Abbott Launches PediaSure Plus 10+ in Philippines to Support Adolescent Growth

What you need to Know

• Adolescents require up to two times or more key nutrients for growth compared to young children
• Many Filipino adolescents fall short of meeting dietary requirements, leading to prevalent stunting within that age range
• PediaSure Plus 10+ is specifically formulated for adolescents aged 10-15 years, providing complete and balanced nutrition to support weight and height during the last major growth spurt.

Abbott today announced the launch of PediaSure Plus 10+, the company’s first product developed specifically for children aged 10-15 years. This marks another milestone in the company’s commitment to promote childhood nutrition and unlock growth potential in children who are nutritionally at risk. PediaSure Plus 10+ contains high-quality protein and 37 key vitamins and minerals for growth and immune support, including emerging growth nutrients arginine and natural vitamin K2 to support longer and stronger bones.

Good nutrition is important at every stage of life and is especially critical during the major growth spurts children experience. The first growth spurt occurs in the first five years of life and the second major growth spurt occurs during early adolescence when diets typically become poorer, which may lead to decreased nutrient intake and the possible onset of stunting. Among adolescents in the Philippines, 27% are stunted, 56% of adolescents have inadequate protein intake and more than 75% have a micronutrient deficiency.[i]

According to Dr. Jose Rodolfo V. Dimaano, Jr., MD, (area medical director for Abbott in Pacific Asia)

”Adolescence is a critical window to maximize linear growth,” said. ”In this stage, optimal nutrition is important to help achieve catch-up growth to fulfill genetic potential. For Filipino adolescents, inadequate nutrition can affect growth, compromise bone and muscle development, and affect immune function, which can possibly lead to long-term effects on their health.”

Children can gain up to 20% of their final adult height and achieve 45% of total adult bone mass during adolescence.² To support optimal growth and development, adolescents require up to double or more growth nutrients compared to a younger child.

However, as children become more independent in making food choices, parents and caregivers may encounter a greater challenge to meet their child’s nutritional requirements. This makes nutritional intervention essential in maximizing this important window of growth.

”Nutritional intervention can help adolescents either at-risk or already behind on growth improve their trajectories and catch-up before the end of puberty,” according to Dr. Sylvia B. Capistrano-Estrada, MD FPPS, a metabolic specialist and pediatric endocrinologist.

The Science

PediaSure Plus 10+ builds on the science of PediaSure Plus, a brand with over 30 years of clinical research on the impact of nutrition on childhood growth. It provides essential growth nutrients, more protein, and more key growth nutrients to help support linear growth and bone quality during the adolescent growth spurt with:

• Two times the amount of calcium and natural vitamin K2 compared to its PediaSure Plus variant to support bone development
• 100% of the daily vitamin D requirement (with two servings a day)
• Antioxidants (vitamin C, vitamin E, and zinc) and prebiotic FOS to help strengthen the body’s immune system

”Parents can play an important role in helping their kids adopt healthy habits, like good nutrition,” said Stephen Garbanzos, general manager of Abbott’s nutrition business in the Philippines. ”With the launch of PediaSure Plus 10+, Abbott remains committed to developing science-based nutrition to support children’s critical growth period and making good nutrition accessible to more families across the country.”

Where to buy

PediaSure Plus 10+ is now available nationwide in chocolate and vanilla flavor, at most major retailers and online stores at the recommended retail price of Php 1,201 for the 900g SKU and Php 2,160 for the 1.8kg SKU. To learn more about PediaSure Plus 10+, visit https://pediasure.com.ph/, message us on the Alagang Abbott Facebook page or call Abbott’s nutrition hotline (995-1555).

DOST-FNRI. Expanded National Nutrition Survey: 2019 Results

Campisi S, Carducci B, Söder O, Bhutta Z. The Intricate Relationship between Chronic Undernutrition, Impaired Linear Growth and Delayed Puberty: Is ‘catch-up’ growth possible during adolescence? https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/982-intricate-relationship-between-chronic-undernutrition-impaired-linear-growth-and.html: UNICEF;2018.