The Evaluation of Nutrients and Health Functional Elements Presented at Nutrition Labels of Various Beverages in the Market

ABSTRACT

On the basis of the increasing interest for the selection of beverages, this study aimed to evaluate the contents of nutrients and health functional elements in the beverages. Total 161 beverages that bear nutrition lable (NL) as nutrition table and health functional elements information were collected and classified to 8 groups. The evaluated nutrients that are obligatory for NL in Korea were total calorie, carbohydrate, protein, fat, and sodium. Presented values showed that milk & yogurt and soy milk are the most wholesome beverages while the total caloric contents also were higher among 8 groups. Sodium contents in soy milk were higher than any other groups. The caloric contents of other beverage groups come mainly from carbohydrate presumably simple sugar. The caloric content of sports drinks is the lowest but the sodium content is variable among products showing the range of 0 - 100 mg/100 ml. Nonobligatory nutrients for NL frequently expressed are Ca, Fe, vitamin C, folate, and dietary fiber. Their content per serving size does not exceed the tolerable upper intake level, however, habitual multiple intakes of certain product require attention for the prevention of overintakes. Many health functional elements as catechin, carnitine, polyphenol, and nucleic acids etc were listed in NL without presenting the content and their functions appear to be exaggerated compared to the known scientific evidence.