As marketers of conventional foods, functional foods and dietary supplements pore over data looking for new product opportunities that answer consumer needs, foods and beverages that address health issues, often specific health conditions, come to the forefront. 

Spurred on by significant media attention and industry education, the role of digestive health is increasingly being recognized by consumers and health practitioners as very important to overall well-being.

This is the second in a series of technical featurettes by the Guelph Food Technology Centre (GFTC) on ingredient-oriented food product development topics. Different functional or nutraceutical ingredients in demand by consumers and current food trends will be the focus of the series.

Satiety-enhancing foods include some that are able to fill the gut but be markedly reduced (e.g., fiber, polydextrose), while others will affect the release of gut hormones, influencing satiety and appetite.

Inadequate prescription therapy pain-management, lack of doctor-patient communication about over-the-counter (OTC) medications and easy accessibility of OTC medications may contribute to patients using more than one medication to manage pain,"writes Stacey H. Kovac, Ph.D., from Durham Veterans Administration Medical Center and Duke University in Durham, N.C., and colleagues.

Studies report on topics from consumers’ moods toward food to a few of particular significance to women’s health.

The FDA acknowledges that both soy protein and sterols can provide a means for consumers to help reduce their risk of heart disease as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol.

AnMar Nutrition supplies d-glucuronolactone, taurine, ascorbic acid, Rhodiola rosea, caffeine, glucosamine, chondroitin and a full line of amino acids.

Spirulina is a special form of blue-green algae (Earth's most nutritious green super-food) that promotes immune health and provides natural antioxidant protection.

Mars Inc. conducted a two-day meeting in Switzerland in July, and the company announced the conclusions of several studies demonstrating the flavanols found in cocoa and dark chocolate have heart health benefits and may boost blood flow to certain regions of the brain.