5 functional ingredients that bring a wealth of health benefits

Consumers are taking a more holistic view of health, wellness and nutrition. They don’t want to take another pill. They increasingly shun chemicals and artificial ingredients. Instead, they want the foods they eat to keep them healthy.###“Many of the food, best zinc supplement quorahealth and nutrition industry trends we’re seeing today are driven by conzinc glycinate for edsumers who have a passion for having a healthy lifestyle. They are looking for products that provide added functional benefit and claim substantiation to address their specific health needs,” Sherry Duff, secan i take magnesium and zinc supplements togethernior vice president and chief marketing and technology officer for ingredients company Innophos wrote in an e-mail to Food Dive.###“Besides overall health and wellness benefits, ccan you take zinc and magnesium togetheronsumers want products that support energized aging azinc gluconate uspnd have clean labels — that is, foods made with recognizable ingredients that they can actually pronounce. Specifically, they’re looking for products that help with digestive health, cognitive health, anti-inflammation, immune health, cardiovascular health, weight management, muscle gain, mineral fortification and beauty benefits,” continued Duff.###Rising healthcare costs and an aging population with plenty of spending power are other factors driving interest in functional foods. Consequently, the demand for functional foods — and the ingredients that go into making better-for-you products — is poised for healthy growth.###The global functional foods market size was estimated at $129 billion in 2014, according to Grand View Research. With a 7.9% compound annual growth rate projected for the foreseeable future, the size of the market worldwide is on pace to nearly double in a decade’s time, to $255 billion by 2024. The research firm projects the U.S. functional foods market will reach $62 billion by 2024, up from $29 billion in 2014.###But what makes a food product functional? Here are five of the most common and high-growth ingredients, some of their uses and their associated health benefits.