Physiological Activities of Policosanol Extracted from Sugarcane Wax

Policosanol extracted from sugarcane wax is a generic term used for total fatty alcohols obtained from esterification of fatty acids. It has been approved as a health functional food by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety of Korea in 2006. Policosanol is well-known to aid in lowering blood cholesterol level. Recently, several studies have reported the physiological activities of policosanol, such as anti-inflammatory effects, antioxidant effects, and lowering of the incidence of ageing-related diseases, for example, hypertension, stroke, among others. This review describes the physiological activities of policosanol and its applications in the field of health functional foods.

Study on Relationship between Elderly Group Lifestyle and Selection Attributes in the Health Functional Foods

OBJECTIVE: This experiment is to study how elderly group and their various lifestyles interact with health functional foods, according to their selection behavior. Different lifestyles will be observed closely, as well as how different health conditions and consumer involvements will affect critical decision making in selecting health functional foods. METHOD: Theories and discoveries from original advanced research were compared parallel to the new study. RESULTS: First, cluster analysis and exploratory analysis were performed amongst different elder lifestyles. Lifestyle exploratory analysis was used for healthy, unique, leisure, and economical-style elders. Cluster analysis was used for material trend oriented, health oriented, complacent oriented-style elders. Health Functional Foods' selection trait Exploratory Factor Analysis showed that product's originality (function, uniqueness, specialty, compatibility, distributor, expiration date), quality (amount, daily dose, visual representation, accessibility, portability, natural ingredients), and popularity (product container, brand image, taste and smell, advertised product, domestic or import, well-known function) were the three main causes. Secondly, the amount of benefits for the elderly group health lifestyle were affected by 'Interest in health', 'Notability of the health functional food', and 'Functionality approved mark'. Specifically, the importance of, 'Interest in health', 'Notability of health functional food', and 'Functionality approved mark' were noticeably high within health oriented elders. Lastly, after examining the data from elder lifestyle's relationship with health functional food selection trait, all three different results showed equal importance. If you closely examine material trend oriented elderly group, selection trait showed distinctively high regards in 'Fundamental Attribute', 'Typical Attribute', and 'Cognitive Attribute'. Health oriented elders showed their distinctively high regards in 'Natural Attribute', and less consideration in 'Typical Attribute' and 'Cognitive Attribute'. Complacent oriented-style elderly group showed less focus on 'Fundamental Attribute', and even less in 'Typical Attribute', and 'Cognitive Attribute'. Health oriented elderly group concluded with above data from the fact that they showed most importance and involvement in health beneficial products that are scientifically proven. Material trend oriented elderly group showed balanced traits in their concluded data, showing that they prefer function, safety, as well as the brand image and their reputation. Also, they consider the products' outer elements, such as design and product name, in order to sense inner functions. CONCLUSION: So, Silver Business corporations must develop products to fulfill the market demands, and strategize marketing plans to better target the correct audience.

The Use of Health Functional Foods in Gastrointestinal Cancer Patients

As an adjunct to cancer treatment, the use of health functional foods (HFFs) seems to be increasing. However, little is known for the use of HFFs among cancer patients in Korea. The aims of this study were to investigate the exposure rate of HFF use among gastrointestinal (GI) cancer patients and to examine the relationship of socio-demographic and disease-related characteristics with the use of HFFs. A total of 126 patients diagnosed with GI cancer participated in the study. A cross-sectional survey was conducted using a questionnaire. Over a half of all the patients surveyed (n = 67; 53.2%) used HFFs. Patients who were younger, had higher income, or longer duration of disease showed a trend to use HFFs more frequently, even though the tendency was not statistically significant. The most commonly used HFF was vitamin complex (n = 20; 16%), followed by red ginseng (n = 15; 12%), and sweet wormwood (Artemisia annua) (n = 11; 8.8%). About 26% of all responders expressed concerns for using HFFs. The primary concern was 'going against physician's recommendations' (36.8%). About 63% of respondents expressed a desire to consult with their physicians and follow their recommendations. More basic scientific data and educational materials regarding HFFs are required for both health-care professionals and cancer patients. A larger sample and size-controlled groups representing each cancer type will continue to be recruited for participation in this survey.

Systematic review of the effect of omega-3 fatty acids on improvement of blood flow while focused on evaluation of claims for health functional food / 한국영양학회지

Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are essential fatty acids because humans cannot synthesize them de novo and must obtain them in their diet. Fish and fish oil are rich sources of omega-3 fatty acids, including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Significant evidence of the beneficial role of dietary intake of omega-3 fatty acids in blood flow has been reported and putative mechanisms for improvement of blood flow include anti-thrombotic effects, lowered blood pressure, improved endothelial function, and anti-atherogenic effects. Edible oils containing omega-3 fatty acids were registered as functional ingredients in the Korea Health Functional Food Code. Although omega-3 fatty acids have been evaluated by the Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) based on scientific evidence, periodic re-evaluation may be needed because emerging data related to omega-3 fatty acids have accumulated. Therefore, in this study, we re-evaluated scientific evidence for the effect of omega-3 fatty acids as a functional ingredient in health functional food on improvement of blood flow. A comprehensive literature search was conducted for collection of relevant human studies using the Medline and Cochrane, KISS, and IBIDS databases for the years 1955-2012. Search keywords were used by combination of terms related to omega-3 fatty acids and blood flow. The search was limited to human studies published in Korean, English, and Japanese. Using the KFDA's evidence based evaluation system for scientific evaluation of health claims, 112 human studies were identified and reviewed in order to evaluate the strength of the evidence supporting a relation between omega-3 fatty acids and blood flow. Among 112 studies, significant effects on improvement of blood flow were reported in 84 studies and the daily intake amount was ranged from 0.1 to 15 g. According to this methodology of systematic review, we concluded that there was possible evidence to support a relation between omega-3 fatty acid intake and blood flow. However, because inconsistent results have recently been reported, future studies should be monitored.

Systematic review of the effect of coenzyme Q10 on antioxidant capacity while focused on evaluation of claims for health functional food / 한국영양학회지

Although the functional ingredient has been evaluated by the Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) based on scientific evidence, the levels of scientific evidence and consistency of the results might vary according to emerging data. Therefore, periodic re-evaluation may be needed for some functional ingredients. In this study, we re-evaluated scientific evidence for the antioxidant activity of coenzyme Q10 as a functional ingredient in health functional food. Literature searches were conducted using the Medline and Cochrane, KISS, and IBIDS databases for the years 1955-2010 with the search term of coenzyme Q10 in combination with antioxidant. The search was limited to human studies published in Korean, English, and Japanese. Using the KFDA's evidence based evaluation system for scientific evaluation of health claims, 33 human studies were identified and reviewed in order to evaluate the strength of the evidence supporting a relation between coenzyme Q10 and antioxidant activity. Among 33 studies, significant effects for antioxidant activities were reported in 22 studies and their daily intake amount was 60 to 300 mg. Based on this systematic review, we concluded that there was possible evidence to support a relation between coenzyme Q10 intake and antioxidant activities. However, because inconsistent results have recently been reported, future studies should be monitored.

Consumption of health functional food and dietary habits, nutrient intake and dietary quality of college students in Incheon

The purpose of this study was to investigate consumption of health functional food (HFF) and dietary habits, nutrient intake, and dietary quality by HFF consumption in college students. The subjects of this study included 283 college students (179 males and 104 females) in Incheon metropolitan city. The cross-sectional study was conducted using self-reported questionnaires, including kinds of HFF consumed, motivation for purchase, reason for consumption, effect after consumption, reason for no consumption, and dietary habits. A three-day recall method was used for dietary assessment. Dietary qualities were assessed using nutrient adequacy ratio (NAR), mean adequacy ratio (MAR), and nutrient density (ND) values. The percentage of HFF consumption was 40.2% in males and 50.0% in females. The main kinds of HFF consumed by males were vitamins and minerals, red ginseng, protein, and omega-3 fatty acid, in that order. HFF consumed by females were vitamins and minerals, red ginseng, omega-3 fatty acid, and individually approved functional ingredients, in that order. The main motivation for purchase of HFF was recommendation of family and relatives (males 76.4% and females 78.8%). The main reason for consumption of HFF was health promotion (males 67.7% and females 63.5%) and the main reason for no consumption of HFF was not having a health problem (males 49.5% and females 46.2%). The dietary habit score for 'eat the milk or dairy product everyday' (p < 0.05) in females was significantly higher in HFF consumers, compared to HFF non-consumers. In males, the ND of vitamin B1 (p < 0.05) in HFF consumers was significantly higher compared to HFF non-consumers. In females, HFF consumers showed a significantly higher ND of vitamin B2 (p < 0.05) and Ca (p < 0.01), compared to HFF non-consumers. Regardless of HFF consumption, the NAR of vitamin C, folic acid, and Ca was less than 0.7. These results suggest the need for nutrition education for college students in order to improve dietary habits and for balanced nutritional status, and to provide correct information on HFF.

Hypertrichosis during Ingestion of Health Functional Food / 대한피부과학회지

No abstract available.

A Study on Intake of Health Functional Food and Its Related Factors in Adults Living in Busan and Gyeongnam Area

The purpose of this study was to describe the pattern of "health functional food (HFF)" intake and related factors in Busan and Gyeongnam area and provide useful information for health promotion through the use of HFF. Among subjects of this study (n = 634), about 64% of the subjects reported that they are currently taking HFFs or other health foods or had HFFs in the last year. The reason of subjects taking HFF was to maintain and promote their health. They choose HFF by their own judgement or knowledge and the main place of purchasing HFF was the HFF store. Main food sources for promoting health in study subjects were nutrient fortified foods (76.8%), fruit or vegetable extracts (64.8%), HFF (64%), herbs or oriental medicines (29.6%), folk remedies or unidentified remedies (24.9%), respectively. The preference type of the products was capsule and liquid. 60.6% of consumers thought that HFF are expensive. 9.7% of consumers experienced the side effect such as stomachache and gastroenteric trouble. Using logistic regression analysis, the use of HFF was 1.9 times higher in female than male subjects indicating strong association between gender and HFF use. Additionally higher prevalence was found in female subjects for right conception of HFF and distinction of HFF. Interestingly subjects who consume less salts exhibited a higher tendency (-1.5 folds) in HFF intake than who prefer to use salt and seasonings in diets. In total study subjects 83.9% of them have known and heard about definition of the HFF. The major route of acquiring the information about HFF was mass media such as TV, internet and newspapers. Also subjects who had taken HFF exhibited high a proper conception toward the knowledge about 'distinction of HFF'. Taken together education programs considering gender, dietary habit and life style is necessary for consumers to select proper HFF.

Intake Pattern and Needs Assessment for the Development of Web-Contents on Health Functional Foods according to Age of Adults / 대한지역사회영양학회지

This study was done to analyze the consumption patterns of health functional food (HFF) as well as to perform needs assessment for the development of web-contents on HFF according to age of adults. The subjects were 238 male and female adults, divided into 4 groups by their age. This study collected all information by self-administrated questionnaires. The awareness on HFF was high in the older adults. The younger adults showed more negative responses to reliability and safety on HFF. The main reason for the consumption of HFF was to supplement nutrients and to prevent diseases. The main types of HFF consumed by adults were nutritional supplementary food, red ginseng products, and glucosamine products. There was higher consumption of nutritional supplementary food in the younger adults and glucosamine products in the older adults. Internet users had low level of satisfaction, with tendency to complain poor contents, reliability, difficulties in searching as problems of the pre-existing HFF websites. As useful methods for provision of information on HFF, most adults wanted general information, articles written by experts and videos. They also wanted to know the safety and side effects of HFF. Requirement of contents composition were various in-depth information, clear indication of citation, fresh updated data while that of display composition was easily-findable, uncomplicated, allowing mutual exchange of communication through bulletin board. These results can be used as basic data that reflect the consumer's needs for developing HFF web-contents according to age of adults.

Health/functional food consumption factors of 20's Korea women based on social cognitive theory

This study was conducted to identify factors influencing Health/Functional Foods (HFFs) consumption for women in their 20's based on social cognitive theory. A total of 295 subjects participated in this study and were divided into two groups based on the experience of HFF use. This study compared their personal, environmental and behavioral factors which influence the consumption of HFFs. With regard to personal factors, the expected effectiveness for HFFs was higher in the user group than the nonuser group. For the environmental factors, the subjects' use of HFFs was critically affected by the use of HFFs regarding the family members. In terms of behavioral factors, there were no significant differences between the two groups. For the user group, it was observed that their use of HFFs was closely related to when their interests for health was high and the family's use of HFF was high. On the other hands, for the nonuser group, there were less people around them using HFFs than the user group and they did not feel that HFFs were necessary. Since non-experts including parents and close acquaintances critically affected the HFF ingestion of the subjects, it is essential to educate all citizens as well as HFFs consumers about HFFs information.

Study on purchase and intake patterns of individuals consuming dietary formula for weight control or health/functional foods

In our previous work, we reported consumers' perceptions of body shape and weight control. In an ongoing effort, we analyzed the purchasing behavior, intake patterns, future purchasing decisions, and degree of satisfaction in individuals consuming dietary formula for weight control (DF) or heath/functional foods (HFFs) by using the same survey questions. Portfolio analysis for marketing strategy was also investigated. Subjects were divided into two groups according to consumption of DF or HFF during the previous year : DF group (n = 89) and HFF group (n = 110). Average intake frequency was 1.7 +/- 0.7 per day for HFFs and 1.5 +/- 0.9 per day for the DF, and the most prevalent form was pill (58.2%) for HFFs and bar (42.7%) for DF. Duration of intake was 3.1 +/- 2.3 months for HFFs versus 3.9 +/- 3.5 months for DF. The average degree of satisfaction was 3.6 +/- 0.6 on a 5-point scale, meaning 'relatively satisfied'. For the weight control method to be used in the future, 44.5% of the HFF group selected 'HFFs' while 47.2% of the DF group selected 'DF', showing a tendency to use the current product type in the future. The average planned period for the intake was 3.8 +/- 3.7 months for HFFs and 3.0 +/- 2.4 months for DF (p < 0.05). The HFF group emphasized efficacy, functional ingredients of the products, reliable products, and higher satisfaction, whereas the DF group emphasized the added materials in addition to weight control effects.

Human Studies on Functional Foods: How They Are Regulated

Along with the steady growth of health functional food (HFF) markets, research evaluating the human effects of HFF has been expanding. In this study, we investigated the regulatory and management system of human study on HFF in the USA, Japan and UK, and the Korean domestic regulations on HHF, medicines, medical devices, cosmetics and biotechnology in order to improve the domestic management system. In these four countries, institutional review board (IRB) or research ethics committee (REC) approvals are required for on human study of HHF, but regulatory and management systems differ from country to country. In the USA, human studies on HFF for structure/function claims do not require the FDA's prior approval but clinical trials of the disease treatment effects of HHF require prior approval from the FDA. In the USA, IRBs are managed by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) rather than the FDA, and IRBs in those institutions which would execute the clinical trials requiring prior approval from the FDA or human studies funded by the USA federal government are required to be registered on the DHHS. In the UK, although the government does not require prior approval of human study, authorized RECs managed by the National Research Ethics Service (NRES) and other independent RECs review the human study. In Japan, human study for HFF must conform with "Ethical guidelines for epidemiological research" and IRB registration has not been required. In Korean domestic regulations, the responsibilities, compositions, functions and operations of IRBs on medicines, medical devices and biotechnology are legally specified, but not those of IRB on HHF. These foreign statuses for the management of human study on HFF and comparisons with Korean regulations are expected to be used as basic data to improve the domestic legal system.

What Types of Dietary Supplements Are Used in Korea? Data from the Korean National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey 2005 / 가정의학회지

BACKGROUND: Dietary supplements affect the health and disease status of Koreans. We assessed the patterns of dietary supplements use and the related factors in Korean adults from the 2005 Korea National Health and Nutrition Survey (KNHANES). METHODS: Among the subjects, 2,024 men and 2,811 women underwent all the three parts of 2005 KNHANES, which consisted the health survey, the health examination, and the nutritional survey. Reported supplements were classified according to the 2008 Korea Food and Drug Administration Notification. We assessed the relationship between supplements use and socioeconomic state, health behaviors, and chronic diseases. RESULTS: Twenty-nine percent of Korean adults was taking dietary supplements. Vitamin/mineral supplements were the most commonly taken one. Glucosamine/mucopolysaccharide, ginseng, spirulina/chlorella, omega-3, and aloe followed in listing. Supplement users were likely to be woman and middle-aged. Supplement use was associated with older, high income, with spouse, higher education, urban-living, regular exercise, non-smoker, and lower BMI. Musculoskeletal diseases were associated with supplement use. CONCLUSION: Dietary supplement use is prevalent in Korean adults. The supplement use was associated with some demographics characteristics, health behavior, and chronic diseases. These factors should be considered when evaluating the efficacy of dietary supplements.

A Study on Usage of Health Improving Agents in Seoul & Busan

This study explores some basic issues behind adults' seeking and using patterns of alternative medicine as well as health food (health food/medicine). In order to do this, 791 adult participants in Seoul and Busan were interviewed face-to-face. The results of the survey showed that 1) interpersonal influence was the most influential factor in relation to the adoption of health food/medicine(46.9% of the participants reported on the influences), 2) keeping healthy was the main motivation for the usage of health food/medicine(34.5% of the participants), 3) mass media was the important information source for health food/medicine, 4) with regard to trustworthiness of information sources, experts were believed to be the most trustworthy while information from acquaintances were thought less, and finally, 5) pharmacies and health food stores were main suppliers of health food/medicine. This study suggests some marketing strategies for health food/medicine. For example, it can be suggested that interpersonal communication among other information channels should be focused and might be increased trust by using professionals.