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Functional food
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{{Short description|Food modified for a presumed health benefit}} {{Use American English|date=April 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}} {{cs1 config|name-list-style=vanc|display-authors=3}} A '''functional food''' is a [[food]] claimed to have an additional benefit beyond just [[nutrition]] (often one related to [[health promotion]] or [[disease prevention]]) by modifying the [[horticulture|cultivation]] of the native food or by [[food additive|adding ingredients]] during manufacturing.<ref name="sloan">{{cite magazine|date=4 April 2025|magazine=Food Technology Magazine, Institute of Food Technology|author=Sloan AE|title=The Top 10 Functional Food Trends|access-date=18 April 2025|url=https://www.ift.org/news-and-publications/food-technology-magazine/issues/2025/april/features/the--top-10-functional-food--trends}}</ref> The term applies to traits purposely [[plant breeding|bred]] into existing edible plants, such as purple or gold potatoes having increased [[anthocyanin]] or [[carotenoid]] contents, respectively.<ref name="usda">{{cite web | url=https://agresearchmag.ars.usda.gov/2014/nov/potatoes | title=Delicious, Nutritious, and a Colorful Dish for the Holidays! | publisher=US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, AgResearch Magazine | date=November 2014 | access-date=11 October 2016}}</ref> Functional food manufacturing has the intent "to have physiological benefits and/or reduce the risk of chronic disease beyond basic nutritional functions, and may be similar in appearance to conventional food and consumed as part of a regular diet".<ref>{{cite web|title=Basics about Functional Food|publisher=US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service|url=http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/00000000/NPS/FinalFunctionalFoodsPDFReadVersion6-25-10.pdf|date=July 2010}}</ref> The term also applies to [[food processing]] practices which include ingredients purposely added with the intent to improve the food health value and for marketing to specific consumer groups.<ref name=sloan/> The term was first used in the 1980s in [[Japan]], where a government approval process for functional foods called ''Foods for Specified Health Use'' (FOSHU) exists.<ref>{{cite web | title=FOSHU, Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, Japan | agency= Government of Japan | url=http://www.mhlw.go.jp/english/topics/foodsafety/fhc/02.html}}</ref> ==Ingredients and market trends== Common ingredients intended to be functional when added to foods include [[Polyunsaturated fat|polyunsaturated fatty acids]], [[probiotic]]s, [[Prebiotic (nutrition)|prebiotics]], [[vitamin]]s with [[antioxidant]] properties, and [[protein (nutrient)|protein]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Granato |first=Daniel |last2=Barba |first2=Francisco J. |last3=Kovačević |first3=Danijela Bursać |last4=Lorenzo |first4=José M. |last5=Cruz |first5=Adriano G. |last6=Putnik |first6=Predrag |date=2020-03-25 |title=Functional Foods: Product Development, Technological Trends, Efficacy Testing, and Safety |url=https://www.annualreviews.org/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-food-032519-051708 |journal=Annual Review of Food Science and Technology |language=en |volume=11|pages=93–118 |doi=10.1146/annurev-food-032519-051708 |issn=1941-1413|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="mell">{{cite web |author1=Mellentin J |title=Key Trends in Functional Foods for 2025 |url=https://www.nutraceuticalsworld.com/key-trends-in-functional-foods-for-2025/ |publisher=Nutraceuticals World |access-date=18 April 2025 |date=7 October 2024}}</ref> As of 2025, leading product trends and motivations for choosing functional foods are for [[energy drink]]s, [[Ageing|healthy aging]], [[active living]], and [[weight loss]], among several others.<ref name=sloan/> ==Health claim status== Presumed benefits of making foods more ''functional'' or healthful have not been scientifically established, and specific statements of [[health claim]]s are regulated on [[food label]]s in the European Union, United States and Canada.<ref name="gonz">{{cite journal |vauthors=González-Díaz C, Gil-González D, Álvarez-Dardet C |title=Scientific Evidence on Functional Food and Its Commercial Communication: A Review of Legislation in Europe and the USA |journal=Journal of Food Science |volume=83 |issue=11 |pages=2710–2717 |date=November 2018 |pmid=30339738 |doi=10.1111/1750-3841.14359 |url=https://ift.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1750-3841.14359|hdl=10045/83410 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref name="hc">{{cite web |title=Health claims on food labels |url=https://inspection.canada.ca/en/food-labels/labelling/industry/health-claims |publisher=Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada |access-date=18 April 2025 |date=23 January 2025}}</ref> ==Industry== In the United States in 2024, retail sales of functional food and beverage products totaled $320 billion, with estimates for growth to $384 billion by 2028.<ref name=sloan/> ==See also== {{Portal|Food}} * [[Functional beverage]] * [[Medical food]], specially formulated foods to treat diseases with distinctive nutritional needs ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== * [http://www.cspinet.org/reports/functional_foods/ Functional Foods: Public Health Boon or 21st Century Quackery?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041213230019/http://www.cspinet.org/reports/functional_foods/ |date=2004-12-13 }}, a review of regulations and demand for functional foods in Japan, the [[United States|U.S.]] and the [[United Kingdom|UK]] (March 1999) {{Authority control}} [[Category:Functional food| ]] {{food-stub}}
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