This article follows on from Chapter 1: 2025 FSMP Industry Trends, where we explored the global outlook, regulatory milestones, and policy drivers shaping the FSMP sector. In this second chapter, we look more closely at how the concept of medicine–food homology is influencing product innovation, clinical applications, and market opportunities.
From Treatment to Full‑Cycle Health Management
Across Europe and Asia, the health industry is shifting from a focus on treating disease to managing health across the entire life cycle. Within this context, the traditional Chinese principle of medicine–food homology, the idea that food can also serve as medicine, has gained renewed relevance.
Combined with advances in modern medicine and nutrition science, this philosophy has evolved into a specialised field: Foods for Special Medical Purpose (FSMP). These products are designed with targeted formulations to provide nutritional therapy for people with specific medical conditions.
When the Eastern wisdom of “food as medicine” meets the Western science of “precision nutrition,” the result is more than just new product formats. It represents a restructuring of both theory and practice, offering safe and effective solutions for chronic disease management, clinical recovery, and preventive care.
FSMP: A Precision Tool in Clinical Nutrition
FSMP are not ordinary foods. They are evidence‑based nutritional solutions developed for people with restricted intake, impaired digestion, metabolic disorders, or disease‑specific needs.
For example, post‑surgical patients with swallowing difficulties can benefit from liquid or peptide‑based FSMP that are absorbed efficiently while reducing intestinal strain. Unlike health supplements or pharmaceuticals, FSMP do not rely on pharmacological effects. Instead, they deliver nutritional therapy to support recovery and improve outcomes.
The concept originated in Western clinical practice. In the 1960s, the United States introduced enteral nutrition formulas for post‑surgical patients. By the 1980s, formulations had diversified into whole‑protein, peptide‑based, and amino acid‑based types.
China entered the field later, establishing a dedicated regulatory framework in 2016. Since then, more than 150 FSMP products have been approved, though this still lags behind the thousands available in Europe and the US, highlighting the sector’s growth potential.
Six Key Application Areas
FSMP are designed to meet precise nutritional needs across different life stages and health conditions.
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Perioperative recovery: Peptide‑based enteral nutrition reduces infection risk and accelerates healing after gastrointestinal surgery.
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Metabolic disease management: Specialised formulas for diabetes (slow‑release carbohydrates) and chronic kidney disease (low‑protein, α‑keto acid supplementation).
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Oncology support: High‑energy formulas prevent cachexia, while omega‑3 enriched immune formulas improve quality of life and reduce complications.
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Special infant nutrition: Hydrolysed protein or amino acid formulas for allergy management; preterm formulas with high energy density and lactoferrin.
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Elderly frailty: Thickened liquid formulas reduce aspiration risk and help prevent sarcopenia, lowering malnutrition rates by up to 30 percent.
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Inherited metabolic disorders: Low‑phenylalanine formulas for PKU patients to prevent neurological damage.
From Basic Support to Precision Function
The FSMP product landscape is evolving from basic nutrition support to precision functional interventions, covering all ages and multiple disease areas.
Age‑specific formulas range from infant anti‑allergy and lactose‑free products to adult full‑nutrition and disease‑specific formulations, such as resistant starch for diabetes or branched‑chain amino acids for liver disease.
New dosage forms are also emerging. Beyond traditional liquids, formats now include ready‑to‑drink bottles, instant powders, gels, and fibre‑enriched suspensions to improve compliance and gut health.
Medicine–Food Homology:Traditional Wisdom Meets Modern Science
Integrating traditional functional ingredients into FSMP is opening new therapeutic pathways.
In metabolic diseases, blends of stevia, monk fruit glycosides, and hyaluronic acid have been shown in animal models to reduce blood glucose and lipid levels. In oncology, ginsenoside Rh2 and maitake polysaccharides enhance immune function and survival rates in cancer patients. In liver repair, silymarin and glutamine combinations improve mitochondrial function and reduce ALT/AST levels in alcoholic liver disease.
This marks a shift from empirical herbal pairings to scientifically validated ingredient–target–pathway mechanisms, supported by advanced extraction methods, molecular docking, and clinical trials.
Market Opportunities in China
Chronic diseases and ageing are the twin engines of growth. Over 300 million Chinese live with diabetes, chronic kidney disease, or cancer, yet only 30 percent receive standardised nutrition therapy. If FSMP penetration rises from under 2 percent to 10 percent, the market could exceed RMB 20 billion.
Since 2016, registration cycles have shortened, insurance reimbursement has expanded, and R&D subsidies have been introduced, all of which are accelerating adoption.
Challenges and the Path Forward
Despite strong momentum, FSMP faces several challenges.
Research and development requires high investment, with costs of 30 to 50 million RMB per formula, long clinical trials, and continued reliance on imported raw materials. Market awareness remains low: 72 percent of the public mistake FSMP for “premium health foods,” while only 18 percent know they require physician guidance. Competition is also intense. Multinationals dominate 65 percent of the market, but local firms are leveraging medicine–food homology to differentiate and catch up.
Conclusion
The convergence of medicine–food homology and FSMP represents a meaningful dialogue between traditional wellness wisdom and modern nutrition science. As preventive care merges with precision nutrition, a full‑cycle health management model is taking shape, spanning prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation.
While challenges remain in technology, awareness, and competition, policy support, consumer upgrading, and domestic innovation are driving momentum. This fusion of tradition and modernity is set to become a core force in advancing public health and unlocking the potential of a 150 billion RMB market.
References
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IJBM | Wenzhou University Sun Da Research Group: Developing Potential Medicine–Food Homology FSMP Formulas for Diabetes Management, Food Plus Smart Food Tech.
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Professor Yu Kang, Peking Union Medical College: Current Applications and Clinical Value of FSMP, Nutrition Science & Technology.
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Popular Science | Special Foods: FSMP (Part III), SMO Food Testing.
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FSMP Industry Market Analysis, National Dairy Engineering Technology Research Center.
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Website: https://www.sinofnhealth.com/