A review.Although the term "nutraceutical" is now recognized internationally, there is still no consensus on its definition and meaning.Nutraceutical is recognized as a linguistic combination of "nutrient" and "pharmaceutical", and is accepted as "Any substance that may be considered a food or part of a food and provides medical or health benefits, including the prevention and treatment of disease".Nutraceuticals are a diverse product category with various synonyms that are used internationally.Nutraceuticals create an open environment for new products that promise novel solutions to health-related issues.Nutraceuticals will play important role in future therapeutic developments.The greatest challenge will remain in the public policy and regulatory arenas, which will encourage research and development of products providing health benefits and permit truthful, non-misleading communications of these products while protecting public health and maintaining public confidence.The aim of this article is to discuss the concept and the definition of nutraceuticals in general.This article attempts to provide an initial insight on the recent policy initiatives of Indian regulatory regime.The need, scope and importance of this article are clearly evident due to the emerging regulatory regime and recent surge in growth in the nutraceuticals.
