Inside-Out Health Care with Food Products (Chlorogenic Acids)

Food Function

Food is known to have three functions: to provide nutrients that generate energy to build the body, to offer delicious flavors that vary depending on the consumer’s preference, and to act as a biomodulator. Food plays an important role in supporting health from inside the body.
Kao is conducting research from various angles: food functionality and safety; how food is consumed, and taste let consumers want to eat continuously; food forms that enable easy incorporation into daily life; and the relevant processing technologies.

Chlorogenic acids are polyphenols that are present in coffee and have natural antioxidative properties. Chlorogenic acids are also present in vegetables and fruits and are widely ingested as part of our diet.

This image shows the structures of different chlorogenic acids. Chlorogenic acids are generally defined as cinnamic acid derivatives or quinic acid esters. Coffee contains molecules such as caffeoylquinic acids (CQA) and feruloylquinic acids (FQA), which are collectively called chlorogenic acids.

Structures of chlorogenic acids

Illustration of green coffee beans

Kao discovered that chlorogenic acids act as excellent promotors of vascular endothelial function, which is involved in blood vessel elasticity*1 . Improving vascular endothelial function also improves blood pressure*2 , blood flow*3 and skin condition*3 , which all contribute to maintaining natural homeostasis in the human body.
Chlorogenic acids have also been found to possess many other functions, such as promoting lipid metabolism to reduce visceral fat*4 and improving sleep quality by regulating the autonomic nervous system*5 .

This graph shows the promoting effect of chlorogenic acids on vascular endothelial function. In a study of 20 healthy male volunteers, vasodilatation function was significantly increased in the group who had ingested chlorogenic acids compared with the placebo group.

Promoting effect of chlorogenic acids on vascular endothelial function
Ochiai R et al. (2004). Green coffee bean extract improves human vasoreactivity. Hypertens Res,27(10):731-737,

Kao will continue to develop food products that help people to lead a healthy life every day, and conduct research that supports the promotion of good eating habits and lifestyles.

  • * 1 Ochiai R et al.(2004). Green coffee bean extract improves human vasoreactivity. Hypertens Res,27(10):731-737,
  • * 2 Kozuma K et al.(2005). Antihypertensive effect of green coffee bean extract on mildly hypertensive subjects. Hypertens Res,28(9):711-718,
  • * 3 Fukagawa S et al(2017). Coffee polyphenols extracted from green coffee beans improve skin properties and microcirculatory function. Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry,81(9):1814-1822.
  • * 4 Watanabe T et al.(2019). Coffee Abundant in Chlorogenic Acids Reduces Abdominal Fat in Overweight Adults: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Controlled Trial .Nutrients,11(7). 1617.
  • * 5 Ochiai R et al. (2018).Effect of chlorogenic acids on fatigue and sleep in healthy males: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study. Food Sci Nutr, 6(8):2530-2536.

Human Health Care

Human Health Care

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