Low levels of paraoxonase 1 (PON1) have been associated with the development of several pathological conditions, whereas high levels have been shown to be anti-atherosclerotic in mouse models. These findings suggest that PON1 could be a good surrogate biomarker. The other members of the family, namely PON2 and PON3, the role of which has been much less studied, deserve more attention. This pape...

The market of plant-based nutraceuticals and food supplements is continuously growing due to the increased consumer demand. The introduction of new products with relevant nutritional characteristics represents a new way of providing bioactive compounds and (poly)phenols to consumers, becoming a strategy to ideally guarantee the health benefits attributed to plant foodstuffs and allowing the inc...

Reviewers Donald A. Bergman, MD, FACP, FACE Jeffrey R. Garber, MD, FACE Carlos R. Hamilton, Jr., MD, FACE Yehuda Handelsman, MD, FACP, FACE Kalman E. Holdy, MD John S. Kukora, MD, FACS, FACE Philip Levy, MD, FACE Pasquale J. Palumbo, MD, MACE Steven M. Petak, MD, JD, FACE Leonid Poretsky, MD Philip Rabito, MD, FACE Herbert I. Rettinger, MD, FACE, MBA Helena W. Rodbard, MD, FACE F. John Service,...

The aim of the present study was to survey attitudes to and use of functional foods and to investigate which demographic variables and attitudes to diet and health predict consumption of functional foods among Swedish consumers. A questionnaire was developed and sent to 2000 randomly selected Swedish citizens aged between 17 and 75 years. A total of 972 (48%) responded, 53% were female and 44% ...

Research on the use, properties, characteristics and sources of antioxidants especially phenolic compounds, flavonoids, vitamins, synthetic chemicals and some micronutrients began in the late 18(th) century. Since then antioxidant research has received considerable attention and over a hundred thousand papers have been published on the subject. This has led to a rampant use of antioxidants in o...

During the latter part of this century the practice of herbalism has become mainstream throughout the world. This is due in part to the recognition of the value of traditional medical systems, particularly of Asian origin, and the identification of medicinal plants from indigenous pharmacopeias that have been shown to have significant healing power, either in their natural state or as the sourc...

Among the new entries in the food supplements sector, an important place must be assigned to nutraceuticals containing microalgae, nowadays accounting for a large and rapidly expanding market. The marketed products are mainly based on three production strains, i.e., Spirulina and Chlorella, followed at a distance by Klamath. It is a composite situation, since two of them are cyanobacteria and t...

Some seeds of flowering plants can differentiate their seed coat epidermis into the specialized cell layer producing a hydrophilic mucilage with several ecological functions, such as hydration, protection, spatial fixation, stimulation metabolic activity and development seed. Due to species- genotype-dependent variabilities in chemical composition mucilage, does not display same functional prop...

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia. Survival time for an AD patient is generally 4 to 6 years after diagnosis, however, survival time can be as long as 20 years from the detection of initial symptoms, which can surface in the 30s, 40s, and beyond. This window of opportunity suggests that many people can prolong their life with life-changing choices related to diet, exe...

Methods available for the measurement of antioxidant capacity are reviewed, presenting the general chemistry underlying the assays, the types of molecules detected, and the most important advantages and shortcomings of each method. This overview provides a basis and rationale for developing standardized antioxidant capacity methods for the food, nutraceutical, and dietary supplement industries....