Publicação
Fortified and texture modified food products and diets for elderly people
| Resumo: | The increasing elderly population has generated new demands for food and nutrition, aiming to improve their health and prevent diet related diseases. Personalised food is presented as a strategy to address the nutritional challenges faced by elderly individuals, as it allows the creation of customized foods that cater to their nutritional and textural needs, as well as their individual preferences. Fortified food products are also suggested as a solution for age-related nutritional requirements. For this purpose, it is necessary to overcome the limitations derived from the high sensitivity of bioactive compounds to harsh conditions and their limited bioavailability. In this sense, technologies based on micro and nanoencapsulation can be suitable to develop innovative solutions for food fortification. Furthermore, the ageing process often leads to a gradual loss of taste and smell, masticatory issues, swallowing dysfunctions, and even dysphagia, resulting in malnutrition among the elderly. One approach to solve these issues is to design specific diets with suitable food textures, to safeguard their well-being and promote a nutritionally balanced food. In line with this, the primary objective of this research was to develop a fortified and texture-customized meat analogue for the elderly and individuals with dysphagia. For that, different technologies were applied in this work. For the food fortification, an iron carrier was created using nano spray drying technology, with the protein lactoferrin as the carrier. Additionally, vitamin folic acid was encapsulated in hydroxypropyl methylcellulose particles using electrospray technology. The produced micronutrient particles were assessed and found to be non-toxic for in vitro cell lines, with the potential to enhance micronutrient bioaccessibility as shown by the in vitro gastrointestinal digestion assessment. Regarding the texture modified meat analogue development, a filamentous Fungus Aspergillus oryzae biomass was used as the protein source, combined with alginate and different sources of calcium ions as cross-linkers. The application of 3D food printing with a co-axial printer nozzle allowed the creation of a fibrous meat-like appearance. Moreover, the interaction of alginate and calcium ions allowed the production of meat analogues with different textures, ranging from soft products suitable for dysphagia level 5 to firmer options for dysphagia level 7. This research contributes to the creation of personalised products to improve nutrition for the elderly, consequently reducing the risk of malnutrition and choking problems, and eventually improving their quality of life. |
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| Autores principais: | Marques, Arlete Maria Lima |
| Assunto: | 3D food printing Electrohydrodynamic processing Encapsulation Food fortification Nano spray drying processing Alimentação personalizada Ensaios em células Impressão 3D de alimentos Secagem por atomização Tecnologia eletro-hidrodinâmica |
| Ano: | 2024 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | tese de doutoramento |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Universidade do Minho |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho |
| Resumo: | The increasing elderly population has generated new demands for food and nutrition, aiming to improve their health and prevent diet related diseases. Personalised food is presented as a strategy to address the nutritional challenges faced by elderly individuals, as it allows the creation of customized foods that cater to their nutritional and textural needs, as well as their individual preferences. Fortified food products are also suggested as a solution for age-related nutritional requirements. For this purpose, it is necessary to overcome the limitations derived from the high sensitivity of bioactive compounds to harsh conditions and their limited bioavailability. In this sense, technologies based on micro and nanoencapsulation can be suitable to develop innovative solutions for food fortification. Furthermore, the ageing process often leads to a gradual loss of taste and smell, masticatory issues, swallowing dysfunctions, and even dysphagia, resulting in malnutrition among the elderly. One approach to solve these issues is to design specific diets with suitable food textures, to safeguard their well-being and promote a nutritionally balanced food. In line with this, the primary objective of this research was to develop a fortified and texture-customized meat analogue for the elderly and individuals with dysphagia. For that, different technologies were applied in this work. For the food fortification, an iron carrier was created using nano spray drying technology, with the protein lactoferrin as the carrier. Additionally, vitamin folic acid was encapsulated in hydroxypropyl methylcellulose particles using electrospray technology. The produced micronutrient particles were assessed and found to be non-toxic for in vitro cell lines, with the potential to enhance micronutrient bioaccessibility as shown by the in vitro gastrointestinal digestion assessment. Regarding the texture modified meat analogue development, a filamentous Fungus Aspergillus oryzae biomass was used as the protein source, combined with alginate and different sources of calcium ions as cross-linkers. The application of 3D food printing with a co-axial printer nozzle allowed the creation of a fibrous meat-like appearance. Moreover, the interaction of alginate and calcium ions allowed the production of meat analogues with different textures, ranging from soft products suitable for dysphagia level 5 to firmer options for dysphagia level 7. This research contributes to the creation of personalised products to improve nutrition for the elderly, consequently reducing the risk of malnutrition and choking problems, and eventually improving their quality of life. |
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