FOODS AND THEIR HEALTH BENEFITS
FUNCTIONAL FOODS, NUTRICEUTICALS AND HEALTH BENEFITS INTRODUCTION The health importance of foods have been implicated as far back as 1800. The tenet,”Let thy food be medicine and thy medicine be thy food was coined by Hippocrates the initiator of medicine in 2500 years ago( Hasler,2002). Hence,this philosophy of “Food as medicine” fell into obscurity in the 19 th century with the introduction of modern drug therapy. In 1900s, the significant role of diet in disease control and overall health promotion came to the center stage once again(Hasler,2002). During this period under review scientific attention was drawn on the identification of vital elements ,particularly vitamins, and their significant role in the prevention and control of certain dietary deficieny ailments.This awareness on nutrient shortages or under nutrition seemingly drifted dramatically, during the 1970s, when certain ailments or disorders were linked to over nutrition became a major ...