January 5, 2026 – Consumers worldwide want to age healthily. Their goals include physical, mental, and emotional well-being, along with looking good. These goals focus on key aspects of holistic health. For each aspect, Innova Market Insights looks at how different generations approach health. We highlight consumer preferences for everyday foods and drinks, functional products, and supplements. This analysis also reveals opportunities for brands to innovate and support healthy aging more effectively.
Growing Interest in Healthy Aging Across Generations
Consumers of all ages care more about healthy aging, but their goals differ. Older adults, like Boomers and Gen X, focus on physical and social well-being. In contrast, younger generations, especially Millennials and Gen Z, also care about appearance and emotional support. This increasing interest highlights the need for brands to understand the wider scope of healthy aging, which now includes physical, mental, emotional, and social aspects.
Rising Emphasis on Healthy Aging Creates an Opportunity
The world’s population is aging. Virtually every country in the world is experiencing growth in the number and proportion of older people in their population. Therefore, unsurprisingly, 73% of consumers globally consider healthy aging extremely or very important.
Key Healthy Aging Strategies: Functional Foods and Supplementation
Global consumers have different approaches to support healthy aging. Seniors often choose supplements. In contrast, younger consumers usually prefer functional foods and drinks. For brands to innovate effectively, they need to understand the health issues consumers want to tackle, and the food and drink categories related to each health goal. This understanding affects both product formats and communication strategies.
Consumers Trust Natural Familiar Foods
Healthy aging trends show that global consumers want to improve their health by choosing natural, wholesome, and everyday foods. Increasingly, they prefer familiar items like milk, fruit, and water rather than specialized products. Brands should focus on these trusted categories by highlighting their benefits or by adding functional ingredients that support health goals. This makes it easier for consumers to incorporate wellness into their daily routines.
Generational Goal Differences
Boomers and Gen X are more focused on maintaining mobility, preventing diseases, and staying active. These are important parts of healthy aging. Millennials and Gen Z care more about looking fit and having youthful skin as part of their healthy aging goals. While older adults prioritize an active mind, younger generations also value a positive attitude, energy, and emotional health in their approach to aging well.
Diverse Approaches to Healthy Aging for the Young and Old
Across all generations, exercise and diet are the main ways to age healthily. Gen Z and Millennials stand out by emphasizing personal care routines. They focus on improving sleep, social connections, and mental health. In contrast, Gen X and Boomers tend to concentrate on regular doctor check-ups and taking prescribed medications.
Ingredient Reduction for Health Across Generations
29% of consumers globally try to limit or reduce products or ingredients that are bad for them (e.g., high in sugar, fat, salt). Sugar, alcohol, and salt are the leading ingredients which are being avoided for healthy aging. Product launches which highlight this healthy aging trend include Well Market Unsalted No Shell Pistachios in the US and TG Lite Seniors Noodle in Malaysia, which features no added sugar.
Bone Health Main Concerns for Elderly
Healthy aging trends reveal that the main health concern for Boomers and Generation X is bones and joints. Taking supplements is the main strategy to improve bone and joint health. These supplements increasingly feature multiple claims. These claims combine support for mobility with benefits like beauty, immunity, and inflammation reduction. This shows a shift from single-purpose products to more complete wellness solutions.
Young Consumers Prioritize Appearance in Healthy Aging
Gen Z and Millennials consider looks and beauty an important part of healthy aging. While 65% say they do not have any current appearance or beauty problems, they still want to maintain and improve skin health. Their main strategy for improving skin health includes taking supplements, eating fortified foods and drinks, and preferring familiar, natural food and beverages. Appearance and beauty rank as their highest physical health concern.
Strengthening Immunity Through Gut-Supporting Ingredients
The connection between gut health and immunity is becoming more known. In response, more products are now using probiotics, prebiotics, and ingredients that support gut health. With this healthy aging trend, brands go beyond typical immunity mixes, using microbiome-focused ingredients that support both digestion and immune function.
Generations Have Different Focus of Mental Health in Healthy Aging
Millennials focus on having a positive mindset and maintaining energy levels. Boomers value staying mentally active and being socially connected. Younger generations tend to care more about mental well-being. For example, Millennials and Gen Z are especially worried about stress and anxiety. On the other hand, 43% of Gen X and Boomers say they are only slightly or not at all concerned about their mental health.
Gen Z and Millennials: Coping with Stress
To deal with stress, Gen Z and Millennials often choose familiar and functional F&B. For functional F&B, natural calming ingredients such as green tea, guayusa, and L-theanine are becoming more popular in functional drinks aimed at reducing stress. These ingredients are often combined with botanicals like lemon balm, spirulina, and ashwagandha.
What’s Next in Healthy Aging Trends?
Functional beverages aimed at different age groups will be important for healthy aging brand innovation in the future. For Boomers, this means creating drinks that support bone and joint health. For Gen Z and Millennials, brands should focus on beauty and skin health, with claims like improving elasticity, hydration, and overall vitality. There is also a chance to include adaptogens and botanicals in familiar formats like teas, smoothies, and juices to support emotional well-being. Furthermore, showcasing authentic, handcrafted products made from real ingredients and sharing engaging stories can strengthen social connections, especially across generations.
This article is based on Innova’s Healthy Aging Across Generations – Global report. This report is available to purchase or with an Innova Reports subscription. Reach out to find out more