Mars Edge was recently recognized with the 2022 Science and Innovation award(Opens a new window) by the Nutrition Business Journal(Opens a new window) (NBJ), a leading organization for the health and nutrition industry. The award was given to Mars to celebrate both its rich history of research and in recognition of our support of the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study (COSMOS)(Opens a new window), the largest clinical dietary intervention trial investigating the impact of cocoa flavanols on health.
Dr. Catherine Kwik-Uribe, Vice President, Scientific & Regulatory Affairs and Scientific Research of Mars Edge, accepted the award on behalf of Mars at the 25th NBJ Summit(Opens a new window) in San Diego held July 25–28, 2022.
"Mars has a long-standing commitment to scientific research and for using science to improve the lives of people, pets and the planet,” says Dr. Kwik-Uribe. “For over 20 years, Mars has taken a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of cocoa flavanols, collaborating with leading institutions across the globe. The COSMOS trial is a landmark study in the field of bioactives, and the first study results demonstrated exciting and profound cardiovascular benefits. This recognition by the NBJ of Mars Edge’s scientific efforts is truly an honor, and I am excited to receive this award on behalf of Mars Edge.”
NBJ commended Mars not only for its commitment to science, but also its “unique academia-private-public partnership to conduct COSMOS, the first large-scale clinical trial to assess the long-term effects of cocoa flavanols and multivitamins on cardiovascular and cancer risks.”
NBJ’s editor-in-chief, Rick Polito, says everyone in the nutrition industry should appreciate the awards that NBJ bestows each year.
"Each one of the winners provides a series of steps, a schematic, on how to put together an enterprise or endeavor that makes a difference, that supports the overarching mission of bringing better health to consumers," Polito said in NBJ’s May issue.
About COSMOS
COSMOS was initiated and led by scientists at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, an affiliate of Harvard University. COSMOS is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that included over 21,000 healthy older adults over five years, representing the largest clinical trial on flavanols in history. The first results from COSMOS were published in March in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition(Opens a new window). The results show that when including all participants in the data analysis, the reduction of total cardiovascular events (heart attacks, stroke, cardiovascular surgeries and deaths) was not statistically significant, but there was a significant (27%) reduction in cardiovascular deaths in the cocoa flavanol group (versus placebo). When the investigators excluded those who self-reported not taking their study pills regularly from the data analysis, the cocoa flavanol supplement group had a statistically significant (15%) reduction in total cardiovascular events and a 39% reduction in cardiovascular deaths relative to those not taking cocoa flavanols. These results are profound and could have important implications in the future for flavanol-based dietary recommendations. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Pfizer Consumer Healthcare (now part of GSK Consumer Healthcare) also supported the trial.
For more information on our extensive research into benefits of cocoa flavanols, visit our Mars Edge Cocoa Flavanol Science Hub(Opens a new window).
