Health Supplements Popular as Chuseok Gifts This Year... Be Sure to Check This Before Buying

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] As the first holiday of Chuseok since the COVID-19 endemic approaches, the number of people preparing gifts to express gratitude that they have not been able to convey has increased significantly. Traditionally, food items such as meat and fruit are popular holiday gifts, but recently, amid the ongoing high inflation, "health functional foods" have attracted attention as an effective alternative. This is because they are relatively affordable while carefully considering the recipient's health.

According to the Korea Health Supplements Association on the 4th, when purchasing health functional foods, you should first check whether the packaging exterior includes the phrase "health functional food" and the certification mark. Health functional foods distributed domestically undergo scientific evaluation of their human functionality and safety by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Only products that pass this evaluation can display the phrase and mark; if these are not present, the product is generally recognized as a health food and should be distinguished from health functional foods.

It is important to be cautious of false or exaggerated advertisements that portray health functional foods as medicines with excellent therapeutic effects or label general foods as health functional foods. Health functional foods approved for sale by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety undergo pre-review of labeling and advertising by experts before distribution, and if approved, they can display the review mark, so it is advisable to check for this.

Many people are also attracted by relatively low prices and purchase overseas products through online channels such as direct overseas purchase or proxy purchase, but some imported products contain ingredients banned for use domestically, and their safety is not guaranteed. Even if damage occurs, compensation is difficult. Products imported and officially cleared for domestic sale display the importer (manufacturer) name and raw material names in Korean, so please check these when purchasing.

Consistently accessing accurate information about health functional foods before and after purchase greatly helps in forming safe and healthy purchasing and consumption habits. The "Health Functional Food Portal (HSIN)" operated by the Health Supplements Association provides various information and functions such as ▲checking functionality, ingredients, and intake precautions by product ▲searching for false or exaggerated advertisements and hazardous food recalls ▲checking for overlapping intake of health functional foods, and it can be conveniently used via mobile devices.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.