Page 321 - Natural Antioxidants, Applications in Foods of Animal Origin

300 Natural Antioxidants: Applications in Foods of Animal Origin
VetBooks.ir ABSTRACT

The findings about association between healthy diet and consumer well-
being have escalated the demands for the foods especially meat products
supplying additional healthy nutrients such as dietary fiber (DF) and natural
antioxidants. There are several reports in the literature linking the regular
intake of DF and antioxidants help in preventing various diets related non-
communicable diseases as well as degenerative problems. Researchers are
also responding very well to the consumer’s demands through the screening
of various sources of antioxidant dietary fiber (ADF) such as fruits, vegeta-
bles, seeds and their by-products as well as other miscellaneous plant mate-
rials. These ADF ingredients are being added in different meat products and
their effects on various qualities are monitored.

8.1 INTRODUCTION
Workload has considerably increased in modern society and very limited
time is spared to take care of personal health. This time scarcity has forced
us to opt for ready-to-eat and fast foods including meat products which
lack adequate level of dietary fiber (DF) required in the daily diet. Inad-
equate DF in our meal can be a cause for several diet related problems.
Several investigations have reported that one-third of all cancer cases and
one-half of cardiovascular diseases and hypertension can be attributed to
diet (Lee & Smith, 2000; Wolfe et al., 2003). The incidence of a number
of non-infectious diseases in our modern societies, such as coronary heart
disease, certain kind of cancer is partly associated to a low DF intake. Thus
DF intake may be vital in reducing colonic cancer, in lowering serum choles-
terol levels and in preventing hyperglycemias in diabetic patients (Nawirska
& Kwasniewska, 2005). The main sources of DF are plant products like
seeds, fruits, vegetables, and their products. It is widely accepted now that
increased consumption of fruits and vegetables can reduce the risk of cancer,
heart disease, and stroke (Liu, 2003). The possible beneficial health effects
of diets rich in these plant products have been attributed to their DF and
phytochemicals (Block et al., 1992; Lampe, 1999).
Meat and meat products are very much nutritious providing many key
nutrients to our body. One of the several nutrients is the fat which is a dense
source of energy and furnishes essential fatty acids. These fatty acids can
possess various degrees of unsaturation. A high degree of unsaturation accel-
erates oxidative processes leading to deterioration in meat flavor, color,