What is functional nutrition?

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Your food is your medicine, your medicine is your food

Functional nutrition; It is a nutrition system that can be applied, consumed and sustainable every day, created by transforming different foods into recipes that are both delicious and provide maximum benefit to the body and mind without losing their freshness and essence. This nutrition system is also defined as ‘Culinary Nutrition’ or ‘Functional Medicine’ in the world and attracts great interest as one of the most important principles that support health.

Functional foods are defined as foods that have benefits for the body beyond basic nutrition, play a role in preventing certain diseases and reducing the risk of developing diseases, that is, foods that provide a health benefit. Functional foods are not in forms such as drugs, pills, capsules, nutritional supplements, etc., but consist of foods such as normal fruits and vegetables, cereals, beverages, supplementary foods, enriched and improved foods. The basic method of functional foods is to enrich and strengthen the content of foods in terms of vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, antioxidants, etc. for special purposes. Probiotics, prebiotics, omega-3, vitamins and minerals, beta-glucan, beta keratin, leucopen etc. are just some of the ingredients used in functional foods. The concepts of ‘supplementary foods’ and ‘functional foods’ are frequently confused among the public. The main difference between the two is that ‘functional foods’ consist of classically known foods and are consumed as part of a normal diet, while ‘dietary supplements’ are offered to consumers in capsule, powder, beverage, etc. forms rather than the classic food format.

Five main principles to follow in a functional nutrition plan:

1. Essential nutrients should be taken every day

The components of your food form the building blocks of the whole body. Vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, amino acids, probiotics and complex carbohydrates found in everyday food

2. Avoid Harmful Foods

Animal products produced in factories, harmful chemicals such as GMO compounds and pesticides/agrochemicals expose the digestive system to harmful compounds. For this reason, it is useful to stay away from rubbish foods that you are not sure of their content and safety as much as possible. However, if you are sure about what you are eating, then you can easily put it in your mouth.

3. Quality Foods for Functional Nutrition

4. Intestinal Health Should Be Our Priority

Hippocrates said that health begins and ends in the gut, and that even if you eat the most nutritious food in the world in a digestive system that is not ready to process food, it will not do you any good. Over eighty per cent of the immune system is located in the gut and if it is not functioning correctly, infections, inflammation, autoimmune diseases and hormonal imbalances are inevitable. It is a well-known fact that disturbances in the flora (microbiota) balance play an important role in the development of disease. The most important reason for the proliferation of harmful flora elements is that undigested energising foods reach the large intestine. Irresponsibly eating everything in front of us is the main problem in itself.

5. Care About Your Microbiome

Without a strong microbiota in the digestive system, digestion is unlikely to be healthy. The human gut contains ten times as many bacteria as all the cells that make up your body. These bacteria are collectively called microbiota. Gut bacteria are involved in dozens of processes such as healthy functioning of the immune system, mental health and memory formation. In order for the microbiota to be healthy, the probiotics in the food content should be in excess. The balance of microbiota in our favour is completely related to what we eat.

Some of the functional foods;

Artichoke (silymarin) – Orange (hesperidin, tangeritin)
Onion, garlic (diallyl disulphide)
Domates (lycopene)
Carrot (betacarotene)
Tea (catechin)
Red grapes (resveratrol)
Paprika (capsaicin)
Berries (anthocyanidin)
Dark green leafy vegetables (lutein, zeaxanthin)
Pomegranate (ellagic acid)
Apple (phloretin)
Broccoli (sulforaphane)
Cabbage (indole)
Cauliflower (isothiocyanate)

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