Manish Sharma, B. P. Nagori and Vipin Mathur
Posters: Pharmaceut Reg Affairs
The term Nutraceuticals was coined by Dr. Stephen L. DeFelice, chairman of the Foundation of Innovation Medicine (FIM), New Jersey, USA. Dr. DeFelice defines Nutraceuticals as ?food or part of food that provides medical or health benefits, including the prevention and/or treatment of a disease?. The current market of Nutraceuticals in India is around Rs 4,400 crore which is expected to be more than double by 2013. Nutraceuticals can be classified as (i) Dietary supplements e.g. iron supplement capsules (ii) Functional foods e.g. table salt fortified with iodine, and (iii) Medical foods e.g. slowly digested carbohydrates used for management of diabetes mellitus. Health benefits of Nutraceuticals have been established through a number of scientific studies conducted around the world. For example, soy protein is found useful in reducing the risk of heart disease; dietary fibers are used to treat constipation; carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin can be used in the treatment of cataract etc. Manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import of Nutraceuticals in India are regulated under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. This Act consolidated the laws relating to food and established the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India for laying down science based standards for articles of food. However, no separate regulations for Nutraceuticals exists in India. This paper presents a review on latest research conducted on the health benefits of Nutraceuticals and throws light on the current regulatory aspects of Nutraceuticals in India.
Mr. Manish Sharma is presently pursuing M. Pharmacy in Pharmaceutical Management & Regulatory Affairs branch at Lachoo Memorial College of Science & Technology, Pharmacy Wing, Jodhpur, India.
Pharmaceutical Regulatory Affairs: Open Access received 533 citations as per Google Scholar report
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