Canada Minister Lyle Vanclief. From across Alberta, the Centre will draw together experts from various scientific disciplines whose pooled talents will benefit all Canadians. The Centre will help establish the relationship between nutrition and health.
Functional foods are part of one s daily diet.
For example, choosing foods naturally high in soluble fibre content, such as oatmeal, or foods designed with added fibre, like muffins, may reduce the risk of heart disease. Nutraceuticals are extracts of foods, such as beta glucans from barley, and are packaged in pill or powder form. The FFCE will identify and implement a focused research program to investigate links between diet and chronic disease, develop functional foods and nutraceuticals, assist with creating new businesses and markets, train multi-disciplinary personnel and provide education for health professionals and consumers. More important, the FFCE will contribute to disease prevention and thus a reduction in healthcare costs through its emphasis on prevention rather than treatment of disease. Potential new products in the functional foods area will result in a significant spin-off to the entire Alberta agricultural industry.