Dietary Supplements and Functional Foods

1. Dietary Supplements and Functional Foods Unit 24

2. Dietary Supplements • Dietary supplement • Any product intended to supplement the diet, including vitamin and mineral supplements, proteins, enzymes, amino acids, hormones and hormone precursors, and herbs and other plant extracts • Products must be labeled “Dietary Supplement”

3. Dietary Supplements

4. Regulation of Dietary Supplements • Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (1994) • Minimal regulation by FDA • Not tested or shown to be safe or effective • Labeled with “Supplemental Facts” panel

5. Supplement Labeling

6. Vitamin and Mineral Supplements • 43% of Americans use vitamin and mineral supplements • Multi-vitamin and mineral supplements have lower bioavailability than single supplements

7. Key Terms • Bioavailability • Amount of a nutrient consumed that is available for absorption and use by the body • Minerals tend to form unabsorbable complexes with each other, reducing bioavailability of each

8. Vitamin and mineral supplements can have positive effects on health Who Benefits?

9. Wrong Uses • Supplements will not make a bad diet good • Supplements are not remedies for all health problems

10. Rational Use • Supplements should be taken only when needed, and only in safe doses • Purchase supplements labeled “USP” • Check expiration dates • Do not exceed 100% of Daily Value • Take with meals • Take single supplements • Store supplements away from children

11. Herbal Remedies • ~21% of Americans use herbal supplements • >550 primary herbs • Many have drug-like effects • Biologically active ingredients may have positive, negative, or neutral effects • Many risks and benefits are unknown

12. Herb or Drug?

13. Effects and Side Effects

14. Supplement Safety

15. Ginkgo biloba for Alzheimer’s disease Cranberry for UTI Garlic for cholesterol St John’s wort for depression Rose hips and senna for constipation SAMe and DHEA for depression Ginger for motion sickness Beneficial Supplements

16. Ephedra (Ma Huang) • Ephedra (Ma huang) • Similar to adrenaline • Marketed in US for weight loss and athletic performance • Can produce life-threatening effects on heart and nervous system • Banned in 2004

17. Quality Assurance • Dietary supplements may not contain correct amounts of ingredients, or may be contaminated • Private groups offer testing services • US Pharmacopeia (USP) • National Formulary (NF) • Consumer Laboratories (CL)

18. Quality Assurance

19. Functional Foods • Functional foods (“neutraceuticals”) • Generally taken to mean foods, fortified foods, and enhanced food products that may benefit health beyond the effects of the essential nutrients they contain

20. Functional Foods

21. Health Benefits

22. The colon is home to over 500 species of microorganisms Some cause disease – some prevent disease Prebiotics and Probiotics

23. Prebiotics • Prebiotics (“intestinal fertilizer”) • Non-digestible food ingredients that beneficially affect a person by selectively stimulating the growth or activity of one or a limited number of bacteria in the colon • Example: inulin (an extract of chicory root)

24. Probiotics • Probiotics (“friendly bacteria”) • Live microorganisms which, when delivered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit • Examples: strains of lactobacillus and bifidobacteria

25. Sources of Prebiotics and Probiotics

26. Potential Benefits