Scientific Opinion on the substantiation of health claims related to water
and maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions (ID 1102,
1209, 1294, 1331), maintenance of normal thermoregulation (ID 1208) and
“basic requirement of all living things” (ID 1207) pursuant to Article 13(1)
of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006[sup]1[/sup]
EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA)2, 3
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), Parma, Italy
Słowa kluczowe:
Water
cognitive function
health claims
physical function
thermoregulation
1. Charakterystyka żywności / składnika
The foods that are the subject of the health claims are “tea and coffee”, “water” and “water-based products (includes tea, coffee, soft drinks, fruit juices, soups etc.)”. From the proposed wordings, the Panel considers that the food/food constituent that is the subject of the health claims is water.
Water is consumed from different sources, which include drinking water (i.e. all water intended for human consumption, apart from natural mineral waters, as defined by Article 2 of Council Directive 98/83/EC6), natural mineral waters (as defined by Council Directive 80/777/EEC7), beverages, and moisture content of foods. Water intake from beverages and foods is defined as total water intake (EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products Nutrition and Allergies (NDA), 2010).
The Panel considers that the food/food constituent, water, which is the subject of the health claims, is sufficiently characterised.
2. Znaczenie oświadczenia dla zdrowia człowieka
2.1. Utrzymanie prawidłowego funkcjonowania fizycznego i procesów poznawczych (ID 1102, 1209, 1294, 1331)
The claimed effects are “hydration, e.g. body function, physical and cognitive performance”, “adds to fluid intake and supports hydration” and “hydration”. The Panel assumes that the target population is the general population.
Hydration relates to the water status of the body rather than to a function of the body as required by Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. The Panel assumes that the claimed effect refers to normal physical and cognitive functions.
The Panel considers that maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions is a beneficial physiological effect.
2.2. Utrzymanie prawidłowej termoregulacji (ID 1208)
The claimed effect is “regulation of normal body temperature”. The Panel assumes that the target population is the general population.
The Panel considers that maintenance of normal thermoregulation is a beneficial physiological effect.
2.3. Podstawowa potrzeba wszystkich żywych organizmów (ID 1207)
The claimed effect is “Basic requirement of all living things. Without water, biological processes necessary to life would cease in a matter of days. Solvent for minerals, vitamins, amino acids, glucose, and many other small molecules so that they can participate in metabolic activities. Transportation of nutrients to cells, wastes from cells, and substances, such as enzymes, blood platelets, and blood cells. Structure of large molecules such as proteins and glycogen. Direct metabolic role represented by hydrolysis”. The Panel assumes that the target population is the general population.
The claimed effect is not sufficiently defined and no further details were given in the proposed wording or the clarifications provided by Member States. From the references provided it was not possible to establish which specific effect is the target for the claim.
The Panel considers that the claimed effect is general and non-specific, and does not refer to any specific health claim as required by Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006.
3. Naukowe uzasadnienia wpływu na zdrowie człowieka -
3.1. Utrzymanie prawidłowego funkcjonowania fizycznego i procesów poznawczych (ID 1102, 1209, 1294, 1331)
Loss of body water of about 1 % is normally compensated within 24 hours. Without compensation and with further increase of body water loss, physical and cognitive functions are impaired (EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products Nutrition and Allergies (NDA), 2010). From several mostly small studies in healthy persons reported by various authors on the effects of induced dehydration on cognitive and motor functions (fatigue, mood, target shooting, discrimination, choice reaction time, visual-motor
tracking, short- and long-term memory, attention, arithmetic) it appears that a body water loss of 2 % induced by exercise in the heat is sufficient to impair these functions (IoM, 2004). Young children and adolescents are particularly at risk of impaired cognitive function (concentration, alertness and short-term memory) caused by insufficient hydration (D'Anci et al., 2006).
The Panel concludes that a cause and effect relationship has been established between the dietary intake of water and maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions.
3.2. Utrzymanie prawidłowej termoregulacji (ID 1208)
Water is particularly important for thermoregulation. To protect the body's core temperature, the body produces sweat and thereby dissipates metabolic energy in the form of heat. Exercise in the heat, with dehydration corresponding to losses of only 1 % of body weight, increases body core temperatures. The magnitude of that increase ranges from 0.1 to 0.23°C for every percent of body weight lost, and the effect is greater with high environmental temperatures. The rise in body temperature is a consequence of both reduced sweating and reduced skin blood flow induced by dehydration (EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products Nutrition and Allergies (NDA), 2010).
The Panel concludes that a cause and effect relationship has been established between the dietary intake of water and maintenance of normal thermoregulation.
4. Uwagi do zaproponowanego brzmienia oświadczenia
4.1. Utrzymanie prawidłowego funkcjonowania fizycznego i procesów poznawczych (ID 1102, 1209, 1294, 1331)
The Panel considers that the following wording reflects the scientific evidence: “Water contributes to the maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions.”
4.2. Utrzymanie prawidłowej termoregulacji (ID 1208)
The Panel considers that the following wording reflects the scientific evidence: “Water contributes to the maintenance of normal thermoregulation.”
5. Warunki i możliwe ograniczenia stosowania oświadczenia
-
Woda przyczynia się do utrzymania prawidłowej termoregulacji
-
Woda przyczynia się do utrzymania na prawidłowym poziomie funkcji fizycznych i poznawczych.
The EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA) (2010) has defined an Adequate Intake for total water, i.e. water from drinking water, from beverages of all kinds, and from food moisture.
The Panel considers that, in order to obtain the claimed effect, at least 2.0 L of water should be consumed per day. Such amounts can be easily consumed as part of a balanced diet. The target population is the general population.
Wnioski
On the basis of the data presented, the Panel concludes that:
The food/food constituent, water, which is the subject of the health claims, is sufficiently characterised.
Maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions (ID 1102, 1209, 1294, 1331)
The claimed effects are “hydration, e.g. body function, physical and cognitive performance”, “adds to fluid intake and supports hydration”, and “hydration”. The target population is assumed to be the general population. It is assumed that the claimed effect refers to normal physical and cognitive functions. Maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions is a beneficial physiological effect.
A cause and effect relationship has been established between the dietary intake of water and maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions.
The following wording reflects the scientific evidence: “Water contributes to the maintenance of normal physical and cognitive functions”.
In order to obtain the claimed effect, at least 2.0 L of water should be consumed per day. Such amounts can be easily consumed as part of a balanced diet. The target population is the general population.
Maintenance of normal thermoregulation (ID 1208)
The claimed effect is “regulation of normal body temperature”. The target population is assumed to be the general population. Maintenance of normal thermoregulation is a beneficial physiological effect.
A cause and effect relationship has been established between the dietary intake of water and maintenance of normal thermoregulation.
The following wording reflects the scientific evidence: “Water contributes to the maintenance of normal thermoregulation”.
In order to obtain the claimed effect, at least 2.0 L of water should be consumed per day. Such amounts can be easily consumed as part of a balanced diet. The target population is the general population.
“Basic requirement of all living things” (ID 1207)
The claimed effect is “Basic requirement of all living things. Without water, biological processes necessary to life would cease in a matter of days. Solvent for minerals, vitamins, amino acids, glucose, and many other small molecules so that they can participate in metabolic activities. Transportation of nutrients to cells, wastes from cells, and substances, such as enzymes, blood platelets, and blood cells. Structure of large molecules such as proteins and glycogen. Direct metabolic role represented by hydrolysis”. The target population is assumed to be the general population.
The claimed effect is general and non-specific, and does not refer to any specific health claim as required by Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006.