The Japanese first spoke about functional nutrition in the 80s of the last century. The meaning of this theory is that all food products are not only physiologically necessary, but can also have a clear pharmacological effect on the human body.
Pick your recipe
According to statistics, Japan ranks first in the consumption of biologically active additives (BAA) and can rightfully be considered the country of long-livers. However, it was there that they first started talking about functional nutrition. As for Russia, the word dietary supplement is still perceived by the majority of the population as something hostile to the human body. Nutritionists believe that between the two ingredients, in fact, there is not much difference. They are distinguished only by form.
Perhaps the negative for dietary supplements is caused by the analogy with food coloring, preservatives and other technological additives, which are also called food additives. They really can include non-food, synthetic substances. The translation from English introduces confusion, where food additives (BAA) and food additives (dyes, emulsifiers, etc.) are referred to as “food additives”
Surprisingly, pharmaceutical preparations, which often have a synthetic nature, cause more confidence among the Russian population than concentrated extracts from plants. Although the latter are also available in the form of capsules or tablets, they are related to food products. The norm of vitamins, minerals, micronutrients necessary for the human body in dietary supplements is somewhat exceeded, so they should be taken in courses.
Both dietary supplements and the functional nutrition system are able to make up for the deficiency of essential substances in the body. Only this process is long. Nutritionists agree that dietary supplements should be consumed in a system with functional nutrition. Then the effectiveness of restoring health is much higher. Specialized nutrition should not be confused with functional. The first refers to a special set of high-quality products intended for certain groups of the population: children, pregnant women, athletes.
As for functional nutrition, according to the scientific concept, it can be attributed only to what has a clear positive effect on some key function of the human body. For example, a lactic-containing sour-milk product helps to restore the intestinal microflora, and products with a low sugar or cholesterol content are a prophylactic for diabetics and people suffering from cardiovascular diseases.
Nutritionists - experts in the field of nutrition science are confident that functional products must be taken seriously, because modern products are very different from what our grandfathers ate. The depletion of natural resources, the massive use of chemical fertilizers, the use of antibiotics, hormones and pesticides have caused irreparable harm to nature. Therefore, functional nutrition is not an invention of scientists and nutritionists, but the imperative of the time.
- Functional nutrition - what is it?
- The difference between functional nutrition and dietary supplement
- What are dietary supplements