The majority of the population understand natural laxatives either through having tried some themselves or knowing someone who has. Natural laxatives are defined as therapeutic agents derived from natural sources that fight constipation. The natural sources vary from herbal elements to grain husks. In general, they fit into either one of two groups: high fiber substances, and herbal laxatives. For entrepreneurs and consumers of laxatives, an understanding of the natural laxative market is helpful for business decisions as well as product purchasing.
For starters, statistics indicate that approximately 5-15% of all people suffer from constipation at one time or another. Given that the population fo the U.S. is around 300 million, that means anywhere from 15 million to 45 million people suffer from constipation. Most people don’t seek treatment, but a substantial number will spend close to $700 million on OTC laxatives. Therefore, one might estimate that the potential market is approximately half a billion dollars or more.
The first type of natural laxative is the nutritional or nutrient supplements high in fiber, such as Metamucil. These agents are derived from natural sources. Flax seed laxative is an example of this. It is a seed husk with extremely high fiber content. Processors grind up flax seeds and remake it into powdered form for addition to drinks. Another source of high fiber is the outer shell of grain crops known as bran. High fiber cereals often have bran added as an ingredient for increasing the fiber composition.
To some degree patients can eat high fiber foods such as prunes and oranges, but it’s typical for a physician to prescribe an initial dose of 25-30 grams of fiber which is difficult to satisfy with regular foods but easy with such supplements.
The second class of natural laxatives encompasses all the herbal supplements. At present it’s dominated by three specific natural products: senna, aloe and cascara. Each comes from a plant that has been used by people living near or in the plant’s geographic habitat. In more recent years, federal regulations have put a stop to medications that specifically advertise aloe and cascara as stimulant laxatives due to safety fears.
The remaining herbal agent therefore is senna, which takes the lion’s share of the natural laxatives market. Senna is available in a variety of forms, including powders, capsules and teas. Originally derived from a bushy plant found in Asia and Africa, senna’s natural laxative properties have been exploited for hundreds of years. Its various forms mean that people may take it as a pill, or drink it with tea, or mix with with their favorite beverage for consumption.
The big picture is that the market for natural laxatives remains big with potential for growth. The reason is that many people don’t respond to the first agent they try, and might switch once or twice to something else until they find a working product. In the future, diagnostics will eliminate trial-and-error but until then there will be opportunity for entrepreneurs to bring new products to market.
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