Edible plants have been used since the dawn of time, in various forms, for both the treatment of pathological conditions and for their beneficial effects on human health. Recent findings have highlighted the important role that diet plays in the pathogenesis of some common chronic-degenerative diseases, such as diabetes, Alzheimer's disease and cancer. Optimizing human nutrition by adding potentially protective substances to a specific diet combines information derived from basic biomedical science with epidemiological evidence to prevent or reduce the onset of various diseases for populations or homogenous groups of people.
The need to optimize our diet becomes even more evident if we consider how our lifestyles and diet have changed. Energy expenditure in industrialized society has plummeted in the last 1 00 years from 3000 to 1800 Kcal/day. As such, in an attempt to maintain a healthy body weight, we eat less, indirectly reducing our optimal uptake of phytochemicals, vitamins and minerals. And as if that's not enough, the nutritional profile of what we eat has also dramatically changed during the last century. Modern food plants have been selected for factors such as succulence and yield . . . and their payability has been increased by suppressing their natural defences (phyto nutrients, like polyphenols, have an astringent taste), replacing them with pesticides. As an example, let's just think about the differences between wild and supermarket - purchased strawberries; wild strawberries are small and highly flavoured, whereas the other ones are big and succulent, but have much less taste (and phyto nutrients). Essentially, they have been enriched with water and sugar. In addition, the modern diet has lost its diversity. The vast majority of our caloric intake is derived from only four species of plants (wheat, rice, soy and corn) that represent the basis upon which the world's population is fed, compared with the 3000 plants that are utilized for food and the 1 50 species that are commercially cultivated.
Based on the emerging body of scientific evidence, food companies have recently started to race to bring functional foods to market, integrating common food products with specific and, more importantly, lost or lacking phytonutrients. The last few years have seen an extraordinary rise in functional foods, as many manufacturers have discovered the interesting market potential of claiming the health benefits of their products to consumers. Moreover, as consumers become more health conscious, the demand for health -promoting foods has been steadily growing. Many of today's functional ingrethents come from the health-food sector, where they have been marketed as solid dosage forms. Currently, they are being adapted and formulated into more user friendly and tasting forms, such as chewing gums, sachets, bars, yoghurts and other foods and beverages to deliver their functional benefits in more pleasant and less 'medicated' ways than pills.
By Gum!
The rising demand from food companies, as well as from consumers, to incorporate extracts into novel, convenient foodstuffs mirrors Indena's vision to deliver the science of nature in new formats. Indena has been conducting a large number of studies to find new ways to optimize botanical extracts or to select the ones that will meet the new formulation objectives of a specific food. In particular, Indena's research aims to understand the way that extracts might affect a specific food formulation, identifying the most suitable phase of the manufacturing process to add the extracts, verifying its influence on the taste, analysing the chemical stability of the extracts after their incorporation and, of course, verifying the eventual interaction with the specific food matrix. In this way, Indena can provide prospective partners with scientifically supported ingrethents that have already been tested in specific food matrices, allowing them to move more quickly towards further developments and, for instance, obtain specific health claims. Some of the matrices that have been studied so far include bread, ice cream, yoghurts, water and gums. Indena recently partnered with Gum Base Co., one of the world's leading producers of gum bases and compressed powder gums for use in the confectionery, health food and pharmaceutical industry.
One of the main drawbacks involved in integrating natural ingrethents into traditional extruded gums was the limited amount of available actives - as well as the degradation/ interactions that the ingrethents undergo as a result of the heating procedures. Thanks to precise product development and a new delivery technology that brings together the core competencies of two leading companies, it is now possible to guarantee stability, taste and a formulation with enough active product to meet specific customer needs. This has already been achieved with a series of Indena's ingrethents that includes, among others, Opextan, Mlrtoselect, Leucoselect, Ginselect and Guarana. The extracts, delivered in a chewing gum format, offer the same beneficial properties as the original extracts:
* Opextan is a patented olive fruit extract that is proven to have remarkable antioxidant and skin protective capabilities for healthy, beautiful skin.
* Mirtoselect is a standardized bilberry extract containing 36% anthocyanins; obtained exclusively from Vaccinium myrtillus L, it has been clinically tested and proven to be effective in the treatment of peripheral circulatory and ophthalmic disorders. Furthermore, anthocyanins are currently among the most investigated compounds for their role in cancer prevention.
* Leucoselect is a polyphenol -rie h grape seed extract that has been specifically developed for cardiovascular applications.
* Ginselect is a standardized ginseng extract that is widely used for its tonic and adaptogenic properties.
* Guarana is well known for its tonic, stimulant and mild diuretic activity.
Furthermore, the new delivery system is opening doors for these ingrethents to as -yet undeveloped indications, such as oral health.
Pharma Meets Nutra
Thanks to its long-standing experience in the pharmaceutical sector, Indena can count on state-of-the-art analytical and formulation expertise, as used in the health -food industry for the bulk production of botanical dietary supplements by rotogranulation, a technique that is particularly suitable for turning oily raw materials into powders. The company's partners, operating in the food and beverage sectors, can now capitalize on this expertise to meet the opportunities and challenges represented by the new European requirements and regulations for food. Indena is currently looking at leading food and beverage companies to become privileged partners to develop new innovative ways of delivering the healthy properties of its extracts. Foods enriched with the natural bouquets of bioactive compounds that have been validated for efficacy and safety could have a major impact on the future of the industry.
[Sidebar]
The last few years have seen an extraordinary rise in functional foods and, as consumers become more health conscious, the demand for healthpromoting foods has been steadily growing.
[Author Affiliation]
For more information
Giusi Losi
Marketing Department
INDENA SpA
Viale Orties 12
1-20139 Milan, Italy.
Tel. +39 0257 496 298
giusi.losi@indena.com
www.indena.com
