Herbal foods (Nutraceuticals and Functional foods)

Foods:

Types of Foods:

(i) Energy giving foods: The foods which provide energy to our body are
called energy giving food. Example- Carbohydrates (e.g. sugar, potato) and
Fat (e.g. cheese, chocolates).

(ii) Body building foods: Help in building the body’s structure by

formation of muscles, skeleton, organs ,nervous system, blood etc. Example:
Protein (e.g. ,milk, egg ) and certain type of lipid.

(iii) Protective foods: They protect our body from different types of
infection, disease and rectify various sorts of metabolic disorders. Example:
Fruits, vegetables, vitamin and minerals.
❑ Balanced diet: Balanced diet is the one which contains a variety of foods in such quantitates and proportions that need

for energy ,proteins, vitamin, minerals and fats are adequately met for maintaining health, vitality and general well being.

❑ Nutrition expert group from ICMR has recommended the composition of balanced diet for Indians.

Vegetarian(gm) Non vegetarian(gm)

Cereals 475 475
Pulses 80 65
Green leafy vegetables 125 25
Other vegetables 75 75
Root and tubers 100 100
Fruits 30 30
Milk 200 200
Fats and oils 40 40
Meat and Fish 30
Eggs 30
 Nutraceuticals:

▪ The word "nutraceuticals" was coined by Dr. S. DeFelice in 1989 which is combination of two words: “nutrients,” and “pharmaceuticals”

▪ These are dietary supplements, have potentiality to deliver a concentrated form of presumed bioactive agents from a food, presented in a non

food matrix and used with the purpose of enhancing health in the dosages that exceed those that could be obtained from normal food (Zeisel,

1999)

▪ Some example of Nutraceuticals :

Nutraceuticals Source
Lycopene Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), spinach
(Spinacea oleracea)
Lutein Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), butternut
squash (Cucurbita moschata)
γ-Linolenic acid Evening primrose (Oenothera biennis), borage
seed (Borago officinalis)
Resveratrol Grapes (Vitis vinifera), wine, cranberry juice
Soy isoflavones Soy (Glycine max)
Theanine Tea (Camellia sinensis)
Flaxseed Linum usitatissimum
Policosanol/octacosanol Sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum)
❑ Functional foods

• Functional foods are the foods or dietary components and consumption of which may be associated with health

benefits beyond the basic nutritional properties that the food possess.

• General features:

1. It is a food having similar appearance to a conventional food (beverage , food matrix)

2. It is consumed as part of a usual diet.

3. It contains biologically active components with demonstrated physiological benefits.

4. They offer the potential of reducing the risk of chronic diseases beyond basic nutritional functions.

Example: Tomatoes with increased lycopene content, Milk with added Omega-3 fatty acid.
 Classification of functional foods
Functional foods

Basic food: These are food or food Processed foods with added Foods enhanced to have more of a
product that naturally contain bio- bioactive compounds: Bioactive bioactive: Bioactives exist naturally
active compounds. compounds are added during food in the food but the level of bioactives
Example: (i)Carrots- naturally processing. is modified or concentrated (by
contain β-carotene. Example: (i) Orange juice with application of genetic engineering
(ii) Oat beans- naturally contain β- added calcium. and breeding).
glucan. (ii) Milk with added Omega-3 fatty Example: (i) Tomatoes with
acids. increased lycopene content.
(ii) Eggs with increased amount of
Omega-3 fatty acids.
 Health benefits of nutraceuticals and Functional foods

1. Reduce the risk of various cardiovascular diseases, cancers, cholesterolemia etc.

2. Reduce blood cholesterol level, prevent early blockage in heart artery or veins.

3. Prevent osteoporosis and osteomalacia.

4. Reduce high blood pressure and maintains the homeostasis of human system.

5. Control skin diseases.

6. Prevent liver dysfunction.

7. Minimize the risk of diabetes, obesity and other lifestyle diseases.

 Functional foods from plant sources:
➢Rice:
➢ Rice is one of the major cereals and staple food for the half of the world’s population.

➢ Rice is not only the source of carbohydrate, but also it contains a wide range of

phytochemicals.

➢ Rice bran (the leathery fruit or seed coat), a valuable by product that contains high

concentration of nutritionally valuable compounds.

➢ It contains- (i) High concentration of dietary fibres (β-glucan, pectin, gum)

(ii) It also contains Tocotrienols ; γ- oryzanols and β-sitosterol. These three

compounds lowers the plasm level of various lipid profile.

(iii) Presence of alpha- Lipoic acid which assists in metabolizing

carbohydrates and fats and other lowering glycaemic index and controlling the body weight.
➢Garlic:
➢ Potential health benefits of Alium sativum has its origin in antiquity.
➢ It contains numerous phytochemicals which possess significant bioactivities.
➢ Garlic contains volatile sulfur compounds such as diallyl disulfide which is responsible for its
characteristic flavour and odour.
➢ Garlic bulb contains odourless amnio acids (allium), which enzymatically convert into allicin. The
allicin is reported to reduce inflammation, offer antioxidant benefits, and control high blood
pressure.
Numerous experiments have validated different bioactivities of garlic:
(i) Garlic and its supplements are consumed in many cultures as immunity booster;
increase total WBC,RBC and Platelets count.
(ii) Garlic reduce the growth of tumours, anti cancerous activity has been demonstrated
against colon cancer, gastrointestinal tract cancer, lung cancer etc.
(iv) Maintains static blood glucose levels and limit high blood pressure.
(v) Moderate consumption of garlic decreases the risk of age related muscular
degeneration.
➢Bramhi:
➢ Bacopa monnieri (scrophulariaceae) has been used by Ayurved
medicine practitioners in India for almost 3000 years as a drug to
improve memory and intellect and is currently recognised as an
effective herb in treatment of mental illness and epilepsy.
Biologically active constituents:
(i)Alkaloids e.g. Brahmine and Herpestine, Bacoside- A & B,
Saponins, Betulic acids, Sigmasterol and β-sitosterol etc.
(ii)All the above mentioned compounds have systematic effects and are
actually responsible for memory boosting and other benefits.
(iv)Bramhi releases mental stress, acts as cardiotonic, hepatoprotective,
muscle relaxant and antiulcer agent.
➢ Flaxseed:

❑ Flax (Linium usitatisimum) is an important oil seed crop, and

among the major seed oils, flaxseed oil contains mainly (57%) the

omega-3 fatty acid i.e., alpha linoleic acid. It contains a variety of

protective nutritive compounds.

(ii)Consumption of flaxseed has also been shown to reduce total and

LDL cholesterol as well as platelet aggregation.

➢ Tea:
• Tea is the most popular and most widely consumed beverage in the world.

• The important constitutents of greem tea are polyphenols particularly flavonoids.

Polyphenol comprises up to 30% of the total dry weight of the fresh tea leaves. Catechins

are the predominant and the most significant of all the tea polyphenols. The four major tea

catechins are; epigallocatechin 3-gallate, epigallocatechin, epicatechin 3-gallate and

epicatechin.

• Studies showed that the consumption of five or more cups of green tea per day was

associated with decrease recurrence of stage I and stage II breast cancer in Japanese

women (Nakchi et al., 1998)

• Anti inflammatory effects of black tea polyphenols are responsible for guarding against

CVD development.
➢ Oats:

• Oats are gaining an increasing scientific and public interest for their antioxidant

associated health benefits.

• Oat products are widely studies dietary source of the cholesterol lowering soluble fibre

known as β-glucan .

• Apart from this, various study focuses on some specific oat extracts such as

tocopherol (vitamin E) and aventhramides (alkaloid). These compounds can

reduce total and LDL cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of coronary heart

diseases (CHD).

• There is a positive relationship between the consumption of β-glucan and lower blood

glucose level in human.

• As a grain without gluten, oat flour and bran are used as an alternative food for

persons suffering from Coeliac disease (Coeliac disease is an autoimmune disorder

that’s triggered when someone eat gluten).

 Functional foods from animal sources
➢ Dairy Products:
➢ Dairy products are well established and popularly used examples of functional foods;
• Milk is itself being a complete food. It is one of the best source of Calcium, an essential
nutrients which can prevent osteoporosis, colon cancer etc.
• Recent researches have focused on other components of dairy products, specially
fermented dairy products, known as Probiotics.
• Probiotics are live microbial feed supplements which beneficially affect the host animals
by influencing /improvising its intestinal microbial balance.
• These have been historically used to rebalance disturbed intestinal microflora and to
diminish gastrointestinal disorders, such as diarrhoea or bowel disorders. It is estimated
that, over 400 species of bacteria, inhabit the human gastrointestinal tract, including those
that are beneficial. Among the beneficial microorganisms traditionally used in food
fermentation, lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus sp.) have attracted most attention.
• Health benefits attributed to probiotics: Anticarcinogenic; Hypocholesterolaemia; and
antagonistic action against enteric pathogens..
 Functional foods from animal sources
➢Fishes:
➢ In addition to providing high quality proteins, essential fatty acids and other nutrients,

fish consumption is associated with certain health benefits as well.

➢ Omega-3 fatty acid is abundant in fish oil:

➢ .Omega 3- fatty acid is reported to have anti inflammatory property and controls rheumatoid arthritis.

➢ It prevents muscular degeneration.

➢ During infancy and lactation there is a demand on the mother to supply Omega 3-fatty acid to the

fetus for the development of Central Nervous System.

➢ It is established that regular intake of omega 3-fatty acid lowers the risk of heart attack and other cardio

vascular diseases.

➢ It boosts eye health and minimize the risk of vision related problems.
 Herbal foods: Are they safe enough

❑ Herbal foods have become increasingly popular with consumers anxious to mitigate the effect of an unhealthy lifestyle.
❑ In spite of attractive health claims, these products do not have any legal regulatory body in most countries.
❑ There are also numerous reports on the toxicity of herbs. So, there must be a regulatory board which authentically declare
the doses of administration of herbs or herbal products.

Some commonly used herbs and their adverse side effects

❑Garlic: Garlic can cause bad breath, a burning sensation in the mouth or stomach,

heartburn, gas, nausea, diarrhoea etc. Eating excess garlic may lead to skin irritation and

rashes. Garlic contains an enzyme called alliinase, which is usually the cause of skin

rashes.
❑Aloe vera: It is one of the most popular herbal drug.
• But it has also some serious side effects------------ it damages intestinal mucosa, severe
haemorrhagic diarrhoea,, skin disease etc.
• Oral administration of Aloe is not recommended during pregnancy as it may stimulate
uterine contraction. In breast feeding mother, it may sometimes causes gastrointestinal

diseases in the nursing infant.

❑Areca catechu:
• It causes reddish discolouration of teeth, periodontitis, and buccal mucositis.
• Oral submucosal fibrosis, oral leukoplakia (Thickened white patches on the gum, inside of
the cheeks and sometime on the tounge) and oral squamosa cell cancer are some oral
disease associated with Betel palm chewing.
❑Turmeric:
• The most common side effects observed in clinical studies are gastrointestinal and include

constipation, dyspepsia, diarrhoea, distension, gastroesophageal reflux, nausea, vomiting,

yellow stool and stomach ache.

• Due to their ability to increase bile secretion, turmeric and curcumin should not be taken

by individuals with obstruction of the bile duct, cholangitis and liver disease.
❑Zinger:
• Side effects of ginger include: increased bleeding tendency, abdominal discomfort, cardiac

arrhythmias (improper beating of the heart), central nervous system depression (if

overdosed), dermatitis (with topical use), diarrhoea, heartburn, mouth or throat irritation

etc.
A. Carotenoids: (i) Xanthophylls- Lutein, Zeaxanthin
(ii) Carotenes- Lycopene, β-glucan
• Lutein, Zeaxanthin are found in human eye in high concentration and it is postulated
that these chemicals to be beneficial to age related muscular degeneration and
cataracts.
• Lycopene decreases risk of prostrate cancer act as antioxidant, ability to absorb light
(eye health), anti-inflammatory.

B. Omega-3 fatty acids: Common types are alpha linoleic acid, eicosapentaenoic
acid, decosahexaenoic acid.
• It impacts cell membrane fluidity, cellular signalling, gene expression, decreases
cardiovascular diseases.
C. Conjugated Linoleic acid: Decreases severity of artherosclerosis, reduction of
adverse effects of immune stimulation, reduction of body fat, increase in lean body
mass..

C. Phytosterols: Sigma sterol, β-sitosterol, Campesterol.

• They decrease the total and low density lipoprotein cholesterol in humans by
inhibiting the absorption of dietary cholesterol.