Nutraceuticals (PDF)

Phytochemicals are components acting individually, additively or
synergistically, usually as a component of whole food, that have
the characteristics of providing protective, preventative and
possibly curative roles in the pathogenesis of cancer and other
chronic disease progressions. Nutraceutical is a term used to
describe beneficial phytochemicals. The mechanisms of action of
nutraceuticals may be one of several. Free radical scavenger and
antioxidant nutraceuticals can nullify damage by any number of
biochemical mechanisms, but some also exert benefit by enhancing
immune function.

A conservative economic analysis was done in 1993 of solely
hospital care costs and the roles that three nutrient antioxidants
could exert on cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and cataracts.
The study considered the potential impact of only three
antioxidants, vitamins C and E, and beta-carotene, and the possible
annual savings in hospital care costs alone, which could exceed 8
billion dollars. Expert public health physicians believe that as
much as 70% of disease is preventable.

The chapters in this book were organized to reveal existing and
emerging knowledge of nutraceuticals found in garlic, soy and
licorice. Lead chapters discuss the epidemiological evidence, and
following chapters discuss chemical or biochemical evidence at the
cellular level, as well as the presentation of some clinical
data.

A major conclusion of the overall effort is that the science of
nutraceuticals is very incomplete, but that findings to date have
great promise.