Downloaded by 80.82.77.83 on January 2, 2018 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: August 5, 2003 | doi: 10.1021/bk-2003-0859.pr001
Preface In recent years, a growing interest in Oriental foods and herbs, as well as the health aspects of Oriental diets, has occurred. Certainly, the link between certain commonly consumed Oriental foods and beverages and potential health benefits generates a great consumer interest. Some notable examples are soy foods, green tea, and garlic. Recent studies show that soy foods appear to have an important role in the prevention of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and osteoporosis. In studies with animals, green tea, the most consumed type of tea in China and Japan, has been demonstrated repeatedly to have anticarcinogenic activity. Various beneficial health properties of garlic have also been well documented. In addition, recently increasing demands of consumers for alternative and preventive health management have stimulated a rapid and exponential growth of the supplement and nutraceutical market. All these supplements and nutraceuticals are derivedfromplants, particularly herbal materials. The long history of using herbs for medical and culinary purposes in Oriental culture has been a valuable source for the development of these supplement and nutraceutical products. The symposium upon which this book is based was developed to bring together the leading scientists from Taiwan, Japan, the United States, and Canada to discuss and share information about their current research on chemistry and biological activity of Oriental foods and herbs. It is based on the two-day symposium entitled Oriental Foods and Herbs: Chemistry and Health Effects that was part of the 223rd National American Chemical Society (ACS) meeting in Orlando, Florida, April 2002. This book has been arranged into four sections. In the overview section, Lee gives an in-depth introduction to Oriental herbal products, followed by a chapter on the standardization of functional foods using
xi Ho et al.; Oriental Foods and Herbs ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2003.
Downloaded by 80.82.77.83 on January 2, 2018 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date: August 5, 2003 | doi: 10.1021/bk-2003-0859.pr001
medicinal herbs, and,finallya chapter discusses the use of modern biochemical tools to study the antiinflammatory activity of certain phytochemicals derivedfromOriental herbs. The following two sections cover the biological and antioxidant activities of selected Oriental foods and herbs. The last section reviews and discusses the phytochemical analysis of several Oriental herbs and teas. We acknowledge with great appreciation financial assistance from the ACS Division of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Finally, we thank all the authors for their contributions, efforts, and cooperation in the preparation of this book.
Chi-Tang Ho Department of Food Science Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey New Brunswick,NJ08901
Jen-Kun Lin Institute of Biochemistry College of Medicine National Taiwan University Number 1, Section 1,Jen-AiRoad Taipei, Taiwan
Qun Yi Zheng Pure World Botanicals, Inc. 375 Huyler Street South Hackensack,NJ07606
xii Ho et al.; Oriental Foods and Herbs ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2003.
