“Nutraceuticals” & “Health food” shops has grown tremendously, fostered by wide media coverage of their benefits. There has been a resonance in their sales as patients sprint to self-medicate, either in the hope that these products will be effective in treating diseases unsatisfactorily treated with pharmaceuticals, or that the baleful of some pharmaceuticals may be avoided.

1. NEUTRACEUTIC
ALS &
FUNCTIONAL
FOODS
PREPARED BY: ABDUL RAUF
RAJPUT
PRESENTATION ON:

2. NUTRACEUTICAL
STHE TERM ‘NUTRACEUTICAL’ DEFINED IT AS A ‘FOOD, OR PARTS OF A FOOD, THAT
PROVIDE MEDICAL OR HEALTH BENEFITS, INCLUDING THE PREVENTION AND
TREATMENT OF DISEASE’.
OR
IS A ‘DIET SUPPLEMENT THAT DELIVERS A CONCENTRATED FORM OF A PRESUMED
BIOACTIVE AGENT FROM A FOOD, PRESENTED IN A NON-FOOD MATRIX, AND USED TO
ENHANCE HEALTH IN DOSAGES THAT EXCEED THOSE THAT COULD BE OBTAINED
FROM NORMAL FOOD’.

3. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN
NUTRACEUTICALS AND OTHER
HEALTH PRODUCTS
PHARMACEUTICALS ARE USUALLY CLASSED AS MEDICINES BY LAW, BUT SOME ARE
FREELY AVAILABLE WITHOUT LEGAL CONSTRAINTS AND SOME ARE LEGALLY CLASSED
AS MEDICINES. FOR EXAMPLE, IN CERTAIN COUNTRIES MELATONIN IS CLASSED AS A
MEDICINE AND IS NOT FREELY AVAILABLE.
HERBAL REMEDIES MAY BE CLASSED AS MEDICINES BECAUSE OF THEIR PERCEIVED
RISKS WITH SELF-MEDICATION.
FUNCTIONAL FOODS ARE CLOSELY RELATED TO NUTRACEUTICALS AS THEY OFTEN
CONTAIN NUTRACEUTICALS IN A FOOD-BASED FORMULATION, SUCH AS
CAROTENOIDS, BUT OTHERS ARE NOVEL BIOTECHNOLOGICAL ENTITIES DERIVED
FROM FOODS, FOR INSTANCE, PRE- AND PROBIOTICS. A NEW TERM FOR THESE HAS
RECENTLY BEEN COINED – ‘PHOODS’ – WHICH PRESUMABLY AIMS TO BLUR THE
DISTINCTION BETWEEN PHARMACEUTICALS AND FOODS IN THE MINDS OF
CONSUMERS.
VITAMINS CAN ALSO BE CLASSED AS MEDICINES, BUT MAY BE FREELY AVAILABLE. THE

4. NUTRACEUTICAL FORMULATIONS
AVAILABLE
• MANUFACTURERS ARE INCREASINGLY MARKETING NOVEL FORMULATIONS.
• TABLETS, CAPSULES AND SOFT GELS ARE STILL THE MOST WIDELY AVAILABLE
FORMULATIONS, BUT NEW FORMULATIONS SUCH AS SOFT CHEWS, AND FAST
DISSOLVING TABLETS AND STRIPS ARE BECOMING AVAILABLE.
• AS WITH PHARMACEUTICALS, NUTRACEUTICAL MANUFACTURERS ARE
EXTOLLING THE VIRTUES OF CONTROLLED RELEASE FORMULATIONS FOR
RELEASE OF PRECISE LEVELS OF ACTIVE ENTITIES OVER A PARTICULAR TIME
PERIOD, IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE MAXIMUM THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS. AN EXAMPLE
OF THE USE OF THIS TECHNOLOGY IS THE SOYA ISOFLAVONE (NOVASOY).

5. SUPPLEMENTS: DEMOGRAPHIC TRENDS
• 57% OF 979 ADULTS AGREED THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO USE SUPPLEMENTS MORE
OFTEN.
• PRIME TARGET USERS OF SUPPLEMENTS - MIDDLE-AGED FEMALES WITH AN ABOVE
AVERAGE INCOME & ABOVE AVERAGE EDUCATION. THERE WERE ALSO OCCASIONAL USERS
WHO USED SUPPLEMENTS AT A TIME OF ILLNESS OR STRESS, RATHER LIKE A MEDICINE.
THESE USERS WERE MORE VARIED IN AGE AND INCOME AND WERE LESS LIKELY TO TAKE
SUPPLEMENTS ON A LONG-TERM BASIS.
• CONSUMERS USE NUTRACEUTICAL SUPPLEMENTS FOR MANY VARIED REASONS E.G
– SUPPLEMENTATION OF A POOR DIET,
– TO IMPROVE OVERALL HEALTH,
– TO DELAY THE ONSET OF AGE-RELATED DISEASES,
– AFTER ILLNESS,
– FOR STRESS,
– RECOMMENDED BY A HEALTH PROFESSIONAL,
– IN PREGNANCY AND SLIMMING,
USE OF
NUTRACEUTICAL

6. FUNCTIONAL
FOODS
A ‘FUNCTIONAL FOOD’ IS A NATURAL OR FORMULATED FOOD THAT HAS ENHANCED
PHYSIOLOGICAL PERFORMANCE OR PREVENTS OR TREATS A PARTICULAR DISEASE.
THIS TERM WAS FIRST USED IN JAPAN, AND BY 1998 IT WAS THE ONLY COUNTRY TO
LEGALLY DEFINE ‘FOODS FOR SPECIFIED HEALTH USE’ (FOSHU).
OR
FUNCTIONAL FOOD IS A ‘FOOD THAT HAS A COMPONENT INCORPORATED INTO IT TO
GIVE IT A SPECIFIC MEDICAL OR PHYSIOLOGICAL BENEFIT, OTHER THAN PURELY
NUTRITIONAL BENEFIT’.

7. FUNCTIONAL FOODS
BENEFITS
•PROVIDING ANTIOXIDANTS (LIKE CAROTENOIDS, FLAVONOIDS, LYCOPENE,
ANTHOCYANIN AND POLYPHONES) THAT FIGHT FREE RADICAL DAMAGE.
•REDUCING INFLAMMATION.
•AIDING IN DISEASE PREVENTION, SUCH AS REDUCING THE RISK FOR
CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES, NEUROLOGICAL CONDITIONS, DEPRESSION OR
CANCER.
•SUPPORTING GUT HEALTH AND THEREFORE ENHANCING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM.
•PROVIDING LIVE MICROBIAL CULTURES, ALSO CALLED PROBIOTIC BACTERIA.
•PROVIDING “PREBIOTICS” THAT HELP FEED PROBIOTICS.
•REDUCING PATHOGENIC BACTERIA AND MICROBES.

8. FUNCTIONAL FOODS HELP TO
FIGHT
•COUNTERACTING THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF STRESS, SUCH AS BY OFFERING B
VITAMINS, MAGNESIUM AND OMEGA-3 FATTY ACIDS.
•PROTECTING THE BRAIN FROM FREE RADICAL DAMAGE AND SUPPORTING
COGNITIVE/MENTAL HEALTH.
•SUPPORTING DETOXIFICATION AND DIGESTIVE HEALTH.
•BALANCING CHOLESTEROL LEVELS AND BLOOD PRESSURE, AS WELL AS REGULATING
HEARTBEATS.
•AIDING IN NUTRIENT ABSORPTION.
•HELPING BUILD AND MAINTAIN BONE MASS, SUCH AS BY LOWERING ACIDITY AND
HELPING ALKALIZE THE BODY.
•MANAGING BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS, SUCH AS BY PROVIDING FIBER AND ANTI-
INFLAMMATORY COMPOUNDS.
•HELPING WITH WEIGHT MANAGEMENT AND OBESITY PREVENTION.

9. MOST EARLY DEVELOPMENTS OF FUNCTIONAL FOODS WERE THOSE OF FORTIFIED
WITH VITAMINS AND/OR MINERALS SUCH AS VITAMIN C, VITAMIN E, FOLIC ACID, ZINC,
IRON, AND CALCIUM.
SUBSEQUENTLY, THE FOCUS SHIFTED TO FOODS FORTIFIED WITH VARIOUS
MICRONUTRIENTS SUCH AS OMEGA-3 FATTY ACID, PHYTOSTEROL, AND SOLUBLE FIBER
TO PROMOTE GOOD HEALTH OR TO PREVENT DISEASES SUCH AS CANCERS.
MORE RECENTLY, FOOD COMPANIES HAVE TAKEN FURTHER STEPS TO DEVELOP FOOD
PRODUCTS THAT OFFER MULTIPLE HEALTH BENEFITS IN A SINGLE FOOD.
FUNCTIONAL FOOD PRODUCTS ARE NOT HOMOGENEOUSLY SCATTERED OVER ALL
SEGMENTS OF THE FOOD AND DRINK MARKET AND CONSUMER HEALTH CONCERNS
AND PRODUCT PREFERENCES MAY VARY BETWEEN MARKETS. THESE PRODUCTS
HAVE BEEN MAINLY LAUNCHED IN THE DAIRY-, CONFECTIONERY-, SOFT-DRINKS-,
BAKERY- AND BABY-FOOD MARKET .
FUNCTIONAL FOOD
PRODUCTS

10. PROBIOTICS ARE DEFINED AS ‘‘LIVE MICROORGANISMS, AS THEY ARE CONSUMED IN
ADEQUATE NUMBERS CONFER A HEALTH BENEFIT ON THE HOST’’.
LACTIC ACID BACTERIA (LAB) AND BIFIDOBACTERIA, THE MOST STUDIED AND WIDELY
EMPLOYED BACTERIA WITHIN THE PROBIOTIC FIELD.
DAIRY PRODUCTS ARE THE KEY PRODUCT SECTOR. THE SENSITIVITY OF PROBIOTICS
TO PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL STRESS, HEAT AND ACIDITY MAKES THE PRODUCT
DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGING FOR OTHER TYPE OF FOOD PRODUCT. RECENTLY
ENCAPSULATION WAS ASSESSED AS POSSIBLE TECHNOLOGY FOR DECREASING
SENSITIVITY OF SUCH PROBIOTICS .
EXTENSIVE R&D ACTIVITY RESULTED IN A NUMBER OF SPECIAL NEW DAIRY PRODUCTS
(E.G. SYNBIOFIR DRINKING KEFIR, SYNBIOGHURT DRINKING YOGHURT, HUNCULT
FERMENTED DRINK, MILLI PREMIUM SOUR CREAM, AKTIVIT QUARK DESSERT, NEW
PARTY BUTTER CREAM, PROBIOS CHEESE CREAM) .
FRUIT JUICE HAS ALSO BEEN SUGGESTED AS A NOVEL, APPROPRIATE MEDIUM FOR
FORTIFICATION WITH PROBIOTIC CULTURES BECAUSE IT IS ALREADY POSITIONED AS A
HEALTHY FOOD PRODUCT, AND IT IS CONSUMED FREQUENTLY AND LOYALLY BY A
PROBIOTIC
S

11. PREBIOTICS ARE NON-DIGESTIBLE FOOD INGREDIENTS THAT BENEFICIALLY AFFECT
THE HOST BY STIMULATING THE GROWTH AND/OR ACTIVITY OF ONE OR A LIMITED
NUMBER OF BACTERIA IN THE COLON, THUS IMPROVING HOST HEALTH.
FRUCTO-OLIGOSACCHARIDE (FOS), INULIN, ISOMALTO-OLIGOSACCHARIDES (IMO),
POLYDEXTROSE, LACTULOSE AND RESISTANT STARCH ARE CONSIDERED AS THE MAIN
PREBIOTIC COMPONENTS.
PRIMARILY OLIGOSACCHARIDES, SUCH AS SOY OLIGOSACCHARIDES (SOS), GALACTO-
OLIGOSACCHARIDES (GOS) AND XYLO-OLIGOSACCHARIDES (XOS) .
OLIGOSACCHARIDES PLAY IMPORTANT ROLE IN OBESITY CONTROL THROUGH
RESULTING INCREASED SATIETY AND REDUCED HUNGER .
INULIN AND OLIGOFRUCTOSE BESIDES BEING PREBIOTICS, HAVE SHOWN TO INCREASE
CALCIUM ABSORPTION, THUS IMPROVE BOTH BONE MINERAL CONTENT AND BONE
MINERAL DENSITY (BMD). FURTHERMORE, THEY INFLUENCE THE FORMATION OF
BLOOD GLUCOSE, AND REDUCE THE LEVELS OF CHOLESTEROL AND SERUM LIPIDS .
SYNBIOTICS: FOODS CONTAINING A COMBINATION OF PROBIOTICS AND PREBIOTICS .
PREBIOTIC
S

12. CONSISTS OF NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES FORTIFIED WITH VITAMINS A, C AND E OR
OTHER FUNCTIONAL INGREDIENTS.
ALTHOUGH, THERE IS A RELATIVELY HIGH NUMBER OF A PRODUCT AVAILABLE IN THIS
SEGMENT, THE MARKET IS STILL SMALL AND FRAGMENTED.
OTHER TYPES OF FUNCTIONAL DRINKS ARE THOSE OF CHOLESTEROL LOWERING
DRINKS (WITH COMBINATION OF OMEGA-3 AND SOY), ‘‘EYE HEALTH’’ DRINKS (WITH
LUTEIN) OR ‘‘BONE HEALTH’’ DRINKS (WITH CALCIUM AND INULIN).
FUNCTIONAL
DRINKS

13. CEREALS, IN PARTICULAR OAT AND BARLEY.
THE MULTIPLE BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF CEREALS CAN BE EXPLOITED IN
DIFFERENT WAYS LEADING TO THE DESIGN OF NOVEL CEREAL FOODS OR
CEREAL INGREDIENTS THAT CAN TARGET SPECIFIC POPULATIONS.
FUNCTIONAL
CEREALS

14. • NUTRACEUTICALS & FUNCTIONAL FOODS GENERATE ONE OF THE MOST PROMISING AND
DYNAMICALLY DEVELOPING SEGMENTS OF FOOD INDUSTRY.
• INCREASING CONSUMER AWARENESS IN COMBINATION WITH NEW ADVANCES IN VARIOUS
SCIENTIFIC DOMAINS IS SUPPORTING THE INFLOW OF FUNCTIONAL PRODUCT.
• IN THE CASE OF A SUCCESSFUL PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT ATTENTION SHOULD BE PAID
BOTH TO CONSUMER DEMANDS AND TECHNICAL CONDITIONS, FURTHERMORE, THE
LEGISLATION BACKGROUND SHOULD NOT BE NEGLECTED, CONSUMER ACCEPTANCE IS
KEY SUCCESS FACTOR.
• CONSUMER ACCEPTANCE, IS DETERMINED BY FACTORS LIKE PRIMARY HEALTH
CONCERNS, CONSUMERS’ FAMILIARITY WITH THE ‘‘FUNCTIONAL FOOD’’ CONCEPTS AND
WITH THE FUNCTIONAL INGREDIENTS, THE NATURE OF THE CARRIER PRODUCT, THE
MANNER OF HEALTH EFFECT COMMUNICATION, ETC.
• MAIN CONDITIONS FOR ACCEPTANCE OF FUNCTIONAL FOODS IS PERTAINING TO TASTE,
BESIDES, PRODUCT QUALITY, PRICE, CONVENIENCE AND TRUSTWORTHINESS OF HEALTH
CLAIMS.
• BY PURCHASING FUNCTIONAL FOODS IN GENERAL CONSUMERS MAY ACHIEVE A MODERN
AND POSITIVE IMPRESSION OF THEMSELVES. THESE PRODUCTS PROVIDE CONSUMERS A
MODERN WAY TO FOLLOW A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE, WHICH DIFFERS FROM THE
CONCLUSION

15. QUESTIONS?