High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Nutraceutical, a term combining the words ?nutrition? and ?pharmaceutical,? was originally defined by Dr. Stephen L. DeFelice to describe a nutritional product that claims to provide medicinal benefits in addition to their regular nutritional value. Nutraceuticals can refer to foods, dietary supplements, medical foods, and functional foods that may provide prevention and treatment of illness or disease. Nutraceutical foods are not subject to the same testing and regulations as pharmaceutical drugs. However, nutraceuticals have become increasingly mainstream as research confirms their general effectiveness.