Ada, Michigan — It’s rare to find a first-of-its-kind product that over the course of 70 years of innovation and reformulation is still an industry leader. However, today’s Nutrilite Double X supplement is still one-of-a-kind.
Humble beginnings
The spark for what would become today’s Double X supplement occurred in the 1920s in China. While living and working in Shanghai, Nutrilite founder, Carl F. Rehnborg, was fascinated by how people living on rural farms with access to plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables were healthier than city dwellers. He theorized that plants must contain yet to-be-discovered compounds important for health, compounds he called “associated food factors.”
In 1927, Carl returned home to the United States armed with a deeper appreciation of balance in the diet and put his lifelong pursuit into motion. Seven years passed before Carl Rehnborg would create and sell what is believed to be the first plant-based multivitamin-multimineral in North America.
A supplement ahead of its time
The first Double X Food Supplement launched in the spring of 1948 with the Roman numeral XX, meaning 20, squarely positioned on the front of the packaging. The official product name was NUTRILITE XX Food Supplement, but soon it would become known as Double X Food Supplement.
The retail price, about $20 for a one-month supply, inspired the product name. Tucked inside were two bottles of vitamin capsules flanking a small box of mineral tablets. Both the capsules and tablets contained the exclusive Nutrilite Concentrate from alfalfa, watercress and parsley.
Carl Rehnborg was able to consolidate vitamins, minerals and his “associated food factors” – what we know today as phytonutrients – into a single package of his own design. With its phytonutrients and added vitamins and minerals, the product was one of the earliest examples of the “Best of Nature, Best of Science” philosophy that is the heartbeat of the Nutrilite brand.
The Double X Supplement of today
Though the formulas and packaging of Nutrilite Double X supplement have changed over time, the plant-based philosophy of the product has not.
The latest generation of Double X supplement, which began launching globally in August and September of 2017, is designed to fill nutrient gaps in the diet and support whole body health by providing 12 essential vitamins, 10 essential minerals, and phytonutrients from 22 fruit, vegetable, and herb concentrates that represent all five colors of the phytonutrient spectrum. Double X supplement also features PhytoProtect blend, a proprietary combination of Rosemary, Turmeric and Fava d’Anta extracts, designed to work with the body’s own defenses to fight against excess free radicals.
“Double X supplement has such a strong legacy because of its continuous innovation,” says Dr. Sam Rehnborg, president of the Nutrilite Health Institute and son of Carl Rehnborg. “As nutritional science evolves and we continue learning how vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients impact human nutrition and health, Double X supplement will evolve also, leveraging the latest science to deliver the nutritional benefits we need to be at our best.”
The first Double X™ Food Supplement launched in the spring of 1948 with the Roman numeral XX, meaning 20, squarely positioned on the front of the packaging
