An Overview of Functional Beverages

Abstract Functional and medicinal beverages are products which claim a health benefit, such as improved immune system, mental alertness, heart performance, etc. They have been made to meet the growing demand for “healthy” food as they are able to prevent diseases and are convenient products. These beverages make available nutrients or other substances—such as flavonoids, specific amino acids, antioxidants, or phytonutrients into convenient ready-to-consume drinks. The distribution of functional beverages throughout the market has the unclear distinction between pharma and nutrition. Principal functional beverage products are: yogurt drinks (pre-o-probiotics fortified drinks), functional milk (extra calcium, omega-3, and vitamin fortified drinks), juices (vitamins and omega-3 fortified drinks), functional waters (vitamin and mineralfortified drinks, sports and energy drinks, herbal drinks, and health and wellness drinks). The goals of this chapter are to treat the various applications of health and wellness drinks in the health food industry such as food intolerance, organic fortified/functional, better for you, and naturally healthy drinks.