FORMULATIONS COMPRISING A MINERAL AND/OR A VITAMIN AND A POLYSACCHARIDE, COMPOSITIONS THEREOF AND USE THEREOF IN SUPPLEMENTING SAID MINERAL AND/OR VITAMIN

1 . A formulation in solid form comprising:

a nutrient, wherein said nutrient is a mineral or a vitamin,

wherein said mineral is selected from the group consisting of: magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, iodine, selenium, chromium, and copper (II), and wherein said mineral is in the form of a salt, complex or oxide of said mineral; and

wherein said vitamin is selected from the group consisting of: vitamin B12, vitamin C, vitamin D3, and vitamin E;

a phospholipid; and

a first agent selected from a carrageenan or an acacia gum.

2 . The formulation according to claim 1 , wherein said formulation further comprises at least one sucrester or a fatty acid carbohydrate ester, the at least one sucrester or a fatty acid carbohydrate ester comprising from 70% to 90% by weight, with respect to the total weight of the sucrester, of monoesters obtained through the esterification of sucrose with one or more fatty acids of plant origin.

3 . The formulation according to claim 1 , wherein said first agent consists of said carrageenan.

4 . The formulation according to claim 1 , wherein said first agent consists of said acacia gum.

5 . The formulation according to claim 1 , wherein said formulation further comprises a gelatinised or pre-gelatinised starch of plant origin.

6 . The formulation according to claim 1 , wherein said phospholipid is a phosphatidylcholine or lecithin.

7 . The formulation according to claim 1 , wherein a weight ratio between said first agent and said phospholipid.

8 . The formulation according to claim 2 , wherein on 100 parts by weight of a sum of said first agent and said sucrester, said first agent is comprised in percentage by weight from 1% to 100% and said sucrester is comprised from 0% to 99%.

9 . A composition comprising:

at least one solid form formulation of said nutrient according to claim 1 ; and

at least one acceptable pharmaceutical or food grade additive and/or excipient.

10 . The composition according to claim 9 , wherein said nutrient is a mineral.

11 . The composition according to claim 9 , wherein said nutrient is a vitamin.

12 . The composition according to claim 9 , wherein said composition comprises:

at least one solid form formulation of the mineral;

at least one solid form formulation of the vitamin; and at least one acceptable pharmaceutical or food grade additive and/or excipient.

13 . A method to treat a subject, the method comprising administering to the subject the formulation according to claim 1 or a composition including the said formulation, as a medicament.

14 . A method for the preventive, curative and/or adjuvant treatment of a deficiency of said mineral and/or vitamin, and of diseases, symptoms or disorders related to or deriving from said deficiency, the method comprising

administering to a subject in need a therapeutically effective amount of the formulation according to claim 1 or a composition comprising said formulation.

15 . The method according to claim 14 , wherein said diseases or symptoms related to or deriving from said deficiency are selected from the group consisting of:

sideropenia, anaemia, poor iron absorption, haemolytic anaemia;

changes in carbohydrate metabolism and related diseases and disorders, diabetes, type II diabetes mellitus, hyperglycaemia, insulin resistance, high absorption of carbohydrates, deregulation of blood glucose level, metabolic syndrome;

changes in the muscle energy metabolism and/or disorders related thereto decrease in muscle mass, decrease in muscle strength, decrease in physical resistance to muscle stress, poor absorption of amino acids;

dyslipidaemia or change in the lipid metabolism and diseases and disorders related thereto, cholesterolaemia, high triglyceride levels, and obesity or overweight;

cognitive disorders or changes in the cognitive-emotional sphere;

cardiometabolic disorders;

change in the immune system;

stress related to anxiety and depression, fatigue, chronic fatigue, asthenia, a lack of reflexes and coordination;

rickets or delayed bone growth in children, osteomalacia in adults, osteoporosis, and hyperparathyroidism;

gingivitis; and

brittleness of the nails, hair and/or skin following inflammations or medical treatment.

16 . A method for supplementing a mineral and/or vitamin, the method comprising

administering to a healthy subject an effective amount of the formulation according to claim 1 or a composition comprising said formulation for the supplementation of said mineral and/or vitamin in the healthy subject.

17 . The method according to claim 16 , wherein said the supplementation is performed for increasing muscle mass, increasing muscle strength, increasing physical resistance to muscle stress, reducing strength recovery time after a physical effort, increasing mental performance, strengthening nails and hair.

18 . A process for the preparation of the formulation according to claim 1 comprising:

providing a mineral or a vitamin in the form of powder or granules, wherein said mineral is in the form of a salt, oxide or complex of said mineral;

mixing, in the absence of solvent, said mineral or said vitamin with a phospholipid to obtain a mineral or vitamin-phosphoplipid mixture;

mixing, in the absence of solvent, said mineral or vitamin-phosphoplipid mixture with a polysaccharide selected from carrageenan or acacia gum and, optionally, with a sucrester, to obtain the formulation.

19 . A process for the preparation of the composition according to claim 12 , the method comprising:

providing at least one solid form formulation of a mineral and at least one solid form formulation of a vitamin

wherein said mineral is selected from the group consisting of: magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, iodine, selenium, chromium, and copper (II), and wherein said mineral is in the form of a salt, complex or oxide of said mineral; and

wherein said vitamin is selected from the group consisting of: vitamin B12, vitamin C, vitamin D3, and vitamin E;

mixing said at least one solid form formulation of a mineral and said at least one solid form formulation of a vitamin to obtain a mineral-vitamin mixture;

mixing said mineral-vitamin mixture with at least one additive and/or excipient to obtain the composition.

20 . A process for the preparation of the formulation according to claim 1 comprising:

providing a mineral or a vitamin in the form of powder or granules, wherein said mineral is in the form of a salt, oxide or complex of said mineral;

mixing, in the absence of solvent, said mineral or said vitamin with a phospholipid to obtain a mineral or vitamin-phosphoplipid mixture;

mixing, in the absence of solvent, said mineral or vitamin phosphoplipid mixture with a polysaccharide selected from carrageenan or acacia gum and, optionally, with a sucrester, to obtain a mineral or vitamin-phosphoplipid-polysaccharide mixture; and

mixing said another mineral or vitamin-phosphoplipid-polysaccharide mixture with a gelatinised or pre-gelatinised starch of plant origin, to obtain the formulation.