Top Nutrients in Functional Foods for Health
Functional Foods: Only Part of the Picture
We hear a lot about functional foods -- breads, juices, snack bars, yogurt, and even eggs that are fortified with extra nutrients believed helpful to health.
In an ideal world, of course, we would get these nutrients from whole foods such as vegetables, fruit, whole grains, fish, and low-fat dairy. But the American diet falls short in variety of nutrients. Functional foods aim to provide health benefits we might achieve if we followed a scientific guide to eating.
By Denise Foley You're going along, minding your own business, when it hits — an intense, out-of-the-blue desire for a candy bar or a cupcake or a bag of Fritos. If, at that moment, a Girl Scout were to come to your door, she could earn her cookie badge right on the spot. Hellooo, Thin Mints! Almost all women experience that powerful "gotta have it" feeling at some time. The object of desire is most often chocolate, studies say, and we crave it with the same fervor with which Catherine longs...
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WebMD turned to four nutrition experts to get their advice on functional foods:
Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, Elaine Magee, RD, MPH, author of Tell Me What To Eat If I Suffer From Heart Disease, and nutrition consultants Kerry Neville, MS, RD, Susan Moores, MS, RD.
Here are the top nutrients they say may be worthwhile in functional foods, and why.
Top Functional Food Ingredients
Plant Stanols and Plant Sterols in Functional Foods
- What are plant sterols and stanols? Found in plant foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, plant sterols and plant stanols are compounds that resemble cholesterol chemically. When they travel through your digestive tract, they get in the way of real cholesterol, thus help prevent cholesterol from being absorbed into your bloodstream.
- How can functional foods with sterols and stanols help? If you already eat butter, margarine, or oil-based spreads, looking for the kind enhanced with plant stanols or sterols might be a good addition to your diet, says Gerbstadt. It's easy to overdo fats, so eat these margarines and oils in moderation.
- How much plant stanols and sterols do you need? A heart-healthy diet should contain two grams of plant sterols and plant sterols daily.
Vitamin D in Functional Foods
- What is vitamin D? Vitamin D is a nutrient that works with calcium to keep bones strong and the immune system healthy. Research suggests that vitamin D may even help ward off certain cancers, high blood pressure, and depression -- but many of us fall short on this nutrient.
- How can functional foods with vitamin D help? Our bodies convert sunlight into vitamin D. This critical nutrient is also found in fish, eggs, beef liver, and fish oil. But with our indoor jobs and American diets, few people get enough vitamin D from whole foods. Fortified milk and yogurt may be able to fill the nutrient gap for some of us, says nutrition consultant Neville.
- How much vitamin D do you need? Infants need 400 IU of vitamin D daily, while children between 1 and 18 need 600 IU. Adults 19 to 70 need 600 IU. Seniors over 70 should get 800 IU of vitamin D daily.
Calcium in Functional Foods
- What is calcium? Calcium is a mineral that helps build bones, conduct nerve impulses, and keep your heart beating. Most Americans do not get enough calcium, according to the USDA's Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010. When your body is short on calcium, it may leach the mineral out of your bones, eventually resulting in osteoporosis.
- How can functional foods help? If you eat three servings of low-fat dairy daily -- milk, yogurt, cheese -- and you'll probably get all the calcium you need, says Gerbstadt. If you don't eat much dairy, functional foods can make up your calcium deficit. But Gerbstadt warns that calcium from fortified foods may not be absorbed as well as it is from dairy foods.
- How much calcium you need? Babies need 210 to 270 mg of calcium, while children under age 8 need 500 to 800 mg. After age 9, kids need 1,300 mg. Most adults should get 1,000 mg of calcium.
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