Consumer Health

Vitamins witnessed two years of fast growth in both retail volume and current value terms in 2020 and 2021 as consumers looked for immunity and general health properties to offer resistance to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. However, as the…

Vitamins is experiencing strong double-digit value growth in 2023 due to rising unit prices and rampant inflation in the country. Volume sales, meanwhile, have normalised following a strong boost during the pandemic as consumers bought vitamins in…

2023 was a positive year for sales of vitamins in Lithuania. Following the outbreak of COVID-19, new habits have formed in the country, with consumers keen to take care of their immune systems, with a solid and growing focus on preventative health…

Although vitamins are still witnessing solid current growth in 2023, demand is now subsiding after several years of dynamic performance during the pandemic years. Retail volume and current value sales are now substantially higher than pre-pandemic…

Sports nutrition continued to see positive growth in constant value terms in 2023. The culture of going to the gym plays a significant role in generating demand for these products, as such venues also serve as important points of sale. As lives…

In 2023, sports nutrition continues to recover from the general decline in retail volume and value sales in 2020. This downturn was caused by the exigencies of Coronavirus (COVID-19), which saw gyms close amid lockdown and home seclusion measures.…

Sports nutrition is an extremely popular category in 2023, especially sports protein powder and non-protein products. These products are equally used by professional body builders and those who exercise regularly and want to build muscle. As a…

Sports nutrition is gaining ground in 2023, with sales benefiting from lifting all COVID-19 restrictions, seeing consumers returning to an increasingly active lifestyle. In addition, interest in health and sports is continuing to increase and find…

The rising number of usage occasions is driving sales of sports nutrition products in Latvia, with double-digit current value growth reported in 2023. Historically, sports nutrition products were mainly used by professional athletes and bodybuilders,…

Retail volume sales of sleep aids saw a modest decline in Sweden in 2023, in contrast to the buoyant pattern of growth seen during the earlier years of the review period. The rate of growth was particularly high during the pandemic, when high levels…

The demand for sleep aids increased during the height of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Heightened stress and anxiety levels increased the numbers of users and fostered greater use of sleep aids amid health, economic and social uncertainty. The…

Paediatric consumer health remains a minor part of total consumer health in Sweden. The key reasons for this low share include the fact that children are usually treated with general products (suitable for adults and children) with the appropriate…

The post-Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic wave of respiratory infections drove dynamic retail volume and current value growth in paediatric cough/cold remedies in 2022. This followed a strong rebound in demand in 2021, which was, in turn, informed by…

Paediatric consumer health is achieving strong double-digit value growth in 2023 as a result of consumer demand for high-quality consumer health products positioned for children, coupled with rising unit prices and the impact of inflation. Paediatric…

Despite seeing growth levels less than in 2022, 2023 has been a positive year for paediatric consumer health in Lithuania. In spite of soaring inflation caused by the energy crisis as a result of the war in Ukraine, paediatric consumer health will…

The winter of 2022-2023 was a very strong period for paediatric consumer health in Latvia. Children fully returned to schools and kindergartens and consequently common viruses began to circulate in society, with high levels of minor health issues.…

With only around one in 16 Swedes claiming to smoke, there is a limited potential consumer base for NRT smoking cessation aids compared with other categories, such as analgesics, cough, cold and allergies (hay fever) remedies, and wound care, which…

Although smoking prevalence and the number of smokers in Slovakia have been falling gradually, they are still considered high, compared to other European countries. In December 2022, the Slovak government approved an action plan, with a focus on…

Herbal/traditional products accounted for around one sixth of overall consumer health value in Sweden in 2023,. During 2022 and 2023, the high rate of inflation resulted in increased manufacturing and distribution, which placed pressure on margins.…

The strong wave of influenza in Q1 2023 and the stronger than anticipated return of common respiratory infections are stimulating the demand for many herbal/traditional products in Slovakia at the end of the review period. Herbal/traditional products…

An improved quality of life, higher living standards, and the health and wellness trend (and its associated link with more natural products) is driving volume sales of herbal/traditional products in 2023. Also, consumers are increasingly prepared to…

Herbal/traditional medicine is generally very popular in the Lithuanian market, covering local and international players. The landscape is a sizeable product area in Lithuania, and in 2023, despite soaring inflation caused by an energy crisis,…

Herbal/traditional products remain very popular in Latvia, where they are usually used for tackling minor illnesses. Indeed, consumers in Latvia are already quite familiar with using herbal/traditional remedies for the treatment and prevention of…

Retail volume sales of eye care products continued to expand in 2023, albeit to a lesser extent than the previous two years. The return of pre-pandemic lifestyles, including the revival of international travel, gave rise to a growing incidence of…

As the incidence of allergies is rising in Slovakia, consumers continue to purchase allergy eye care products. Over 2023, allergy eye care is expected to follow strong double-digit retail volume growth in 2022 with a good, if much slower, increment.…

Retail sales of digestive remedies suffered a decline in constant value terms in 2023, albeit at a slower rate than the previous year. Growth continued to be impacted by inflationary pressures, exacerbated by the ongoing war in Ukraine, which…

The return of international travel to pre-Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic levels and the resumption of hectic lifestyles boost the demand for digestive remedies. More and more consumers are keen to resume their pre-pandemic travel norms, regardless…

Amidst significant unit price increases and inflation, digestive remedies is experiencing double-digit retail value growth in 2023, making a strong rebound following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and people resuming travel. Paediatric…

The digestive category is not very active within Lithuania. Despite this, in 2023, sales are returning to a pre-pandemic state. Proton pump inhibitors are gaining a share, which was lost by H2 blockers, with brands such as Nolpaza doing well in this…

At the beginning of 2023, Latvians were still in the process of returning to normal professional and social activities, following the final removal of all pandemic-related restrictions. As a result, the digestive remedies category is still seeing a…

The health and wellness trend continued have a positive impact on sales on dietary supplements in 2023 as consumers focused on preventative health measures, rather than treating symptoms as they occurred. This trend was exacerbated by the COVID-19…

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic brought spikes in retail volume and current value growth across most categories of dietary supplements in 2020 and 2021. Dietary supplements with immune system positioning saw particularly strong interest from…

Dietary supplements are seeing a strong double-digit increase in retail value sales in 2023 as a result of rising unit prices amidst rampant inflation in the country. Volume growth, meanwhile, is driven by the health and wellness trend and people…

In a similar vein to vitamins, dietary supplements saw positive performances in Lithuania in 2023. New consumption habits with regard to preventative health measures have added momentum to sales. However, sales have been somewhat dampened by the…

Dietary supplements registered another strong performance in 2023, with double-digit growth in current value terms. Consumers have adopted healthier habits since the pandemic, and are keen to invest more in their health and immunity. Dietary…

Dermatologicals experienced a modest decline in overall constant value terms in 2023, although performance varied considerably according to subcategory. One notable development was the buoyant demand for antiparasitics/lice treatments, continuing the…

Hair loss treatments is expected to continue to see strong retail volume and current value growth over 2023. Indeed, hair loss treatments is projected to record the fastest retail volume growth at the end of the review period. Mild-to-severe hair…

In line with the overall performance of skin care products in beauty and personal care in North Macedonia, dermatologicals is one of the fastest growing consumer health category thanks to strong and continued consumer demand. The product and brand…

The dermatologicals landscape is experiencing a downward momentum in some categories, which have found themselves losing share and importance following the outbreak of COVID-19. Topical Germicidals/Antiseptics is one of the categories which is set to…

Although dermatologicals continues to enjoy steady growth in 2023, current value sales have slowed down compared to the double-digit rates seen at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Whilst spending more time at home, Latvian consumers became…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies remained the largest product area within consumer health in Sweden in 2023. Following a two-year period of buoyant volume growth for most subcategories, demand weakened significantly in 2023, This was due…

In Slovakia, cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies was characterised by very strong increases in retail volume sales of OTC remedies for sore throats, coughs and colds. The high demand was the result of extremely high morbidity throughout the…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies is seeing slower growth in 2023 due to a shorter cold season caused by milder winter 2022/2023. The exception is antihistamines, which continues to grow at a solid rate due to high consumer demand amidst…

2023 marks the year when the cough and cold landscape is set to lose its uplift due to COVID-19, returning to a level closer to that seen pre-pandemic. Sales have continued to benefit from harsh seasonal colds and the flu season of 2022-2023.…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies in Latvia is registering moderate growth in 2023 as the category begins to stabilise post-pandemic. Retail value sales rebounded strongly 2022 after two years of decline, with lifestyles shifting back to…

The Swedish market consumer health saw healthy growth in retail current value terms in 2023, continuing the trend of the previous year. However, this was driven mainly by inflationary pressures, rather than any real upturn in demand. While the rate…

Consumer health in Slovakia is affected by changes in purchasing behaviour as a result of the fading Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the effects of the war in Ukraine and a cost of living crisis amid high inflation. However, the issue of high…

Consumer health registered strong sales growth in Qatar in 2023 thanks to strong purchasing power and rising interest in leading healthy lifestyles. The country’s high obesity rate has combined with the sharpened focus on health and wellbeing that…

Consumer health declined in volume sales while retail value sales grew below inflation in 2023. This was mainly due to significant falls in the vitamins and dietary supplements and weight management and wellbeing categories while sports nutrition and…

Consumer health sales grew moderately in 2023 as consumers prioritised their spending on essential goods over preventive health. As a result, vitamins and dietary supplements and weight management and wellbeing were the most affected. However, sports…