Nutraceuticals as therapeutic agents for inflammation

Abstract

Nutraceutical is a broad term which encompasses foods/products obtained from foods with beneficial health effects. Nutraceuticals focus on prevention rather than cure. This category of products has gained much attention due to their safe therapeutic effects other than their nutritional benefits. They may be used to prevent the onset of many life-threatening diseases like diabetes, cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, etc. Nutraceuticals range from dietary supplements (proteins, vitamins, and minerals), pure compounds to components derived from natural sources. Inflammation is the biological response to a harmful stimulus. While being helpful to remove the foreign object, inflammation also damages the body’s own cells. Inflammation is believed to be the cause for many chronic diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, atherosclerosis, obesity, and cancer. In this chapter we have elaborated the purified extracts and isolated phytoconstituents from plants as source of nutraceutical used specifically for the prevention/treatment of inflammation.