Investigation and analysis of the approval, addition frequency, function, and suitable population of health food containing prebiotics in China from 1996 to 2022

Abstract

ObjectiveThis study aimed to provide basic data for the formulation of laws and regulations related to prebiotic health food and product production， by systematically investigating the product information of prebiotic health food approved in China.MethodsThe examination and approval information of health food containing prebiotics in China from 1996 to 2022 were investigated， including the ingredient list of health food， functional claims， and suitable population information. The product information database was established. The frequency of adding prebiotic ingredients， product functional claims， and suitable population distribution were statistically analyzed.ResultsA total of 504 prebiotic health foods were approved from 1996 to 2022. Prebiotics were mostly added in the form of combination， but the ingredients used were mainly concentrated in three kinds， which were fructo-oligosaccharides （44.44%）， isomalto-oligosaccharide （22.02%）， and xylo-oligosaccharides （19.05%）. The function was claimed to be relatively simple. The products of “enhancing immunity”， “defecating”， and “regulating intestinal flora” account for 38.20%， 32.60%， and 14.60%， respectively. The common suitable people in the product were those with low immunity， constipation， and gastrointestinal dysfunction.ConclusionHealth food containing prebiotics in China has a favorable development space in the future. Updating the relevant policies and regulations， guiding the production enterprises to follow up in time， and promoting a healthy development of health food containing prebiotics in China is necessary.

Keywords

• prebiotics
• health food
• approved quantity
• ingredient
• function claim
• suitable population