The food industry is constantly evolving and so-called functional foods have recently been introduced. But what do these mean to us?
The food industry is already facing new challenges, but the present situation will only accelerate in the near future. Consumers are increasingly aware of the importance of a healthy, conscious diet providing a longer life, so they plan to consume foods that provide them with health-protective benefits. One of the causes of the various diseases of civilization that afflict humankind is the unconscious diet, as well as the prolongation of life for the aging societies. However, these products do not have to have only a nutritional biological benefit, but they must be outstanding in terms of their enjoyment. Low-energy, low fat, sugar-free, and enriching with, or even depleting certain minerals can be an advantage when developing a product. These are called functional foods by the profession, although not legally regulated, as found in the study entitled Functional Foods, Consumer Attitudes and Personalized Nutrition (by Zoltán Szakály, Marietta Kiss, Helga Jasák).
The study also states that research has found that most chronic diseases are caused by a changed lifestyle in humanity, one of the key components of which is the poor adaptability of our diet. Of course, there is also the drive for increased competition, accelerated pace of life, high levels of environmental pollution, stress and sedentary lifestyle because of market competition. Our diet was not adapted to these, which resulted in civilization diseases.
