Functional foods

Functional foods are modified foods that claim to improve health quality of life or well being.
To many these are a cause for concern.
The producers of these products seize on some half fact, utilise this to sell a well priced product to a gullible public. My wife and I have raised cholesterol concentrations and for 6 months religiously took a stanol containing yoghurt with no change in our cholesterol concentrations .
There are more than 200 different functional foods which claim all manner of health wonderments.
They include
Enrichment with phytosterol-stanols to affect low density lipoprotein cholesterol
Bioactive peptides blood pressure
Enrichment with melantonin sleep inducemen
Omega 3 fatty acids depression, triglycerides, joints
Beta glucan blood sugar and low density lipoprotein cholesterol
Prebiotics bowel function
Probiotics diarrhoea
Calcium and vitamin D bones
Protein or bioactive peptides obesity, appetite

The EU is now starting to look at this hotch potch of claims and conducting evaluations of the products. A new drug has to be tested in a series of very demanding tests. A new food just turns up on the shelves.
The European Food Safety Authority is now establishing serious requirements for nutritional claims.
About time.
De Jonge et al BMJ 2007, vol 334, 1037-1039

blogger_blog:

www.nutrition-nutritionists.com

blogger_author:

Martin Eastwood

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