Nutraceutical: A New Scope and Opportunity of Healthcare

Abstract

Nutraceuticals refers to foods having a medicinal effect on health of human beings. It consists of food supplements, herbal products, probiotics and prebiotics, medical foods meant for prevention and treatment of diseases. Major nutraceuticals possess multiple therapeutic effect with lacking of unwanted effects. A nutraceutical is demonstrated to have a physiological benefit or provide protection against chronic disease. I try to redefine functional foods and nutraceuticals. When food is being cooked or prepared using scientific intelligence with or without knowledge is called functional food. Thus, functional food provides the body with the required amount of vitamins, fats, proteins, carbohydrates, etc, needed for its healthy survival When functional food aids in the prevention, treatment of disease(s) and disorder(s) other than anemia, it is called a nutraceutical. Nutraceuticals are non toxic food components which claimed to possess multiple therapeutic benefits. Some popular nutraceuticals include glucosamine, ginseng, echinacea, folic acid, cod liver oil, omega-3 fatty acid(MUFA,PUFA), calcium-enriched orange juice, green tea, plant phenols etc.