| Popis: |
There have been substantial change and innovations in the beverage market over the past years as new lifestyles of people have a considerable effect on health. Consequently, there is a global rise in the incidence of diseases such as obesity, diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis, and cardiovascular diseases, which leads consumers to seek health and wellness from their foods. Despite the lack of precision concerning the data of global sales, beverages are the major segment of the functional food industry. Consumers expect their beverages to offer health benefits beyond their natural nutritional content for being the accepted delivery vehicle for nutraceuticals pushing the beverage industry to enrich the drinks with health-stimulating ingredients. Fortification refers to the addition of nutrients whether the nutrients were normally in the food before processing or not, for the purpose of improving the nutritional quality of the food and providing a health benefit in the population or specific population groups with minimal risk to health. Enrichment is synonymous with fortification and means the addition of nutrients which are lost during processing. The term “enrichment” as used in this chapter will have the same meaning as “fortification.” Ingredients which could be added into beverages in order to enrich them are antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, dietary fiber, plant sterols and stanols, super fruit extracts, herbal extracts and seed extracts, amino acids, peptides and proteins, nutraceuticals such as omega-3 fatty acids, resveratrol, Coenzyme Q10, pro- and prebiotics such as inulin, fructooligosaccharides, lactulose, Lactobacillus, and Bifidobacterium. Dairy-based beverages, soy-based beverages, fruit and/or vegetable juices, smoothies, ready-to-drink tea, ready-to-drink coffee, enhanced waters, sports/recovery drinks, and energy drinks can be listed as examples of enriched beverages on the market. While incorporating the fortificants into these beverages, the solubility, bioavailability, pH, temperature, light and stability of ingredients and overall stability, color, and flavor of the finished beverage are the concerns of enriched beverage production. This chapter reviews the above-mentioned ingredients which are used or could be potentially used as fortificants along with their nutritional characteristics, health effects, related regulations, sources, and extraction techniques. Regarding the above-mentioned beverages which are on the market as fortified drinks, recent research focusing on enrichment with the technical challenges and future outlook is discussed as well. |
