Nutraceuticals

Module 1: Introduction of Nutraceuticals

Definition
 A nutraceutical is defined as “any substance that is a food or part of a food
and provides medical or health benefits, including the prevention and
treatment of disease”.
 The term “nutraceutical” combines the two words of “nutrient,” which is a
nourishing food component, and “pharmaceutical,” which is a medical drug.
 The name was coined in 1989 by Stephen DeFelice, founder and chairman of
the Foundation for Innovation in Medicine.
 Sometimes nutraceuticals are defined as pharmaceutical preparations
having nutritional and food supplement values having a significant role in
modifying the life style pattern of people.
 In India, nutraceuticals have been defined under Clause 22 of the Food
Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), 2006.

Bioactive compounds are abundant in nature, particularly in plants, which have the

capacity to synthesize phenolics, flavonoids, caffeine, carotenoids, and much more.
Different bioactive compounds can change or alter the life process due to their different
biological activities. 
 In most of the countries the nutraceuticals are taken as part of dietary supplements.
 A dietary supplement is considered as a product that bears or contains one or more
of the following dietary ingredients
 The philosophy behind nutraceuticals is to focus on prevention, according to the
saying by a Greek physician Hippocrates (known as the father of medicine) who
said “let food be your medicine”.
 Their role in human nutrition is one of the most important areas of investigation,
with wide-raging implications for consumers, healthcare providers, regulators, food
producers, and distributors.
 It can be considered non-specific biological therapies used to promote general well-
being, control symptoms, and prevent malignant processes.
Nutraceutical, in contrast to pharmaceuticals, are substances, which usually have not
patent protection. Both pharmaceutical and nutraceutical compounds might be used to
cure or prevent diseases, but only pharmaceutical compounds have governmental
sanction.
A dietary supplement is considered as a product that bears or contains one or more of
the following dietary ingredients: A mineral, a vitamin, an amino acid, a medical herb or
other botanical, a dietary substance for use by man to supplement the diet by increasing
the total daily intake, or a concentrate, metabolite, constituent, extract, or combinations
of these ingredients. Nutraceuticals are of these nutritional supplements which are used
for health purposes other than nutrition.

HEALTH BENEFITS
Emphasis has been made to present herbal nutraceuticals effective on hard curative
disorders related to oxidative stress, including allergy, alzheimer, cardiovascular, cancer,
diabetes, eye, immune, inflammatory and Parkinson's diseases, as well as obesity.
 BRIEF HISTORICAL ASPECT

2nd millennium B.C.: The beginning. The Ebers Papyrus, a medicinal text from

ancient Egypt, prescribed numerous foods to treat ailments. It recommended things
like goose fat for pain relief and liver to treat night blindness. Honey appeared in 500
remedies. Meanwhile, in India, ayurvedic medicine was emerging, with food as a
critical part.

3rd century B.C.:Traditional Chinese medicine. The first Chinese medical

book, Huang Di Nei Jing (The Yellow Emperor’s Book of Medicine), listed specific
grains, fruits, animals, and vegetables for optimum health -- the world’s first dietary
guidelines.

5th century B.C.:Ancient Greek understanding. Hippocrates of Cos, considered

the father of Western medicine, wrote about the connections between food and health.

1747:Food as medicine breakthrough. Searching for a cure for scurvy, Scottish

surgeon James Lind conducted the first-ever clinical trial on board the British Royal
Navy ship Salisbury. He found citrus to be an effective cure, though vitamin C
wouldn’t be discovered until the 20th century.

Mid-19th century:The science of nutrition. The concepts of calories and

macronutrients (fat, protein, and carbohydrates) were discovered and accepted.

1894:Early government advice. The U.S. Department of Agriculture published a

Farmers’ Bulletin that suggested a diet focused on macronutrients. Scientists hadn’t
identified specific minerals and vitamins yet.

1911:Vitamins discovered. Biochemist Casimir Funk proposed the concept of

vitamins (“vita” for life, “amine” for a kind of organic compound).