Dietary hormesis: beyond nutrition and energy supply

Abstract

Traditional food science and nutrition research emphasizes nutritional and energy-supplying properties, often overlooking hormesis—the beneficial effects of low-dose stressors from food. This paper elucidates hormesis within food science, examining how plant metabolites, fermentation products, and cooking byproducts modulate cellular defense networks via hormesis to impact health. Furthermore, it proposes a biphasic dose-response-based food evaluation system, advocating a paradigm shift toward precision nutrition and hormesis-driven functional food development.