OptiBiotix’s GoFigure prebiotic weight-loss shakes, bars launch in Saudi Arabia

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OptiBiotix Health Plc (York, UK), a supplier of microbiome-health ingredients, has launched its GoFigure consumer line of nutritional shakes and bars in Saudi Arabia. According to the company, making these products accessible in Saudi Arabia aligns with the country’s own goal of addressing increasing obesity rates in its population.

The GoFigure products feature OptiBiotix’s trademark weight-management ingredient SlimBiome. SlimBiome is a blend of prebiotic dietary fibers and a trace mineral that’s said to help stimulate feelings of satiety and reduce food cravings between meals, all while promoting gut microbiome diversity. The ingredient is approved for use in Saudi Arabia by the Saudi Food and Drug Authority.

OptiBiotix is now working with Nahdi Medical Co. to distribute the products in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Nahdi operates in-person and online pharmacies throughout the country.

An OptiBiotix press release states that “In 2019, it was revealed that overweight and obesity were costing the KSA around $3.8 billion in direct costs, totaling approximately 4.3% of health expenditure in the country. These costs are largely due to an ‘alarming’ obesity rate that has ‘nearly doubled over the past 50 years,’ according to the latest research from the Brookings Institution. As a result, the KSA launched ‘Vision 2030’—a series of government-backed programs that included an aim to reduce obesity by 3% in the country by 2030—as part of its health sector–transformation plans.”

In the press release, René Kamminga, CEO of OptiBiotix Ltd., an OptiBiotix Health Plc subsidiary, commented: “With worldwide obesity levels rising year-on-year, OptiBiotix is working with key pharmacies like Nahdi Medical to bring scientifically supported and sustainable weight management options to those who struggle to lose excess weight.” The company says SlimBiome has been clinically shown to help people reduce their body weight by an average of 1.9 kg in four weeks.