April, 2019 | The Health
Tech & Innovation
Cut sugar through
nanotechnology
21
How true are the
nanotechnology
products in the
market?
Latest innovation in sweetener could help fight diabetes
Johan Hasan, Managing Director of
NanoVerify Sdn Bhd.
Slapping a label on a product and saying it
has nanotechnology infused materials doesn’t
mean it truly has nano-elements. The Health
gets the scoop on products which often claim
to have nano-elements to increase efficacy
from the man himself, Johan Hasan, Managing
Director of NanoVerify Sdn Bhd.
What does NanoVerify do?
Mohd Aidi bin Senin (left), Director of P3 Sweetener Global Sdn Bhd and Johan Hasan, Managing Director
of NanoVerify Sdn Bhd.
D
iabetes, also known as the ‘silent
killer’, have officially betrayed its own
namesake. Recently on March 27, the
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dzulkefly
Ahmad read out an unflattering statistic
which states that at present, about 3.6
million Malaysians are suffering from the disease,
which is the highest rate of incidence in Asia and one
of the highest in the world. It is a silent killer no more.
If you think that it is still not the time to cause an
alarm, it is predicted by the year 2025, an estimated
population of seven million adults will be suffering
from diabetes, both diagnosed and undiagnosed. Yes, it
should be time for us to be alarmed, and do something
about it.
Sweetening the deal
P3 Sweetener, a Malaysia-based company established
in 2012 that is revolutionising the sweetener industry
through nanotechnology is attempting to reduce this
worrying statistics with its sugar alternative, the P3
Sweetener Drops.
Here are for the ones who can’t simply cut that sugar
out of the morning coffee or tea.
“It has been seven years since our product
entered the market, and it has slowly been
receiving positive recognition from the Malaysian
consumers,” says Mohd Aidi Senin, Director of P3
Sweetener Global Sdn Bhd.
Not artificial
Yes, there are a variety of alternative sweeteners
present in the market other than ours, but
most of them are artificial. Take aspartame
and saccharine as examples. However, our
P3 Sweetener Drops are taken from natural
sources, the sugarcane,” he explains.
SUGAR RUSH: The individual’s
intake of sugar in Malaysia has
been found to be around 30 to
50 teaspoons a day, making it
highly unhealthy and leads to a
plethora of diseases.
So what differentiates P3 Sweetener
Drops to others?
Sugar is often linked to a variety of diseases and often
gets a bad reputation. Sugar acts as a source of energy,
however due to heavier amounts of consumption – the
drawbacks outweigh the benefits.
“The World Health Organisation (WHO) recom-
mends a maximum of 5 to 10 teaspoons of free sugars
per day. 10 teaspoons is roughly 50 grams which comes
up to 200 calories. Unfortunately if you observe the
sugar intake amongst Malaysians, the statistics have
chalked it up to 30 to 50 teaspoons a day. This makes
it a whopping 600 calories a day, and that’s just from
granulated sugar. Other sugar-laden from drinks or
hidden in our food is another story altogether. That is
why we at P3 works hard in coming up with a product
that maintains the sugar taste profile, but at a healthier
dosage,” stresses Aidi.
The extraction process dislodges negative carbon
from sugar cane component, which is the contributing
factor of chronic diseases for diabetic, hypertension,
and obesity. The product contains no calories,
proteins, cholesterol, aspar-
tame, sucrose, and fructose.
P3 Sweetener Drops are
600 times the sweetness
compared with sucrose,
two times of saccharin and
3.3 times of aspartame but
no traces element of them.
How does one
consume it?
Just add one drop of P3
Sweetener Drop to
your favourite
coffee, tea,
shakes,
“In a nutshell, the NanoMalaysia is an agency
under the Ministry of Science which has been
mandated to commercialise nanotechnology
and to provide facilitation for development of
new technology. By facilitation, we provide
grants, human capital and certification to
companies. NanoVerify is a wholly owned
subsidiary of NanoMalaysia. NanoVerify plays a
crucial role in nanotechnology verification. The
Nano-verified mark is an assurance that
products have been tested to contain nano-
elements,” explains Johan.
Johan goes on to explain that to date, over
50 products containing nano-elements have
been verified in Malaysia. They cover several
sectors such as domestic cleaning product, food
products, car care products, lubricants, fertilisers
and general appliances.
“Our role primarily is to create confidence in
nanotechnology not just locally but also abroad.
We work actively with the likes of Malaysia
External Trade Development Corporation
(MATRADE) and other international certification
bodies to push the products into the market.”
Why is it so important to be nano-
verified?
Products that contain nano-elements that
are popular amongst consumers include skin
care and cosmetics, fertilisers, car coatings
and protectors, automotive lubricants and
even clothing. The growth of Nanotechnology
industry is still in its infancy in Malaysia, and
there needs to be a system to reduce the risks
of unscrupulous business practices where
false claims on nano-products are made on the
labels to increase profit. —The Health
food, or in baking your favourite desserts.
Nanotech verified
“I believe we are the first food company to be verified
by NanoVerify in Malaysia,” Aidi tells.
NanoVerify is a wholly owned subsidiary of
NanoMalaysia, which is an agency under the
Ministry of Science. Its main purpose is to provide
certification for products that are based on or uses
nanotechnology.
“As you may or may not be aware, there are many
nanotechnology products out there right now – or
rather claims to be. Our role firstly is to protect con-
sumers from any counterfeit or exaggerated products
claiming to implement nanotechnology. We also play
a role in promoting sale and use of genuine nanotech-
nology products,” explains Johan Hasan, Managing
Director of NanoVerify Sdn Bhd. — Thye Health