Nutraceuticals, functional foods and botanical dietary supplements; promote wellbeing and underpin public health

Seaweeds have a long history of use as food, as flavouring agents, and find use in traditional folk medicine. Seaweed products range from food, feed, and dietary supplements to pharmaceuticals, and from bioenergy intermediates to materials. At present, 98% of the seaweed required by the seaweed industry is provided by five genera and only ten species. The two brown kelp seaweeds Laminaria digitata, a native Irish species, and Macrocystis pyrifera, a native New Zealand species, are not included in these eleven species, although they have been used as dietary supplements and as animal and fish feed. The properties associated with the polysaccharides and proteins from these two species have resulted in increased interest in them, enabling their use as functional foods. Improvements and optimisations in aquaculture methods and bioproduct extractions are essential to realise the commercial potential of these seaweeds. Recent advances in optimising these processes are outlined in this review, as well as potential future applications of L. digitata and, to a greater extent, M. pyrifera which, to date, has been predominately only wild-harvested. These include bio-refinery processing to produce ingredients for nutricosmetics, functional foods, cosmeceuticals, and bioplastics. Areas that currently limit the commercial potential of these two species are highlighted.

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31.E. Workshop: Food processing in the modern era: implication for public health

European Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1093/eurpub/ckaa165.1405 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽

Author(s):

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Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Dietary Supplements ◽

Dietary Patterns ◽

General Public ◽

Communicable Diseases ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Processed Foods ◽

Healthy Weight ◽

Traditional Foods ◽

Non Communicable Diseases

Abstract Current scientific evidence and reports from governmental organizations agree that healthy nutrition represents a key factor to prevent death and disability from major nutrition-related chronic diseases. For many years, the essential goal of healthy dietary recommendations included eating nutrient dense foods and limiting consumption of foods high in energy (sugar, starch and/or fat) to maintain a healthy weight. However, the scientific community abandoned the more simplistic approach of energy balance between calorie in and out, shifting into investigation of the whole diet quality as main determinant of health. With development of new technologies and globalization of the markets, the food availability improved worldwide, often in spite of (nutritional) quality and loss of local products production/consumption. As a result, there is an industry-supported wide spread of “non-traditional” foods, including processed foods characterized by various ingredients, added sugars, and additives that are highly influencing consumers' behaviors and, only recently, questioned for their role on general public health. This workshop aims to provide insights on consumption of ultra-processed foods up to the extreme processing of dietary supplements and their use and misuse, emphasizing on their potential impact on traditional dietary patterns. The objectives of the present workshop are the following: To provide a science-based definition of processed and ultra-processed foods; To explore current evidence of the association between ultra-processed foods and risk of chronic non-communicable diseases and mortality; To explore current evidence of the association between dietary supplements and human health; To discuss whether introduction of non-traditional foods may affect the relation between traditional dietary patterns and health. Given the novelty of the topic, it is crucial to summarize current evidence from lead experts on this field of research and sharing opinions with the audience in light of the presented results. The conclusions might have crucial implications for potential policy and research outcomes. Key messages Uncontrolled consumption of ultra-processed foods and dietary supplements represent a potential threat for general public health. The inclusion of ultra-processed foods into traditional healthy dietary patterns may affect their efficacy in preventing chronic non-communicable diseases.

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