Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2023 Jun 30;28(13):5130.
doi: 10.3390/molecules28135130.

Aromatic Plant-Based Functional Foods: A Natural Approach to Manage Cardiovascular Diseases

Mónica Zuzarte  1   2   3 , Henrique Girão  1   2   3 , Lígia Salgueiro  4   5
Affiliations
Review

Aromatic Plant-Based Functional Foods: A Natural Approach to Manage Cardiovascular Diseases

Mónica Zuzarte et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

Aromatic plants and their essential oils have shown beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system and, therefore, are potential raw materials in the development of functional foods. However, despite their undeniable potential, essential oils present several limitations that need to be addressed, such as stability, poor solubility, undesirable sensory effects, and low bioavailability. The present review provides a current state-of-the-art on the effects of volatile extracts obtained from aromatic plants on the cardiovascular system and focuses on major challenges that need to be addressed to increase their use in food products. Moreover, strategies underway to overcome these limitations are pointed out, thus anticipating a great appreciation of these extracts in the functional food industry.

Keywords: cardioprotection; encapsulation; enhanced foods; essential oils; fortified foods; nutrition.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The potential of essential oils to develop functional foods directed toward cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment. Created with Biorender.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Main cardioprotective compounds found in essential oils.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. FAO . FAO Term Portal. FAO; Rome, Italy: 2005.
    1. Temple N.J. A rational definition for functional foods: A perspective. Front. Nutr. 2022;9:957516. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.957516. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Grand View Research, Inc. Flavors and Fragrances Market Size Worth $44.6 Billion by 2030. 2023. [(accessed on 5 March 2023)]. Available online: https://www.bloomberg.com/press-releases/2023-02-13/flavors-and-fragranc....
    1. Hasler C.M., Kundrat S., Wool D. Functional foods and cardiovascular disease. Curr. Atheroscler. Rep. 2000;2:467–475. doi: 10.1007/s11883-000-0045-9. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Anderson C.A., Cobb L.K., Miller E.R., Woodward M., Hottenstein A., Chang A.R., Mongraw-Chaffin M., White K., Charleston J., Tanaka T., et al. Effects of a behavioral intervention that emphasizes spices and herbs on adherence to recommended sodium intake: Results of the SPICE randomized clinical trial. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2015;102:671–679. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.114.100750. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources