機能性表示食品制度における機能性糖類•糖質の位置づけ

摘要

我が国において生理機能を表示できる食品は，「特定保健用食品」,「栄養機能食品」,「機能性表示食品」の3 種類だけである。「いわゆる健康食品」はもちろん，その 他の食品において機能性を表示すると薬事法に違反する。 機能性表示食品制度は規制改革実施計画および日本再 興戦略を踏まえて制定され，「企業の責任において加工 食品および農産物に科学的根拠をもとに機能性を表示で きる制度」として2015年4月に施行された制度である。 つまり，特定保健用食品より時間的•金銭的ハードルが 低い制度というだけでなく，制度活用により「いわゆる 健康食品」のうち科学的根拠のないものが淘汰され，機 能性を表示する食品の質の向上が期待される。%Following the introduction of two currently used labels, Foods for Specified Health Uses (FOSHU) and Foods with Nutrient Functional Claims (FNFC) ， a new system of "Foods with Function Claims" has been in place since April 2015 as a third way to label function claims on food products. This system was introduced in line with the Regulatory Reform Implementation Plan and the Japan Revitalization Strategy (approved at the Cabinet meeting in June 2015 ) and is one in which "processed food and agricultural products can be labeled with function claims based on scientific evidence by food business operators under their own purview." Time-related and financial hurdles for the system to clear are lower than those of FOSHU. For functional substances subject to the system, however, nutrient contents specified in the Dietary Reference Intakes for Japanese are excluded because there was not sufficient time to thoroughly examine such functional substances before the introduction of the system, whose timing had been pre-determined. In January 2016, a review committee on functional substances relevant functional substances. The Dietary Reference Intakes for Japanese classifies carbohydrates, dietary fiber, carbohydrates excluding dietary fiber, and sugars as nutrient contents. Among these, only dietary fiber is currently included in the labeling system. In the post-war period in the 1960 s， sugar was very expensive in Japan, and the nation made collective efforts to develop a natural sweetener as a sugar substitute. The then-Agency of Industrial Science and Technology of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (now the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) developed an efficient enzyme production and enzymatic reaction technique, making industrial production of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) possible. This technique was quickly adopted in the United States and spread to other countries as well. The difficulty in obtaining food during the post-war period increased the need for substances including the sugar substitute HFCS, which can be an energy source, for the primary function of food (nutrition). HFCS is now a common ingredient in soft drinks in Japan. The enzyme production and enzymatic reaction technique subsequently expanded into the development of various functional carbohydrates, leading to production and sales of a large number of new materials such as palatinose® (isomaltulose), reduced-palatinose (reduced-isomaltulose), fructooligosaccharide, and lactosucrose. In an age of plentiful food where Japan has become economically prosperous, the necessity of the tertiary function of food (physiological function) has become recognized. The new materials are mostly made from sugar, starch, or lactose; accordingly, the prices of new materials are lower than those of other functional substances, such as vitamins and natural extracts. In addition, the effects of those substances include calming intestinal disorders, enhancing mineral absorption, lowering blood pressure, and reduction of dental caries. Developed in Japan, functional carbohydrates with both primary and tertiary functions should be approved as functional substances subject to the system of Foods with Function Claims to make better use of the system and maintain Japanese people's health.