Purpose The development and commerce of functional foods (FF) is complex, expensive and risky. Besides technological obstacles and legislative aspects, consumer demands also need to be considered. The purpose of this study is to assess the Lebanese consumer’s knowledge, attitudes and acceptance of FF and functional ingredients. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional study recruited a convenience sample of adults living in Mount Lebanon in 2015. An interviewer-based questionnaire assessed socio-demographic factors, medical status, consumption and knowledge of FF and FI ingredients. The data were analyzed using statistical package for social sciences. Findings Out of 251 respondents, 40.6 and 32.0 per cent were knowledgeable about FF and FI, respectively, and 67.3 per cent consumed them. Calcium (48.0 per cent) and omega-3 (38.6 per cent) were identified as the most important FI. The consumption of FF was mainly owing to their nutritional benefits beyond basic nutrition (44.2 per cent); however, fearing artificial additives and their side effects (33.4 per cent) were reasons for rejecting them. FF knowledge was higher among young (p = 0.005) and single individuals (p = 0.002) and those going to the gym (p = 0.001), whereas willingness to learn about them was only associated with higher education (p < 0.001). Prebiotic yogurt consumption was higher among gym visitors (p = 0.017) and knowers of FF (p < 0.001). The consumption of protein bars and shakes was higher among males and those going to the gym (p < 0.001). The consumption of cereal bars was higher among young individuals, single, with high income, going to the gym and knowledgeable about FF (p < 0.05). Originality/value The findings are useful for market orientation, development and successfully negotiating new market opportunities of FF for both food industries and policymakers.

Background: Despite the evidence that the association between serum vitamin D level and susceptibility to depression is altered by ethnicity and vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms, high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency, and parallel substantial burden of depression among Middle Eastern/ Arab adult populations, research exploring whether low serum vitamin D level is associated with increased risk of depression among Arab adult populations is almost non-existent.Objective: This study aims to investigate the relationship between serum vitamin D levels and severity of depressive symptoms among a sample of healthy Lebanese adults, controlling for multiple confounders.Methods: A total of 351 employees at a private university in Lebanon were surveyed. Information about sociodemographic, lifestyle habits, medical/ family history; and depressive symptoms were collected using a background questionnaire, international physical activity questionnaire -short form, and Patient Health Questionnaire, respectively. Anthropometric measurements and fasting blood samples were collected using standard methods. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] levels were measured by means of ELISA. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.Results: Sample mean age was 42.36 years. In the fully adjusted model, higher depression scores were found to be border-line significantly (p= 0.058) associated with lower serum 25-(OH)D levels and significantly associated with younger age, female sex, lower income, chronic illness diagnosis, family history of mental illness, number of stressful life events, and intake of antidepressants. Conclusion:We did not find any significant independent association between serum 25(OH)D levels and severity of depressive symptoms in a sample of Lebanese employees of a private university.