Background: Consumers' food production requirements have changed considerably during the last
decade. This includes growing interest in the use of aroma compounds to develop functional foods for
providing health benefits and reducing chemically synthesized additives. More recently, beyond their
flavoring properties, various reports have shown the potential role of volatile compounds in human
health, including their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer and anti-obesity activities. Thus,
investigation into the pharmacological activities of flavor and volatile compounds has been increased.
Scope and approach: To our knowledge, no single review article is available that provides an overview of
the health benefits and antimicrobial properties of volatile compounds. To address this, here it was
aimed to review the current knowledge of the health benefit and antimicrobial properties of volatile
compounds.
Key findings and conclusions: There are many plant or food products with health benefits and antimicrobial
activities. However, existing literature indicates that terpenoids, phenolics and alkaloids are
among natural taste compounds, which are the most attractive sources in terms of developing new
antimicrobial agents and health-promoting ingredients. Future investigation is required to demonstrate
key properties of volatiles/non-volatile taste compounds such as synergic actions, organoleptic impacts,
process stability and efficacy dosage, particularly in cooperation with different research disciplines.