Phytochemicals, categories

Although a toxic plant chemical may not fit either category perfectly, those chemicals discussed below that are tissue specific would generally be considered to show specific resistance. It Is interesting to note that those phytochemicals that are especially toxic to one group of Insects are quite often essential dietary Ingredients or feeding stimulants to other Insects that feed primarily on that plant. 

The phytochemicals that are discussed below may be divided Into three classical categories alkaloids, flavonolds, and terpenes. Straight chain carbon confounds, such as hydrocarbons, waxes, fatty acid and alcohols also occur In glands. The alkaloids tend to react as feeding deterents and as poisons (43). They are probably the major class found In any lists of plant toxins (44, 45). Flavonolds are well known antibacterial. 

Phenolic compounds and flavonoids are a unique category of plant phytochemicals especially in terms of their vast po ential health-benefiting properties. They represent the most abundant and the most widely represented class of plant natural products. A substantial amount of research has been carried out over the past two decades yet large information gaps still exist. For example, the inventory of these compounds is still incomplete, although there is continuous effort to provide new structures. In addition the dissection of the metabolic pathways for certain phenolic compounds remains to be resolved. Recent reports underline that important questions that still need to be answered in the field of proanthocyanidin and tannin biosynthesis [Xie and Dixon, 2005], and even the exact nature of the biosynthetic pathway(s) leading to lignin monomers is not fully elucidated. 

The demand for healthy foods has led to the development of several entirely new healthy ingredient and additive categories (Heasman and Mellentin 2001 Sloan 2004). An entirely new sector of functional food ingredients has developed, including products such as omega-3 fatty acids and phytosterols for cardiovascular health, prebiotics and probiotics for gut health, antioxidants, polyphenols and phytochemicals, and bioactive peptides. The established vitamins and minerals sector has also benefited from this functional food trend, with more and more products being fortified with beneficial vitamins and minerals. 

In recognition that the superfruit category is still becoming known among the public, I want to give you a handful of five fruits to try that may be relatively unfamiliar and yet provide loads of taste, convenience of format, and a combination of superfruit signature qualities for nutrients and phytochemicals ... 

This last category of saw palmetto product is a recent introduction to the world of herbs. Standardized products are manufactured to contain specific amounts of phytochemicals that the producers believe may be active constituents or that act as marker chemicals (a specific, easy-to-test-for component of the herb). The idea is that every capsule contains the exact same measure of the active substance. There are both pros and cons concerning this type of product and we will discuss them further in chapter 5. 

Phytochemicals are a broad array of compounds that coexist with nutrients in plant foods while not considered as essential nutrients per se, some are considered to play a role in the prevention of chronic diseases by acting either independently, synergistically with other phytochemicals or with nutrients that coexist in the plant. Ralph and Provan [3] have conveniently grouped phytochemicals into categories that include ... 

Generally, there are insufficient data on the phytochemical content of foods, but a selection of phytochemicals to be found in tropical and subtropical fruit is shown in Table 4. Despite the limitations of the data, it is established that these fruits contain active compounds derived from the aforementioned categories of... 

Several categories of physiologically active components from plant and animal sources, known as phytochemicals and zoochanicals, respectively, have been described. Some of these are discussed in detail in the following sections. 

Nutraceuticals are nonspecific biological therapies used to promote wellness, prevent malignant processes, and control symptoms. It is a broad umbrella term used to describe any product derived from food soiuces that provides extra health benefits in addition to the basic nutritional value foimd in foods. The definition of nutraceuticals and related products often depends on the soiuce. Phytochemicals and antioxidants are two specific types of nutraceuticals. It has been proved that phytochemicals found in foods may help to provide protection from diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension, for example, carotenoids found in carrots. Antioxidants may be helpful in avoiding chronic diseases, by preventing oxidative damage in body [8]. There are multiple different types of products that come imder the category of nutraceuticals ... 

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