**2. Interpretation of functional food**

Functional foods became initially coined in Japan in the early 1980s, and they allude to manufactured meals that incorporate components that, in conjunction with just being nutritious, enhance various biological processes. Japan is currently the only country that has established a governmental authorization for functional foods [10].


**Table 1.**

*Versions of the word "functional foods" that are currently in use.*

*Categories and Management of Functional Food DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.104664*

Certain foods, known as Foods for Specified Health Use (FOSHU), are qualifying for the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare's mark of approval. Functional foods are referred to as nutritional supplements, designer foodstuffs, crucial foods, pharma-foods, medicine types of food, medical foods in the United States and Europe. A plant-based diet can lower the incidence of chronic illnesses, according to mounting evidence from epidemiology, in vivo, in vitro, and clinical study evidence [11].

The Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) of the US National Institute Of health (NHS) defined functional foods as "every food or food component which may provide a medical benefit far beyond typical nutrients it provides" in 1995 [12].

**Table 1** shows an overview of the characteristics of functional food in several organizations as shown below [13].
