Assessment of Trans Fatty Acids content in Iranian food products

Teimouri, Maryam; Najafi, Mohammad; Eskandarion, Mohammad Reza; Parto, Fereshteh

doi:10.22104/jift.2014.69

Assessment of Trans Fatty Acids content in Iranian food products

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

Maryam Teimouri ¹

Mohammad Najafi ²

Mohammad Reza Eskandarion ¹

Fereshteh Parto ²

¹ Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Tehran University of Medical Science

² Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Iran University of Medical Science

10.22104/jift.2014.69

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Clinical practice guidelines recommend that individuals with CVD are routinely instructed to engage in self-care including diet restrictions. Among the dietary fat, Trans Fatty Acids (TFA), especially these produced industrially (IP-TFAs) are the most important risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate the amount of TFAs in oral oils and food products that are commonly consumed by Iranian population. A total of 46 samples were chosen by random systematic method from producer list (obtained from health ministry) and were collected from different supermarkets in Iran. The fatty acids were extracted using official methods of analysis of AOCO international and were methylated with N-hexane and potassium hydroxide solution in methanol. Then, the fatty acid composition was assessed by gas chromatograph equipped with a FID detector in presence of standards. TFAs were detected in 33 samples. Trans-9-octadecamonoenoic acid and All-Trans-9,12-octadecadienoic acid distributions were significant (P-value=0.001, P-value= 0.000, respectively) but not for All-Trans-9,12,15-octadecatrienoic (P-value=0.903). Amount of trans fatty acids ranged from 0 to 1.7927 (in margarine samples). The highest level of TFAs in measurable products were found in butter (1.74%) and snack (0.84%) groups. The distribution of cis/trans ratio of Trans-C18:1 and Trans C18: 2 was not significant (respectively, P-value = 0.188 and P-value = 0.254). Although the total TFA contents were at the allowable range but their amounts in some groups including butter and snack were high so that it is suitable to reduce them in food servings.

Keywords

Trans Fatty Acids

Cardiovascular disease

Gas Chromatography

Subjects

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