Almost 10 years have passed since we organized a symposium on functional foods at the ACS national meetings, San Francisco, in 1997. Since then, a large number of studies have been conducted on food components associated with human health. Many symposiums on past research related to functional foods, such as antioxidants, have been held in various countries, including the US, Japan, and numerous European countries. This book based on the symposium "Functional Foods
and Health" held in San Francisco on September 2006 includes a summary of past research, current research results, and future perspectives of functional foods.

The symposium entitled "Functional Foods and Health" was held-at the Agricultural and Food Chemistry Division of the American Chemical Society, 232th National Meetings, San Francisco, California, September 10-14, 2006-to report current research results and perspectives of functional foods. The contributors were experts in the area of functional foods and were selected from many countries. The major countries were Canada, Japan, Spain, Taiwan, and the United States.

This book provides valuable information containing overall reviews and perspectives on functional foods, the bioavailability and metabolism of plant and cereal constituents, natural antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables, carcinogenesis and anti-carcinogenesis of food constituents, and other miscellaneous food components associated with health effects. This book should be a useful research tool for a diverse range of scientists, including, biologist, biochemists, chemists, dietitians,
food scientists, nutritionists, pharmacologists, and toxicologists as well as medical doctors, from academic institutions, governmental institutions, and private industries.