improvement in mental fatigue. In Comparative Group 2, the total score decreased by 20.7%, which only slightly relieved mental fatigue and had no significant improvement in eye discomfort. In Comparative Group 3, the total score decreased by 17.9%, which only provided short-term refreshing and had no improvement in eye discomfort. Moreover, half of the subjects reported subsequent fatigue and insomnia after drinking the product.

[0025] Experiment Example 2: Verification Experiment of Invigorating Effect and Safety Thirty healthy subjects were randomly divided into three groups. The subjects drank the beverage described in Example 1, the commercially available high-caffeine energy drink described in Comparative Example 3, and drinking water from the control group. Their mental state, heart rate, and sleep patterns were monitored for eight consecutive hours after consumption. The results are as follows: In Example 1, subjects experienced improved mental state within 30 minutes of drinking the beverage, with an energizing effect lasting 6-8 hours without sudden weakness, no significant fluctuations in heart rate, and no significant impact on nighttime sleep. In Comparative Example 3, the effect began within 15 minutes, but the energizing effect only lasted 2-3 hours, followed by significant weakness and difficulty concentrating. Three subjects experienced increased heart rate, and half reported difficulty falling asleep at night. In the control group, subjects showed no significant energizing effect and no significant changes in mental state.

[0026] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the details of the exemplary embodiments described above, and that the invention can be implemented in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of the invention. Therefore, the embodiments should be considered in all respects as exemplary and non-limiting, and the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description. Thus, it is intended that all variations falling within the meaning and scope of equivalents of the claims be included within the present invention.

Claims

1. A nutritional eye-care composition and its preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry, characterized in that: By weight, it consists of the following components: 0.1-5 parts lutein ester, 0.02-1 part zeaxanthin; 0.0005-0.01 parts vitamin A, 0.001-0.05 parts vitamin B2, 0.00001-0.001 parts vitamin B12; 0.5-10 parts zinc gluconate preparation, 0.0005-0.01 parts selenium preparation; 1-20 parts anthocyanin extract, 0.05-5 parts astaxanthin extract, 0.5-15 parts Omega-3 fatty acids; and 1-50 parts taurine.

2. The nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry according to claim 1, characterized in that: The mass ratio of lutein ester to zeaxanthin is 3-10:

1.

3. The nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry according to claim 1, characterized in that: The mass ratio of taurine to astaxanthin extract is 1-10:

1.

4. The nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry according to claim 1, characterized in that: The zinc gluconate preparation is selected from at least one of zinc gluconate gluconate and zinc citrate gluconate, and the selenium preparation is selected from at least one of yeast selenium and selenomethionine.

5. The nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry according to claim 1, characterized in that: The anthocyanin extract is selected from at least one of blueberry, European blueberry, and black goji berry anthocyanin extracts; the astaxanthin extract is Haematococcus pluvialis extract; and the Omega-3 fatty acid is selected from at least one of DHA and EPA.

6. The nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry according to claim 1, characterized in that: By weight, it consists of the following components: 1 part lutein ester, 0.2 parts zeaxanthin, 0.002 parts vitamin A, 0.01 parts vitamin B2, 0.0002 parts vitamin B12, 2 parts zinc gluconate gluconate, 0.002 parts yeast selenium, 5 parts blueberry anthocyanin extract, 0.2 parts Haematococcus pluvialis astaxanthin extract, 2 parts DHA, and 10 parts taurine.

7. The nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry according to claim 1, characterized in that: The composition is a microencapsulated powder, wherein lutein ester, zeaxanthin, astaxanthin, and Omega-3 fatty acids are microencapsulated using food-grade wall materials, which are selected from at least one of modified starch, gum arabic, and maltodextrin.

8. The nutritional eye composition and preparation method for use in the food and beverage industry according to claim 1, characterized in that: The composition is added to food or beverage at a mass fraction of 0.05%–1%, wherein the beverage includes at least one of energy drinks, cola, coffee, tea, dairy products, and electrolyte drinks, and the food includes at least one of soy products, baked goods, and dairy products.