Drug Information Q&A Q16. There are various health foods such as Tokuho (food for specified health uses).
Answer
No. Health foods cannot be used to treat illness. Drugs are developed and marketed to treat diseases, but health foods are intended to maintain and promote the health of healthy people. The use of health foods is left to the judgment of the individual, so care must be taken.
Explanation
Various "health foods" are introduced on TV and on the Internet, which are expected to improve illnesses and symptoms.
However, except for drugs, these products do not claim the efficacy of "improving illnesses or symptoms. Tokuho and supplements are all food products, and their use is left to individual judgment, so each individual should use them with caution.
Foods are everything we put into our mouths, except pharmaceuticals. Foods are not allowed by law to be labeled as having a positive effect on the treatment of illness or body functions. Only pharmaceuticals can be labeled as "cures" or "effective.
However, as an exception, there are foods for which the government has permitted the labeling of specific functions.
These are "food for special purposes" for sick people, pregnant women, and the elderly; "food for specified health uses" (Tokuho) for people who have begun to worry about their health; and "food with nutrient function claims" for people who want to supplement vitamin and mineral deficiencies. These are approved as foods with recognized functions, and the Foods for Specified Health Uses and Foods with Specified Functions have an approval mark.
Other than these, however, so-called health foods and supplements have no such definition in Japan. In recent years, there have been cases of health hazards and fraud (sagi) caused by health foods. Each one of us should try to understand and use them correctly.
Chart/Column
16｜General Classification of Foods and Medicines
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Food for Special Purposes
Foods for infants, toddlers, pregnant and nursing mothers, and the sick, etc., with limited uses, such as for growth or for the maintenance or restoration of health.
For example, "for the sick" or "food for the sick" if the food is suitable for the sick in general, or "for diabetics," "kidney disease," or "suitable for hypertension patients" if the food is suitable for a specific disease. Specifically, there are low-protein foods, allergen-free foods, lactose-free foods, and total nutritional foods. -
Food for Specified Health Uses
These are products that have been evaluated and approved by the government not only for the ingredients they contain, but also for their efficacy and safety as end products.
Therefore, the labeling of "specific health uses," such as "food for regulating stomach conditions" or "food suitable for people with high cholesterol," which is not allowed for ordinary food products, is permitted.
As of December 2012, there are more than 1,000 products in the market. -
Food with nutrient function claims
These foods are intended to be used to supplement or supplement the daily nutritional requirements of those who, due to aging or lifestyle changes, find it difficult to maintain a normal diet.
Although notification and examination by the government are not required, the amount of nutrients contained in the recommended daily intake must conform to the standards set by the government. Nutritional components subject to labeling are nutrients that are essential for human life activities and for which scientific evidence has been widely recognized and established from medical and nutritional perspectives.
Currently, standards have been established for 5 minerals and 12 vitamins.
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