nutraceutical

American  

[noo-truh-soo-ti-kuhl] / ˌnu trəˈsu tɪ kəl /

Also nutriceutical

noun

1. a bioactive compound occurring as a food component, additive, or product, including vitamins, dietary fiber, herbal extracts, carotenoids, and probiotics: nutraceuticals are said to promote health and well-being, allegedly helping in the prevention and treatment of disease.

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nutraceutical British  

/ ˌnjuːtrəˈsjuːtɪkəl /

noun

1. another name for functional food

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Etymology

Origin of nutraceutical

Blend of nutrient ( def. ) and pharmaceutical ( def. ); coined by Stephen DeFelice, U.S. endocrinologist, in 1989

Example Sentences

In the current study, the researchers found that cfChPs were abundant in tissue taken from untreated tumors, but were almost completely absent from tissue taken from tumors in patients who had received the nutraceutical tablets.

From Science Daily • Dec. 10, 2025

The nutraceutical is made in India, where it is regulated as a food for special medical purpose, or FSMP, and then shipped around the world.

From Washington Post • Nov. 25, 2022

Elysium’s first nutraceutical product, called Basis, promises “metabolic repair and optimization.”

From The New Yorker • Mar. 27, 2017

And by the way, where were those Facebook ads for our nutraceutical client?

From Slate • Oct. 30, 2015

Tom Riddle of Philadelphia, a 55-year-old director at a nutraceutical company;

From Newsweek