Algae as Functional Foods for the Elderly

Older people may have more difficulties in acquiring the nutrients they need from diet and they are at greater risk of chronic diseases. Hence, functional foods based on algae, might have a role in improving very important nutrients intake without an increase in calories. This is crucial for middle age people that become less active and will not dispend as much energy as they use to, which will contribute for certain diseases associated with age. Algae produce a great variety of biological active compounds which cannot be found in other organisms. Moreover, they have been reported for their potential medicinal uses. Therefore, they have high potential as a source of functional ingredients. In this review, we will give relevant information about the issue, explain above, pointing out the information related to the compounds that could be responsible for the improvement in quality of life during elderly. It will be also referred that seaweeds can be a source of new compounds for drug discovery.