Medical foods are food

Food

Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...

s that are specially formulated and intended for the dietary management of a disease

Disease

A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...

 that has distinctive nutrition

Nutrition

Nutrition is the provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary to support life. Many common health problems can be prevented or alleviated with a healthy diet....

al needs that cannot be met by normal diet alone. They
were defined in the Food and Drug Administration

Food and Drug Administration

The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...

's 1988 Orphan Drug Act Amendments and are subject to the general food and safety labeling requirements of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act

Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act

The United States Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act , is a set of laws passed by Congress in 1938 giving authority to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to oversee the safety of food, drugs, and cosmetics. A principal author of this law was Royal S. Copeland, a three-term U.S. Senator from...

.

Medical foods are distinct from the broader category of foods for special dietary use and from traditional foods that bear a health claim. In order to be considered a medical food the product must, at a minimum:

• be a food for oral ingestion or tube feeding (nasogastric tube)
• be labeled for the dietary management of a specific medical disorder, disease or condition for which there are distinctive nutritional requirements, and
• be intended to be used under medical supervision.

Medical foods can be classified into the following categories:

• Nutritionally complete formulas
• Nutritionally incomplete formulas
• Formulas for metabolic disorders
• Oral rehydration products

Allergic conditions

Medical foods for management of allergic conditions

Allergy

An Allergy is a hypersensitivity disorder of the immune system. Allergic reactions occur when a person's immune system reacts to normally harmless substances in the environment. A substance that causes a reaction is called an allergen. These reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid...

 may contain both gamma-linolenic acid

Gamma-Linolenic acid

γ-Linolenic acid is a fatty acid found primarily in vegetable oils...

 (GLA), a short chain omega-6 fatty acid

Omega-6 fatty acid

n−6 fatty acids are a family of unsaturated fatty acids that have in common a final carbon–carbon double bond in the n−6 position, that is, the sixth bond, counting from the methyl end.The biological effects of the n−6 fatty acids are largely mediated by their conversion to n-6 eicosanoids...

 primarily sourced from the seeds of the borage plant, and eicosapentaenoic acid

Eicosapentaenoic acid

Eicosapentaenoic acid is an omega-3 fatty acid. In physiological literature, it is given the name 20:5. It also has the trivial name timnodonic acid...

 (EPA), an omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid sourced from fish. These fatty acids help to inhibit the production of leukotrienes in the system. Sufficient quantities of GLA and EPA necessary for reduction of leukotrienes cannot be obtained from a normal diet. Leukotrienes are inflammatory molecules produced by immune cells (neutrophils, basophils, mast cells, macrophages and eosinophils) in the body. They are involved in the inflammatory response and cause the narrowing of the airways, increased mucus production and tissue swelling associated with both allergies and asthma

Asthma

Asthma is the common chronic inflammatory disease of the airways characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and bronchospasm. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath...

. In order to control allergic symptoms, research shows that it helps to inhibit the production of leukotrienes in the body.

Diabetes mellitus

Medical foods for management of diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus, often simply referred to as diabetes, is a group of metabolic diseases in which a person has high blood sugar, either because the body does not produce enough insulin, or because cells do not respond to the insulin that is produced...

 generally contain slowly digested carbohydrates, which helps minimize peaks in blood sugar. Consistent maintenance of optimal blood sugar levels (avoiding highs and lows) over time can help reduce the complications of diabetes.

Gastrointestinal tract impairment

Medical foods for management of gastrointestinal tract

Gastrointestinal tract

The human gastrointestinal tract refers to the stomach and intestine, and sometimes to all the structures from the mouth to the anus. ....

 (GI tract) impairment provide an amino acid-based diet in its most easily digestible (elemental) form to aid in poor nutrient absorption due to digestive disease

Digestive disease

All diseases that pertain to the gastrointestinal tract are labelled as digestive diseases. This includes diseases of the esophagus, stomach, first, second, and third part of the duodenum, jejunum, ileum, the ileo-cecal complex, large intestine , sigmoid colon, and rectum.-Esophagus:*Esophagitis -...

, malabsorption

Malabsorption

Malabsorption is a state arising from abnormality in absorption of food nutrients across the gastrointestinal tract.Impairment can be of single or multiple nutrients depending on the abnormality...

, severe food allergies, or other conditions in which the GI tract is severely compromised.

Metabolically stressed patients

Medical foods for management of metabolically stressed patients provide supplemental glutamine

Glutamine

Glutamine is one of the 20 amino acids encoded by the standard genetic code. It is not recognized as an essential amino acid but may become conditionally essential in certain situations, including intensive athletic training or certain gastrointestinal disorders...

 to nourish the GI tract and restore glutamine while a patient is in a stressed, catabolic state.

Regulation

Medical foods are regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration under the Food Drug and Cosmetic Act regulations. 21 CFR 101.9(j) (8).

External links

• Medical Foods Compliance Program Guidance Manual
• US Food and Drug Administration's frequently asked questions about medical foods

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.