Abstract: Dietary polyphenols, an important class of components in plant-derived foods, is not only directly related to the flavor and color of foods, but also is helpful for maintaining human health. Since they are easily changed during release from the matrix, digestion, absorption, metabolism and distribution to various tissues in the body, the bioavailability of different dietary polyphenols is different. The most abundant dietary polyphenols do not necessarily represent the highest bioavailability. The absorption and biotransformation of plant polyphenols as well as their bioavailability are one of the current hot research topics. In this article, the gastrointestinal digestion, absorption and metabolism of dietary polyphenols are reviewed based on a mechanism involving intestinal absorption, with the aim to provide valuable information for the research and development of polyphenolics-rich health foods.

Key words: dietary polyphenols, bioavailability, absorption, metabolism, transportation