Recent Advances in Artificial Intelligence and Natural Antioxidants for Food and Their Health Benefits in Practice: A Narrative Review
Source abstract
Abstract
Natural antioxidants align with consumer demand for clean-label, sustainable, and health-promoting food solutions. Artificial intelligence (AI) is enabling deeper understanding, more rapid screening, and new application modalities in food systems. Novel deep learning frameworks have been developed to predict interactions between polyphenols and proteins—crucial for understanding how antioxidants affect nutrient bioavailability, therapeutic functions, and food processing behavior. The convergence of AI and natural antioxidants is forging a transformative frontier in food science. This review aims to focus on AI-enabled methods and advances in natural antioxidants, focusing on practical impact and future directions. PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and the Cochrane Library databases were searched for relevant articles published up to September 2025. AI accelerates the analysis, design, and personalization of food systems, while natural antioxidants deliver health-promoting, sustainable, and clean-label functionality. Together, they offer promising avenues for safer, fresher, and more nutritious food systems. Continued innovation, multidisciplinary synergy, and thoughtful regulation are essential to unlocking their full potential. Encapsulating essential oils, polyphenols, and curcumin within nanocarriers significantly improves their stability, antimicrobial efficacy, controlled release, and bioavailability, extending their shelf life and application in diverse food formats. Advancing the use of natural antioxidants in food systems must navigate additive classifications, health claim validations, labeling transparency, and regulatory compliance across regions.
Source: crossref · Quality: baseline
Research context
OpenAlex topics: Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Activities · Pomegranate: compositions and health benefits · Edible Oils Quality and Analysis
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Department of Agriculture Crop Production and Rural Environment, School of Agriculture Sciences, University of Thessaly, 38446 Volos, Greece
Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, School of Health Sciences, University of Thessaly, Biopolis, 41500 Larissa, Greece
POSS-Driving Innovation in Functional Foods PCC, Sarantaporou 17, 54640 Thessaloniki, Greece
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