Functional Foods a personal perspective

The food industry has been very interested in âfunctional foodsâ over the last few years. There has been considerable hype in trade magazines and journals, and at conferences and seminars about the huge potential market for these special foods. A number of factors have caused this interest:

- Consumer research indicates that we (the general public) are becoming increasingly interested in health and nutrition.
- Nutritional science linking the foods we choose to eat to our health status is getting stronger.
- New technologies are permitting innovation in food manufacture.
- Governments are concerned about the cost (social and economic) of diet-related disability. Pharmaceutical costs continue to rise â exponentially in some cases!

The problem is that most people are not aware of âfunctional foodsâ and anyway, there is no way most of us would compromise on taste, and the eating habits of a lifetime, unless we were very motivated. Suffering a heart attack or the pain of arthritis can lead to dramatic changes in eating habits, but prevention of diet-related health problems is a poor motivator for the immortal under 35s!

The challenge for governments and the food industry is how to motivate people to change their eating habits when they feel fit and well â and have other more pressing problems such as coping with teenagers, paying the bills or relationship breakdowns.

There are a number of ways to approach this problem â some call for increased taxes on so-called âunhealthy foodâ to make them less desirable. Others call for permission to make health claims on food to make the healthier options more desirable.

In my view the most effective way to improve our nutritional health is to offer foods which look the same, taste the same and cost (about) the same as the foods we eat everyday, but are nutrit... ...read the full guide >>>