Functional foods Echinacea

Most of the available Echinacea preparations could be incorporated into food systems to create a functional food. Teas, beverages, and confections, for example, have been targeted as delivery agents of Echinacea phytochemicals in food systems (Wills et al., 2000). The use of Echinacea as a component in functional foods has come under fire because Echinacea is not considered... 

Echinacea is sold as a dietary supplement in the United States and as a natural health product in Canada. However, Health Canada does support the use of Echinacea in food products thus functional foods could be developed for the Canadian market. In the United States and Canada, there are no restrictions on the species/varieties used in products. In Germany and many European countries, Echinacea products are sold as drugs in pharmacies (Bauer, 2000). In addition, not all products are approved for use in all countries. For example, E. purpurea aerial parts and E. pallida roots are approved in Germany whereas E. angustifolia and E. purpurea roots are not (Blumenthal, 1998). 

Echinacea is promoted as an immune-enhancing herbal product and could be easily incorporated into cereal-based products (Wilson, 1998) to create a functional food. There are over 300 research articles dealing with the biological activity of Echinacea. In addition, over two million prescriptions... 

Bauer, R. 2000. Chemistry, pharmacology, clinical applications of Echinacea products. In Herbs, Botanicals and Teas as Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals (G. Mazza and B.D. Oomah, eds), pp. 45—73. Technomic Publishing, Inc., Lancaster, PA. 

Hall C (2003) 3rd Echinacea as a functional food ingradient. Advances in Food and Nutrition Research 47 113-173. 

Echinacea must first be approved as a GRAS ingredient before it can legally be added to food. In many European countries, health claims are not permitted on food products, while in other countries, such as Japan, claims are allowed under the Foods for Specified Health Use (FOSHU) system. The benefits of Echinacea in laboratory studies show promise and potential that functional foods may come from this research, provided that the studies support the safety of Echinacea. 

Li, T.S.C. and Wang, L.C.H. 1998. Physiological Components and Health Effects of Ginseng, Echinacea, and Sea Buckhorn in Mazza, G., Functional Foods, Biochemical and Processing Aspects, Technomic Publishing Co., Inc., Lancaster, PA, p. 334. 

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