- With Mayo Clinic nutritionist
Jennifer K. Nelson, R.D., L.D.
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Jennifer K. Nelson, R.D., L.D.
Jennifer K. Nelson, R.D., L.D.
Jennifer Nelson is your link to a better diet. As specialty editor for food and nutrition, she plays a vital role in bringing you healthy recipes and meal planning.
"Nutrition is one way people have direct control over the quality of their lives," she says. "I hope to translate the science of nutrition into ways that people can select and prepare great-tasting foods that help maintain health and treat disease."
Nelson, a St. Paul, Minn., native, is a registered dietitian and has been with Mayo Clinic since 1978. She is director of clinical dietetics and an associate professor of nutrition at College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic.
She leads clinical nutrition efforts for a staff of more than 70 clinical dietitians and nine dietetic technicians and oversees staffing, strategic and financial planning, and quality improvement. Nelson was co-editor of the James Beard Foundation Award-winning "The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook" and the New York Times best-seller "The Mayo Clinic Diet."
She's been a contributing author to and reviewer of many other Mayo Clinic books and publications, including "The Mayo Clinic Family Health Book," "The Mayo Clinic/Williams Sonoma Cookbook" and the "Mayo Clinic Health Letter." She contributes to the strategic direction of nutrition, healthy eating and healthy recipes content, including creating recipes and menus, preparing and reviewing nutrition content, contributing to the Nutrition-wise blog, and answering nutrition questions.
Nutrition basics (29)
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- Multigrain vs. whole grain: Which is healthier?
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Healthy diets (10)
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- Detox diets: Do they work?
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Healthy cooking (6)
- E. coli: How can I tell if food is contaminated?
- Canned pumpkin: Better than fresh?
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Healthy menus and shopping strategies (7)
- Vegetable juice: As good as whole vegetables?
- Calories in sushi: What are the low-cal options?
- Sodium nitrate in meat: Heart disease risk factor?
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Nutritional supplements (16)
- Vitamin water: Better than plain water?
- Ground flaxseed: Better than whole?
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Question
What are functional foods?
I've heard the term "functional foods," but I don't know what it means. Can you explain?
Answer
from Jennifer K. Nelson, R.D., L.D.
Functional foods are foods that have a potentially positive effect on health. Of course, all foods are functional in the sense that they have nutrients or other substances that provide energy, sustain growth or support vital processes. However, functional foods are generally considered to offer additional benefits that may reduce the risk of disease or promote optimal health. Examples of so-called functional foods include calcium-fortified orange juice and spreads with omega-3 added.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates claims that manufacturers make about functional foods' nutrient content and effects on disease, health or body function. It's important to note, however, that the FDA doesn't use the term "functional foods." The FDA regulates these types of foods according to whether a food is considered to be a conventional food, a food additive, a dietary supplement, a medical food or a food for special dietary use.
Where does that leave you? If you're like most consumers, you're probably confused. Indeed, the FDA has expressed concern about the proliferation of health claims on food labels and is looking at ways to make it easier to distinguish healthy food choices from less healthy ones. In the meantime, your best bet is to eat a balanced and varied diet.
Next questionHigh-protein diets: Are they safe?
- Functional foods. Position statement of the American Dietetic Association. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2009;109:735.
- Labeling and nutrition. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/default.htm. Accessed April 30, 2010.
- Open letter to industry from Dr. Hamburg. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/ucm202733.htm. Accessed April 30, 2010.
- Nelson JK (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. April 30, 2010.
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