Pharmacology of Foods and Beverages

Keala Richardson

Overview

• What is Food and Beverage Pharmacology• Basic Theory of How Food Affects Mood• Rise in the “Superfood”• Example of Foods and Beverages with health

benefits• Functional Food Claims (Beware of Marketing)

What is Pharmacology

• The study of the interactions that occur between a living organism and exogenous chemicals that alter normal biochemical function

• Encompasses composition and properties, interactions, toxicology, therapy, and medical applications and antipathogenic capabilities

How Food Affects Mood Theory

• Nutrients in food are a precursor to neurotransmitters

How Food Affects Mood Theory

• Protein and Alertness• Carbohydrates and Relaxation/Anti-Stress• Caffeine and Anti-Depression• Folic acid and Depression• Eggs and Memory/Concentration

Rise in the “Superfoods”

• Highly generalized and used as a marketing tool. Scientists must work to dispute these claims

• Below are some foods that have studied and shown to benefit our body and mood– Dark Chocolate– Salmon

Dark Chocolate

• Basics– Lowers Blood Pressure– Lowers Cholesterol– Stimulates endorphin

production– Raises serotonin levels– Contains theobromine,

caffeine and other stimulants

– Isn’t chocolate high in fat?

Dark Chocolate

• (2009) Martin, F.J. et al.– Metabolic effects of dark chocolate consumption on

energy, gut microbiota and stress-related metabolism in free-living subjects

– Participants with higher anxiety traits showed to have a different metabolic profile

– Participants were given 40 grams a day for 14 days– Measured levels of stress hormones in blood and

urine to measure metabolic changes

Dark Chocolate

• Reduce urinary excretion of the stress hormone cortisol and catecholamines and partially normalized stress-related differences in energy metabolism and gut microbial activities

• Study provides strong evidence that daily consumption of dark chocolate sufficiently modifies the metabolism of humans

Salmon

• Basics– Omega-3

• Reduction in the risk for fatal heart arrhythmia

• Lower triglycerides• Boost HDL cholesterol• Prevention against high blood

pressure• Anticoagulant for blood• Improve dementia and mood

disorders• Many more!

Salmon

Salmon

• (2003) Kuan-Pin Su et al– Conducted an 8-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled

trial, comparing omega-3 PUFA (9.6 g/day) with placebo, on the top of the usual treatment, in 28 patients with major depressive disorder.

– Patients in the omega-3 PUFA group had a significantly decreased score on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression than those in the placebo group

– Omega-3 could improve the short-term course of illness and were well tolerated in patients with major depressive disorder.

Salmon

• The body uses omega-3 fatty acids for building neurotransmitters like serotonin in the brain

• Omega-3 PUFA, cannot be synthesized and must be obtained from the diet. Therefore, the abnormalities of PUFA composition in cell membranes can alter membrane microstructure, and then result in abnormal signal transduction and immunological regulation.

Wine

• Basics– Reduce the risk of heart

disease– Reduce risk of certain

cancers– Slow the progression of

neurological degenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease

Wine

• Kerry and Abbey – studied red wine and how it inhibit low density lipoprotein (LDL) oxidation in vitro– Results were in-line with other research about LDL

Functional Food Claims

• Healthy or fictional food claimed to have health-promoting or disease-preventing property beyond the basic function of supplying nutrients

• Functional foods are an emerging field in food science due to their increasing popularity with health-conscious consumers.

• BEWARE

Sources• Martin, F.J. et al. (2009) Metabolic effects of dark chocolate consumption

on energy, gut microbiota and stress-related metabolism in free-living subjects. J. Proteome Res.

• http://longevity.about.com/od/lifelongnutrition/p/chocolate.htm• European Neuropsychopharmacology, Volume 14, Issue 2, March 2004,

Page 173, Kuan-Pin Su, Shih-Yi Huang, Chi-Chiang Chiu, Winston W. Shen• Journal of the Science of Food and AgricultureVolume

81 Issue 9, Pages 842 - 852Special Issue: Nutritional Enhancement of Plant Foods (NEODIET)Published Online: 13 Jun 2001

• Nicole L. Kerrya and Mavis Abbeyb, *a Department of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australiab CSIRO, Division of Human Nutrition, Adelaide, AustraliaReceived 20 December 1996; revised 2 June 1997; accepted 25 June 1997. Available online 13 January 1998.