Superfoods Dr Carrie Ruxton Nutrition consultant

What are superfoods?

No agreed definition Implied that the food or ingredient delivers a health or wellbeing benefit Separate from its ability to meet nutrient requirements

Superfoods as a concept Natural raw foods or ingredients Processed ingredients Novel ingredients ‘naturalness’ decreases, regulatory burden increases

Consumers interested in ‘superfood’ products Ranking Foods that control weight1 Energy-boosting products2 Fortified drinks3 Fortified foods4 Herbal supplements5 Beauty foods/drinks6 Datamonitor, 2005

Consumers used to health claims Heart health/maintenance Overt or inferred intelligence boosters Sports performance claims Gut health Well-being Wacky health food shop claims

But they don’t trust them Datamonitor, 2005

Int J Food Sci Nutrition,2007; 57(3-4):

Mink et al (2007). AJCN 85, Anthocyanidins p=0.03Flavanones p=0.01 N=34492 US post-menopausal women, prospective study Adjusted RR for age, BMI, EI and lifestyle

Plausible superfoods Fish oil – omega 3s Antioxidant-rich fruit & vegetables Polyphenols e.g. fruit, soya, cocoa Probiotics & prebiotics Oats – beta glucans Dietary fibre Stanols & sterols Potassium-rich foods

Problem Consumer interest up Evidence growing Health claim opportunities going down?

The new legal environment Launching successful products Communicating Benefits to consumers What’s on the market? Case studies