Novel approaches in food development focus on identifying and applying natural, therapeutic, or alternative components in designing functional foods. This volume aimed to bring together the most recent progress in the field of food dietary supplements and food products with therapeutic value, empathizing their bioactive components and trends in obtaining unconventional products. This book contains three sections: Section A, Probiotics and Prebiotics; Section B, Therapeutic Foods and Ingredients; and Section C, Unconventional Foods and Food Ingredients. In the first section, readers are introduced to advances made in probiotics and the prebiotics industry and their impact on consumers’ health. Section B reveals the bioactive and potential therapeutic activities of some food ingredients which are currently being investigated or already utilized as nutraceuticals, while Section C highlights the nutritional value of some newly adopted or rediscovered diets.
The volume contains 21 chapters prepared by outstanding contributors from Romania, India, Australia, Russia, United States of America, Korea, Pakistan, Canada, Nigeria, Mexico, Brazil, and Austria.
In Chapter 1, Introduction in Nutraceutical and Medicinal Foods, Lia-Mara Ditu et al. define and briefly discuss various types of nutraceuticals, functional foods, food supplements, and medicinal foods, highlighting their potential impact on consumers’ health. Also, an introduction to probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics is given in this chapter.
Section A, Probiotics and Prebiotics starts with Chapter 2, entitled Probiotics: Supplements, Food, and Pharmaceutical Industry, prepared by Swathi Putta and collaborators. This chapter discusses types of probiotics, their known and potential effects in food and health, and new progress made in food and pharmaceutical industries to develop health-promoting probiotic products.
Chapter 3, Selection of New Probiotics: The Case of Streptomyces, by Sneha Hariharan and Selvakumar Dharmaraj discusses the selection of new probiotics and presents the properties and potential of Streptomyces species to be utilized as efficient probiotics, especially in aquaculture and production of marine-related foods.
In Chapter 4, Development of New Probiotic Foods—A Case Study on Probiotic Juices, Lebaka Veeranjaneya Reddy and colleagues describe the procedure required for the development of new probiotic foods, by exemplifying the development of fruit juice probiotics. The application of such products on consumers’ health, food design, and new trends in probiotic products and processes are presented here.
Chapter 5, Prebiotics and Production of New Prebiotics from Unconventional Raw Materials (Mushrooms), prepared by Hrudaynath Thatoi et al., highlights the information related to prebiotic and nutraceutical values of bioactive substances obtained from mushrooms for developing new and potential prebiotics from such an inexpensive and abundant source.
Chapter 6, Probiotics in the Rescue of Gut Inflammation, written by Asit Ranjan Ghosh, reveals recent information regarding the gut-brain axis, explaining the link between digestion, mood, health, behavior, and even way of thinking. This chapter shows the probiotic attitude of microbiota to maintain homeostasis and the potential of probiotics to downregulate (the cause of) inflammation.
In Chapter 7, Probiotics as an Adjunct to Conventional Treatment in Vulvovaginitis: Past, Present and Future, Princy Louis Palatty and collaborators deal with a highly debated subject: the potential impact of probiotics in therapy for genital tract infections. Since these infections are one of the leading causes of infertility, alternative therapeutic approaches and prevention strategies are intensively investigated, probiotics representing one of the most successful candidates for such approaches.
Chapter 8, entitled Flavonoids as Nutraceuticals, written by Muhammad Kaleem and Asif Ahmad, is the first chapter of Section B, Therapeutic Foods and Ingredients. In this chapter, the use of bioactive compounds as an appropriate alternative to synthetic medicines is widely dissected. This manuscript highlights the pharmacological importance of flavonoids that may be supplemented in staple food to develop different nutraceutical products.
In Chapter 9, Bioactive Peptides—Impact in Cancer Therapy, Edwin E. Martínez Leo et al. analyze principal biopeptides that could have a positive effect on the dietary treatment of cancer and its principal alterations, inflammation and oxidative stress. Research advances in cancer treatment are essential to improve the results in patients affected by this disease. These efforts include the development of more effective and less toxic therapies, such as targeted therapies, immunotherapies, and vaccines for cancer treatments, and the improvement of those that have existed for decades at the pharmacological and dietary level.
Leila Mehdizadeh and Mohammad Moghaddam in Chapter 10, Essential Oils—Biological Activity and Therapeutic Potential, discuss the biological activity of essential oils, such as their antimicrobial potential, which has been investigated to reduce the hazardous effects of synthetic fungicidal and bactericidal products. The increasing interest in the possible application of essential oils for pathogen control and preservative-design application has been directed toward investigating new sources of biologically active natural products in different industries.
Chapter 11, Nutritional and Therapeutic Potential of Spices, prepared by Mian Kamran Sharif et al. describes the properties of various Asian spices along with their therapeutic role and food applications. Furthermore, the multiplicity of potentially beneficial nature of spices is explored, along with possible strategies to obtain maximum health outcomes without exposure to undesirable side effects.
Asma Afreen and collaborators, in Chapter 12, Novel Nutraceutical Compounds, dissect nutraceutical effects and biomedical applications of phytochemicals including carotenoids, phytosterols, polyphenols, and Omega 3-fatty acids which are used as preventive medicines because of their established health benefits.
Chapter 13, Nutraceutical and Medicinal Importance of Seabuckthorn (Hippophae sp.), prepared by Prakash C. Sharma and Meenu covers nutraceutical and medicinal applications of seabuckthorn. Many research studies have reported diverse medicinal properties of seabuckthorn preparations: antimicrobial, antiulcerogenic, antioxidative, anticarcinogenic, radioprotective, hepatoprotective, antihypertensive, antiinflammatory, and immunomodulatory. These medicinal properties of seabuckthorn are attributed to the presence of important bioactive compounds in different parts of seabuckthorn plant mainly in berries, leaves, and seeds.
Ankit Goyal et al., in Chapter 14, Therapeutic Potential of Flaxseed, delineate the recent findings of flaxseeds on the physiological functionality of nutraceutical formulations along with their applications in foods. Various nutraceutical preparations of flax and flaxseed oil such as Essentiale, Lipostabil, Efamol, and Essaven are available in the global market for the treatment of general fatigue, pain, atherosclerosis, eczemas, and other diseases.
Chapter 15, Pharmaceutical, Nutraceutical, and Therapeutic Properties of Selected Wild Medicinal Plants: Thyme, Spearmint, and Rosemary, by Muhammad H. Alu’datt and collaborators discusses the chemical, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical properties of selected wild medicinal herbs (thyme, spearmint, and rosemary) and their phenolic constituents. Numerous studies showed that phenolic extracts have anticancer, antiviral, antiinflammatory, hypolipidemic, antioxidant, antidiabetic, antihypertensive, and hypoglycemic effects in vivo because of phenolics’ ability to interact with biological molecules such as DNA, hormones, and enzymes (e.g., angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE), α-glucosidase and α-amylase), and to modulate cell-signaling pathways and epigenetic modifications.
In Chapter 16, Virgin Coconut Oil as Functional Oil, Srivastava Yashi et al. dissect the health benefits of virgin coconut oil, such as preventing oxidation of low-density lipoprotein lipids and increasing the production of antioxidant enzymes. The total polyphenol, antioxidant activity, tocopherol, phytosterol, monoglycerides, and diglyceride content particular to virgin coconut oil ensures a unique nutraceutical effect.
Chapter 17, Health Effects of Various Dietary Agents and Phytochemicals (Therapy of Acute Pancreatitis), written by Elroy Saldanha and collaborators, presents the beneficial properties of some dietary agents such as green tea, Emblica officinalis, grapefruit, rhubarb, and phytochemicals present in various dietary agents (i.e., curcumin, ellagic acid, cinnamtannin B-1, capsaicin, beta-pinene, piperine, zerumbone, lycopene, resveratrol and the flavonoids quercetin, genistein, and apigenin) in the prevention and treatment of chemical-induced acute pancreatitis.
Section C: Unconventional Foods and Food Ingredients debuts with Chapter 18, Production of Bioactive Compounds from Waste, prepared by Jayeola Christianah Olayinka et al. This paper highlights the impact of technological innovation on the bioconversion of some widely-available agro-wastes and their application toward modern agriculture and the sustainable food industry.
Chapter 19, Unripe Plantain Flours, prepared by Florence Ojiugo Uruakpa and collaborators, discusses the impact of drying methods, time of maturation, and pretreatments on the functionality of plantain flours. New processing methods are needed to reduce waste and add value to its use in food processing.
In Chapter 20, Dry Beans: Processing and Nutritional Effect, Rocio Campos-Vega and collaborators review the postharvest processing of dry beans essential for ensuring high quality for food preparation, storage, and food safety. Details are also provided for technologies with minimal energy footprints as well as novel processes for development of functional food ingredients from dry beans in regard to compositional and nutritional changes and their impact on human health and wellness.
Katharina C. Wirnitzer, in Chapter 21, Vegan Nutrition: Latest Boom in Health and Exercise, offers a comprehensive overview of vegetarian and vegan diets ranging from myths about meat and early studies on the effect of vegetarian diets upon sports, through the flood of studies published on the health-threatening effects of foods from animal sources, to current studies showing the benefits of predominantly plant-based diets on human health and sports performance.
This book is dedicated to scientists, food researchers, students, and industrial companies who seek scientific evidence on recent tools and perspectives in functional and unconventional foods, is a resourceful tool for biotechnologists, microbiologists, biochemists, and clinicians, and an interesting and updated reference for any reader interested in learning about trends and progress in Therapeutic, Probiotic, and Unconventional Foods.