At present, people know little about marine life and use it very little. However, the preliminary research results have confirmed that the health care function of marine life is very prominent. Taurine extracted from fish and shellfish has antioxidant and cell membrane stabilizing effects, which can eliminate fatigue and improve vision. DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), a highly unsaturated fatty acid isolated from marine fish and seaweed, has the function of improving children's IQ and delaying the decline of brain function in the elderly. Polysaccharides and saponins contained in coelenterates such as seaweed, shrimp and sea cucumber have biological activities such as preventing arteriosclerosis, anticancer and enhancing immunity. A substance called Borrelin extracted from abalone has antibacterial, antiviral and tumor growth inhibiting activities. Polypeptide extracted from scallop has the functions of anti-radiation and promoting cell repair caused by radiation injury. It is found that 17 of nearly 80 elements in seawater is deficient in terrestrial soil, and many marine organisms contain extremely rich elements necessary for human life activities, such as zinc content in oysters and iodine content in kelp, which are far higher than any terrestrial organisms. Therefore, marine life is a good raw material for making and extracting nutritional supplements.
In view of the broad prospects of marine biological development, in 2 1 century, the governments of the United States, Japan and Britain have kept their investment in marine development at 0.5% ~ 2.0% of 65438+GDP, and Japan, Australia and European and American countries have invested heavily in establishing corresponding marine drug research institutions. American scientists have successfully isolated and identified more than 3,000 bioactive compounds from marine organisms, which have antibacterial, antiviral, analgesic, anti-tumor, anti-arteriosclerosis and immune enhancement functions.
Japan is a big consumer of marine aquatic products. From the early 1990s, the Japanese began to establish a new concept of healthy consumption, from the traditional single consumption of fresh seafood to the consumption of multifunctional seafood products. Driven by the changes in people's diet structure, Japan's seafood processing industry has undergone major changes in the past decade, and the marine health industry has developed particularly rapidly. Japan is now the largest producer of fish oil and seaweed products in the world. Health products made of fish oil contain a lot of DHA, which is very popular among middle-aged and elderly people. There are many kinds of products processed with kelp and Undaria pinnatifida, which are favored by women. High-quality protein, nutritional supplements and taurine products made from various fish, shrimp, crab and shellfish are very popular in the Japanese market. Japan is a big consumer of marine health products in the world, and it is also a long-lived country. At the end of last year, the average age of its citizens reached 8 1.9 years, ranking first in the world for four consecutive years, and the marine health industry made great contributions.