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Monthly issues of Food and Function will publish communications and full papers reporting primary research as well as in-depth reviews focusing on the interaction of food components with the human body.
Submissions to Food & Function are handled fairly, quickly and efficiently by our Associate Editors, Steven Feng Chen from the University of Hong Kong, and Cesar Fraga from the University of Buenos Aires and UC Davis.
We look forward to receiving your submission to Food & Function
Food & Function is a new monthly peer-reviewed journal providing a dedicated venue for research relating to the
chemical and physical properties of food components and their nutritional and health benefits in humans.
The Journal is supported by an internationally renowned Editorial and Advisory Board led by Editor-in-Chief
Professor Gary Williamson, Chair of Functional Food at the University of Leeds, UK.
Associate Editors, handling submissions to the Journal are:
Cesar Fraga, University of California, Davis, USA University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
Steven Feng Chen, The University of Hong Kong, China
Editorial Board members:
Aedin Cassidy, University of East Anglia, UK
Kevin Croft, University of Western Australia, Australia
Eric Decker, University of Massachusetts, USA
Alejandro Marangoni, University of Guelph, Canada
Reinhard Miller, Max Planck Institute of Colloids & Interfaces, Germany
Paul Moughan, Riddet Institute, Massey University, New Zealand
Johan Ubbink, Nestle R&D, Switzerland
Fons Voragen, Wageningen, The Netherlands
Advisory Board members:
Hitoshi Ashida, Kobe University, Japan
Junshi Chen, Chinese Centre of Disease Control & Prevention, China
E. Allen Foegeding, North Carolina State University, USA
Vincenzo Fogliano, University of Napoli Federico II, Italy
Mike Gidley, University of Queensland, Australia
Chi-Tang Ho, Rutgers University, USA
Richard Hurrell, ETH Zurich, Switzerland
Peter Lillford, University of York, UK
Rui Hai Liu, Cornell University, USA
Julian McClements, University of Massachusetts, USA
John A. Milner, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, USA
Brent Murray, University of Leeds, UK
Patricia Oteiza, University of California at Davis, USA
Augustin Scalbert, INRA, France
Helmut Sies, University of Dusseldorf, Germany
Leif Skibsted, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
David Stuart, The Hershey Company, USA
Arthur Tatham, University of Wales Institute, Cardiff, UK
Junji Terao, University of Tokushima, Japan
George van Aken, NIZO Food Research, The Netherlands
Erik van der Linden, TI Food & Nutrition, The Netherlands
Jose Vina, University of Valencia, Spain
Peter Wood, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Canada
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Cesar Fraga talks to Kathleen Too about the health benefits of cocoa, why you should eat fruit and vegetables with lots of antioxidants and scientific food research in South America.
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Cesar Fraga is a professor at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina and is associated with the department of nutrition at the University of California, Davis, US. His main areas of interests are in plant-derived polyphenolic compounds against degenerative disorders, including cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. He is also an associate editor for Food & Function, a new journal from RSC Publishing |
What motivated you to specialise in food and nutrition?
My first steps in research were made under the supervision of Alberto Boveris at the University of Buenos Aires, where later I got my doctoral degree. Alberto had just created his research group and we were working on the in vivo determination of excited species as an index of free radical damage and protection by antioxidants. My interests in antioxidants and their health effects grew from that day forward. With an increased interest in antioxidants as health promoters, my involvement in food and nutrition also grew. There is a need for more scientists to investigate the mechanisms behind the nutritional and functional aspects of food.
Could you explain what catechins, flavonoids and polyphenols are?
These are chemical compounds: polyphenol is the characteristic common to the three; flavonoids are a certain kind of polyphenol, and catechins certain kind of flavonoids. All are present in plants that we often eat so they are part of human diets. The chemical structures of these compounds support chemical reactions that explain the health benefits of eating fruit and vegetables. The identification of such chemical substances present in foods did not get much attention in the past. But today, it is becoming more relevant in terms of defining important biological functions.
You are most interested in the benefits and impact of certain foods in the body, what is the hottest area of research at the moment?
I consider that heart and intestinal diseases are conditions that can easily be affected by the type of food eaten. Clearly both conditions are related to other important increasing pathologies such as obesity and diabetes, among others. Knowing the mechanisms of these diseases and the participation of food components in them could allow us to design better diets and if not enough, to supplement the diet or provide a therapeutic agent. Our main target is to study the effects of healthy foods and their components.
You worked on the effects of chocolate consumption. Could you comment on its nutritional value?
In the past, it has been demonstrated that eating dark chocolate, with a very high percentage of cocoa, can improve our vascular function which is directly involved in preventing heart disease, and hypertension and associated diseases. There are also evidences that relate cocoa consumption with a better intestinal function, inflammation, including brain health. However, I am very cautious in saying that the health benefits of cocoa justify a ‘therapeutic’ and non controlled increase in chocolate in our diets. But, I can safely say that we can incorporate a moderate and appropriate consumption of chocolate as part of a healthy diet.
Could you comment on the scientific research output in South American countries?
Nutrition research in South America is growing in quantity but more important in quality. We have the Pampas, the Amazonas, and the Andean ecosystems that consist of many indigenous plants. The latter play a big role in folkloric medicine. I am convinced that South America can be an attractive hub for research in food components and their health promoting functions. I would like to think that I can contribute towards that vision.
As one of the associate editors who will be handling papers for the new RSC journal Food & Function, what do you find most exciting about this journal?
I like the journal’s vision of being at the interface between basic and applied research in nutrition. Food & Function will be a great venue for research on how the physical and chemical properties of food can affect the vital biochemical and physiological actions inside the body. The journal will be a fantastic vehicle to make basic research from the laboratory more readily accessible to everyone who is interested in reading about the health benefits of food.
What does the term Food & Function mean to you?
Foods have various functions. For example, most fruits and vegetables contain nutrients and constituents that are not essential or at least we do not know if they are, but generally, they promote better health. It is believed that they co-act in the prevention, and perhaps, cure of certain diseases.
Which scientists do you most admire and why?
I can safely say that I have had three major teachers in my career and I admire certain aspects of the scientific endeavour of all three of them. I admire the discussion and work aptitude of Alberto Boveris, my PhD supervisor; the scientific vision of Al Tappel; and Bruce Ames’s capability to generate novel ideas and crystallise them. Additionally, during the last few years I have met UC Berkeley’s legendary scientist, Lester Packer, from whom I have learnt that apart from producing good science, it is also important to generate the niche in which science is created and grows. And last but not least I definitely admire the fire and dedication to science of Patricia Oteiza, my wife, who is also a nutrition scientist.
A new peer-reviewed journal linking the chemistry and physics of food with health and nutrition
Instant insight: Understanding our food
Monika Pischetsrieder and Rainer Baeuerlein look at how the safety of GM food can be assured
Instant insight: Is your food safe to eat?
Gordon Shephard highlights the analytical methods used to ensure our food is free from the natural toxins produced by fungi
Submissions are now open for full research papers, communications and review articles to be published in the first issues of Food & Function later this year.
Articles published in Food & Function will benefit from wide exposure, with free access to all content published during 2010 and 2011 giving maximum visibility to your work. In addition, the Journal will maintain a strong conference presence, and receive extensive promotion to the wider scientific press.
Food & Function will provide authors in this field with a new dedicated Journal characterised by the high quality, rapid publication and innovative technology for which RSC journals are renowned. In addition authors can expect:
For the opportunity of appearing in the first issues of Food & Function please send us your paper now.
We are delighted to announce the launch of Food & Function – a new and exciting journal which will bring together high-impact research linking the chemistry and physics of food with health and nutrition.
Food & Function will provide a dedicated venue for physicists, chemists, biochemists, nutritionists and other health scientists focusing on work related to the interaction of food components with the human body. Topics include:
Professor Gary Williamson, Chair of Functional Food at the University of Leeds is the Editor-in-Chief of Food & Function with Professor Cesar G. Fraga, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina and UC Davis, USA, and Professor Steven Feng Chen, The University of Hong Kong, as Associate Editors and an internationally renowned Editorial Board:
Professor Aedin Cassidy, University of East Anglia, UK
Professor Kevin Croft, University of Western Australia, Australia
Professor Eric Decker, University of Massachusetts, USA
Professor Alejandro Marangoni, University of Guelph, Canada
Dr Reinhard Miller, Max Planck Institute of Colloids & Interfaces, Germany
Professor Paul Moughan, Massey University, New Zealand
Dr Johan Ubbink, Nestle R&D, Switzerland
Professor Fons Voragen, Wageningen UR, The Netherlands
Manuscripts will be handled by the Associate Editors with all submitted articles subject to rigorous peer-review by international expert referees. Papers will be published online in a citable form shortly after acceptance for publication.
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