oa Editorial [ Hot Topic:Phytonutrients in Chronic Disease Prevention (Guest Editors: Torsten Bohn and Daniele Evers)]

Nutrition is an important factor determining quality of life and health. In recent years, nutritional strategies have received much attention with respect to the prevention of a number of chronic diseases, including diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, and many more. Next to the macro-constituents of the diet such as proteins and dietary fiber, micronutrients and phytochemicals such as polyphenols, carotenoids, phytosterols, and phytoestrogens have been discussed for their potential in chronic disease prevention. Despite a number of promising features of some of these phytochemicals, controversial discussions about their safety, dosing, bioavailability, metabolism, synergistic effects, actions on the cellular level and effectiveness are ongoing, emphasizing existing gaps in our understanding of their way of action. For example, knowledge on factors impacting polyphenol uptake from the gut and further metabolism is still marginal, and their ways of action, such as on gene transcription via e.g. histone modification, is poorly understood. However, nutritional strategies including dietary intervention with food-originating bioactive compounds have, as opposed to medical treatment alone, the potential of being sustainable, cost-effective, and truly preventive in nature, given that their safety can be evaluated and warranted. In addition to a number of already described health beneficial properties, such as the anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory characteristics of several polyphenols, new possible ways of their employment with respect to chronic diseases are just emerging, such as the use of carotenoids to reduce photo-oxidative stress, or the utilization of polyphenols as anxiolytics or antidepressants. This special issue is based on presentations and discussions of the first Luxembourgish Food and Nutrition Conference, aiming to highlight the importance of selected phytochemicals within human nutrition, with a focus on polyphenols and carotenoids, presenting current knowledge and gaps in our understanding with respect to determining their bioavailability and further metabolism in humans, and their way of action and potential health beneficial effects. We can be very grateful for the insightful results gained based on this Conference, partly presented in this special issue, and I would like to express my gratitude toward all authors for their valuable contributions.