5 Jan 2010 --- Sabinsa Corporation’s New Dietary Ingredient notification for SelenoForce to FDA has been accepted and filed by that agency, opening the way for the company to sell the product in the US.

SelenoForce is a selenium-enriched garlic product manufactured by a patent pending soilless culture process. Garlic bulbs are naturally enriched with a unique composition of organic selenium compounds for nutritional supplementation, using a proprietary hydroponics method. The selenium enriched bulbs are dried, powdered and standardized, to yield SelenoForce containing 1000 ppm selenium, in bioavailable organic form, in a base of natural garlic powder.

Low selenium status has been linked with the occurrence of decreased immunity to diseases and the prevalence of various forms of cancer.

Selenium occurs in foods through uptake by plants from the soil, in the form of the selenoamino acids, selenomethionine and selenocysteine, and their derivatives, thereby entering the food chain. However, as the element is unevenly distributed in the earth's crust, dietary supplementation is often needed. Organic selenium compounds are preferred for supplementation, on account of their superior bioavailability.

“This is a novel form of selenium supplementation, which is why Sabinsa went through the NDI process,” said Marketing Director Shaheen Majeed.  “This product follows our practice of developing the unique, safe and effective ingredients for which we are known.”

An ideal nutritional supplement would be a selenium-enriched edible plant part wherein the selenium metabolically accumulates in the form of bioavailable organic selenium compounds. Plants that naturally contain higher levels of the sulfur- containing amino acids such as those from the Allium and Brassica species are preferred for enrichment, based on metabolic criteria.