Nutraceutical lead to the new Era of Medicine and Health: Review Article
Vishal Gajbhiye*, Vishal Lahane
Ravi Institute of Diploma in Pharmacy, Koradi; Nagpur
*Corresponding Author E-mail: vish2891@rediffmail.com
ABSTRACT:
Nutraceutical is the hybrid of ‘nutrition’ and ‘pharmaceutical’. Nutraceuticals, in broad, are food or part of food playing a significant role in modifying and maintaining normal physiological function that maintains healthy human beings. Nutraceutical is a food or a part of the food which exerts a curative or preventive effect on disease. These include various nutrients, dietary supplements, specially designed diets or herbal products. Nutraceuticals of both plant and animal origin hold great opportunities for food industries to bring out novel food catering to future needs. The aim of this review is to focus on the general concept and the health-promoting effects of several nutraceuticals that can incorporated into foods.
KEYWORDS: Herbal nutraceuticals, nutraceutical products, nutraceuticals.
INTRODUCTION:
In recent years, a new diet health paradigm is evolving which places more emphasis on the positive aspects of diet. The new lifestyle adopted by people today has changed the basic food habits of the latter. Consumption of the junkfood has increased manifold leading to a number of diseases caused due to improper nutrition. Consumers being frustrated with the expensive, high-tech, disease-treatment approach in the modern medicines are seeking complementary or alternative beneficial products and the red tape of managed care makes nutraceuticals particularly appealing. “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be the food”, quoted by Hippocrates about 2, 500 years ago is certainly the tenet of today. Nutraceuticals are the emerging class of natural products that makes the line between food and drugs to fade (Adelaja and Schilling 1999).
The concept of “nutraceutical” arose first in the survey from U.K., Germany and France, where diet was rated higher by the consumers, then exercise or hereditary factors to achieve a good health (Pandey et al. 2010). Nutraceuticals covers most of the therapeutics areas such as anti-arthritic, cold and cough, sleeping disorders, digestion and prevention of certain cancers, osteoporosis, blood pressure, cholesterol control, pain killers, depression and diabetes (Pandey et al. 2010; Sami Labs 2002.
Now days it has changed to million dollar industry at a global level. The global nutraceutical market is projected to reach USD 578.23 billion by 2025; according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc.1 rising health concerns are likely to drive the product demand over the next eight years.
The global nutraceuticals market size was valued at USD 272.35 billion in 2016. Increasing risk of diseases such as high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and cholesterol is expected to boost product demand over the forecast period. High cost associated with healthcare treatments has resulted in rising consumer interest in nutraceuticals over the past few years.
U.S. neutraceuticals market revenue, by product, 2014-2025 (USD Billion)
The U.S., Japan, Israel, and Germany are key markets for nutraceuticals owing to high product adoption rate in these developed economies. China, India, and Brazil are expected to witness above average growth over the forecast period because of increasing investments by manufacturers.
The recently published papers about different aspects of nutraceuticals as alternative for pharmaceuticals were searched using scientific sites such as Medline, PubMed and Google Scholar. The used terms included nutraceutical and allergy, cardiovascular, cancer, immune, inflammatory diseases.
Allergy and nutraceuticals:
Allergy is a hypersensitivity disorder of the immune system. An allergic reaction usually occurs when a person's immune system reacts to normally harmless substances. Allergic reactions are distinctive because of excessive activation of certain white blood cells called mast cells and basophils by a type of antibody called immunoglobulin E. This reaction results in an inflammatory response which can range from uncomfortable to dangerous.2
Nutraceuticals like:
Quercetin protects low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) from becoming damaged, especially to blood vessels. LDL-C is an underlying cause of heart disease and quercetin acts as an antioxidant and scavenges free radicals. Diabetic patients are at higher risk of blood vessel damage from oxidative stress. Therefore, quercetin is beneficial in these patients, too.3
Worldwide, the prevalence of CVD and the researches in this area is increasing4, 5, 6, 7, 8 CVD is a term which is used for disorders of the heart and blood vessels and includes coronary heart disease (heart attack), peripheral vascular Diseases, cerebrovascular disease (stroke), hypertension, heart failure, and so on. It is believed that low intake of vegetables and fruits is associated with a high mortality in CVD [9] Majority of the CVD are preventable. Many studies have reported a protective role of a diet rich in vegetables and fruits against CVD.10, 11,12
Nutraceuticals in the form of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, dietary fibers and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n−3 PUFAs) together with physical exercise are recommended for prevention and treatment of CVD. The molecules such as polyphenols alter cellular metabolism and signaling, which is believed to reduce arterial disease.13,14 Phytosterols compete with dietary cholesterol by blocking the uptake as well as facilitating its excretion from the body. Hence, they have the potential to reduce the morbidity and mortality of CVD. Phytosterols occur in most plant species and although green and yellow vegetables contain significant amounts of sterols, their seeds concentrate them.15,16
Cancer has emerged as a major public health problem in developing countries. According to the World Cancer Report the cancer rates are increasing and it would be 15 million new cases in the year 2020 that is, a rise in 50%. A healthy lifestyle and diet can help in prevention of cancer. [Carotenoids are a group of phytochemicals responsible for different colors of the foods. They have antioxidant activities and effective on cancer prevention. Recent interest in carotenoids has focused on the role of lycopene in human health, especially in cancer disease.16
Plants rich in daidzein, biochanin, isoflavones and genistein, also inhibit prostate cancer cell growth. Because of the unsaturated nature of lycopene it is considered to be a potent antioxidant and a singlet oxygen quencher.
Lycopene concentrates in the prostate, testes, skin and adrenal where it protects against cancer.17,18 The linkage between carotenoids and prevention of cancer and CAD, heightened the importance of vegetable and fruits in human diet. Lycopene contained vegetables and fruits exert cancer-protective effect via a decrease in oxidative stress and damage to DNA.18 Lycopene is one of the major carotenoids and is found exclusively in tomatoes, guava, pink grapefruit, water melon and papaya.19
A wide variety of nutraceuticals have been shown to impose crucial roles in immune status and susceptibility to some diseases conditions. Nutraceuticals that belong to the category of immune boosters are useful to improve immune function. They include extracts from the coneflowers, or herbs of the genus Echinacea, such as Echinacea angustfolia, Echinacea pillida, Echinacea purpurea. The coneflowers in particular are a popular herbal remedy used in the central United States, area to which they are indigenous. Astragalus mongolicus, Astragalus membranaceus, and other herbs of the Astragalus genus are also effective immune boosters. Astragalus stimulates development and transformation of stem cells in the marrow and lymph tissue to active immune cells. Phytoestrogens mostly are recommended for prevention of various diseases related to hormonal imbalance. There is a special interest in soy isoflavones as potential superior alternatives to the synthetic selective estrogen receptor modulators, which are currently applied in hormone replacement therapy. Garlic and morphine also are good example of the nutraceuticals, which respectively stimulate and suppress immune system.20, 21
The effect of herbal medicines and bacteria on the immune system and intestinal epithelial cell function has led to new credence for the use of nutraceuticals and probiotics in clinical settings Probiotics are effective in conditions such as infectious diarrhea in children and recurrent Clostridium difficile induced infections.21
Supplementation with probiotics (live viable microbial organisms) may provide maturational signals for the lymphoid tissue and improve the balance of pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Probiotics manipulate the intestinal microflora to maintain a normal balance between pathogenic and nonpathogenic bacteria. Usage of these agents in the treatment of specific diseases has evolved into the ability to very high index of safety, reduction of antibiotic use and the public's positive perception about “alternative” or “natural” therapies. Most probiotic preparations are comprised of one or more lactic acid bacteria. Within this group, strains of Lactobacillus, Bifid bacterium sp. and occasionally Streptococcus are most commonly used.22
A large number of people believe that nutraceuticals are important remedies to address health issues with no side-effects. This belief has been raised from the fact that they have been used for a long period without serious toxicities. Although this is true for a wide variety of nutraceuticals and they generally have less side effects in comparison to pharmaceuticals, but conventional medicine is considered that if a drug is to be effective, inevitably, it will have toxic or side-effects.23 The medical establishment considers herbal medicines as drugs, and as such, they must have side effects. Therefore, they need to be prepared with correct ingredients and use with caution, too.24
People consume thousands of species of plants and other nutraceuticals to meet their basic nutritional needs, but only a limited number of them have received significant safety studies. Many remain poorly understood and largely undeveloped, and their wild relatives are threatened with extinction and in need of conservation attention. Stewardship of these valuable plant resources will require rigorous science combined with an approach that respects and values traditional knowledge systems.24
CONCLUSION:
Nutraceuticals are the food materials that have physiological benefits or provide protection against chronic diseases. Nutraceuticals may be used to improve health, delay the aging process, prevent chronic diseases, increase life expectancy, or support the structure or function of the body. Nowadays, nutraceuticals have received considerable interest due to potential nutritional, safety and therapeutic effects. Recent studies have shown promising results for these compounds in various complications. In the present review much effort has been devoted to provide their diseases modifying indications related to oxidative stress including allergy, cardiovascular, cancer, and immune disease.
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Received on 18.09.2018 Modified on 05.10.2018
Accepted on 30.10.2018 ©A&V Publications All right reserved
Res. J. Pharma. Dosage Forms and Tech.2019; 11(1):39-42.
DOI: 10.5958/0975-4377.2019.00006.5