Functional Foods (updated information)

Functional Foods (European Commission): pdf document (2010)

Journal of functional foods (via Science Direct)
Journal of functional foods (el sevier)

ournal of Functional Foods is the official scientific journal of the International Society for Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods (ISNFF)

The Journal of Functional Foods aims to bring together the results of fundamental and applied research into functional foods (ie those containing various factors to ensure or enhance health) and theirdevelopment and commercialization in food products. The journal will cover (but will not be restricted to) the fields of plant bioactives;antioxidants and ageing; dietary fibre, prebiotics and functional starches; probiotics and probiotic functional foods; functional lipids;bioactive peptides; vitamins, minerals and botanicals and other dietary supplements; functional beverages and food products; and molecular nutrition and other relevant aspects of disease prevention and treatment.

Papers will cover such issues as new functional food bioactives; efficacy and safety of bioactive compounds and other functional food constituents using genomic technologies, bioassays and dynamic models; characterisation of functional foods and functional constituents with reference to product development; preparation of natural and synthetic ingredients for use in foods, supplements or premixes and improvement of ingredient quality; use of natural and synthetic ingredients in foods, supplements or premixes, effects of processing (including packaging, storage etc) on functionality and improvement of product quality; verification, quality control and traceability of natural and synthetic functional food ingredients and products; improvement of the quality of foods with inherent health benefits ; development and commercialisation of specific functional food products, supplements or functional ingredients; and the regulatory aspects of functional foods and related issues eg labelling, substantiation of health claims.

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Wikipedia definition

A functional food is a food given an additional function (often one related to health-promotion or disease prevention) by adding new ingredients or more of existing ingredients.^[1]

The general category of functional foods includes processed food or foods fortified with health-promoting additives, like "vitamin-enriched" products. Products considered functional generally do not include products where fortification has been done to meet government regulations and the change is not recorded on the label as a significant addition ("invisible fortification"). An example of this type of fortification would be the historic addition of iodine to table salt, or Vitamin D to milk, done to resolve public health problems such as rickets. Fermented foods with live cultures are considered functional foods with probiotic benefits.

Functional foods are part of the continuum of products that individuals may consume to increase their health and/or contribute to reducing their disease burden.

"Functional Food is a Natural or processed food that contains known biologically-active compounds which when in defined quantitative and qualitative amounts provides a clinically proven and documented health benefit, and thus, an important source in the prevention, management and treatment of chronic diseases of the modern age". It was debated at the 9th International Conference on "Functional Foods and Chronic Diseases: Science and Practice" at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on March 15-17, 2011. Functional Food Center has adopted a new definition of functional food. ^[2]

Functional foods are an emerging field in food science due to their increasing popularity with health-conscious consumers and the ability of marketers to create new interest in existing products.

The term was first used in Japan in the 1980s where there is a government approval process for functional foods called Foods for Specified Health Use (FOSHU).^[3]