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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Primitive societies often lack resources but have always emphasized the role of nutrition
in maintaining good health and wellbeing (Balch 2006; Murray & Pizzorno 2005, 2012).
So, the idea of a balanced and wholefood‐enriched diet to ensure homeostasis and
improve life expectancy is not new.
Concomitantly with the intensification of the globalization process and advances in
the food industry, a pronounced increase in public health problems has been observed.
Health‐related economic and social costs have risen to represent a significant percentage
of worldwide expenditure (American Dietetic Association 2009; Arvanitoyannis &
Houwelingen‐Koukaliaroglou 2005). Public health problems affect all sectors of
society
– elderly, adults, children, and adolescents. Therefore, the deployment of prevention
strategies seems to be essential, not only to avoid the progression of this worldwide
problem but also to try and restore the balanced food patterns and proper lifestyle
of individuals.
Infectious diseases were the most frequent causes of morbidity and mortality among
the first civilizations, mainly attributed to poor hygiene conditions, and efforts were
made to reduce the incidence of outbreaks of infection and epidemics. Nowadays,
research is carried out to find even more effective and specific chemical drugs, allegedly
able to treat modern disorders, although most of them can be eradicated just through
lifestyle modifications. Metabolic disorders and related problems are some of the most
important current contributors to human morbidity and mortality. Overweight and
obesity, considered the epidemic of the 21st century, increasingly affects all age groups,
with children being the most vulnerable (Arvanitoyannis & Houwelingen‐Koukaliaroglou
2005; Bagchi 2006).
Description
Keywords
Pedagogical Context
Citation
Martins, Natália; Morales, Patricia; Barros, Lillian; Ferreira, Isabel C.F.R. (2017). The increasing demand for functional foods. In Wild Plants, Mushrooms and Nuts: Functional Food Properties and Applications. p. 1-13. ISBN 978-1118944653