STANDARDIZED FUNCTIONAL FOOD PRODUCTS

摘要

The methods of the present invention provides a standardized functional food product associated with desired health benefits. One or more extracts of an unprocessed functional food source, such as soy beans, are assayed in one or more bioassays associated with a desired physiological response or health benefit to detect one or more bioactivities of the total extract. Known or suspected chemical constituents of the unprocessed functional food source, known or suspected to be associated or correlated with the desired physiological response or health benefit, may also be assayed to determine if the bioactivity (or bioactivities) of the extract may be due to these known constituents. The extract(s) may also be fractionated to detect active components that may be responsible for the activity of the extract. The amounts and/or the bioactivities of the active components in the extract are then determined. The determination of the amounts and/or the bioactivities of the active components, as well as the total extract bioactivities, allows the development of a functional food product standard associated with a desired physiological response or health benefit against which other preparations of the same functional food product can be tested.