Chapters authored
Modification of Fatty Acid Composition in Meat Through Diet: Effect on Lipid Peroxidation and Relationship to Nutritional Quality – A Review
Part of the book: Lipid Peroxidation
Dietary Administration of Animal Diets with Aromatic and Medicinal Plants: Influence on Meat Quality
Aromatic plants are gaining importance in recent years as potential sources of natural food preservatives due to the growing interest in the development of safe and effective natural food preservation. The use of vegetal substances with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties to increase the shelf life in meat and meat products is a promising technology. Taking into account that the diet with antioxidant may be absorbed and prevent lipid oxidation and colour deterioration, the possibility of feeding animal diets contains aromatic and medicinal plant (as thyme leaf, rosemary and sage) as natural antioxidants and antimicrobials represent a very interesting opportunity to replace synthetic antioxidants. In this sense, herbs of the Labiatae family, such as rosemary and sage, have been extensively studied for antioxidant and antimicrobial activities in a variety of systems. This review gives an overview of the current knowledge and recent trends in the use of plant-derived compounds from aromatic and medicinal as antimicrobials and antioxidant in animal diet and its effect on meat quality, their potentials and challenges.
Part of the book: Active Ingredients from Aromatic and Medicinal Plants
Bioactive Components of Human Milk: Similarities and Differences between Human Milk and Infant Formula
Nowadays, there is an increasing awareness regarding the relationship between food, nutrition, and health. It is obvious that this relation starts from the birth. In the early stage of life, breastfeeding is considered the preferred choice for infant feeding and human milk is the optimal food for an infant to keep its nutritional and health status. Because it contains a large group of bioactive compounds such as proteins, vitamins, nucleotides, oligosaccharides, immunoglobulins, and some of the bioavailable minerals beyond its content of the essential nutrients, human milk is classified as the first functional food in the infant life. The various bioactive components of human milk play a pivotal role in preventing the gastrointestinal and respiratory infections, anemia, and bone-related problems as well as it enhances the immune function and helps in the maturation of the digestive system. The exclusive breastfeeding pattern during the first 6 months of infant life and introducing complementary foods after this period have a potential role in protecting against certain diseases in the adult stage of life. This chapter is underlying the great potential of breastfeeding for mothers and babies. Moreover, it discusses the functionality of some components of human milk and its similarities and differences between human milk and infant formulas.
Part of the book: Selected Topics in Breastfeeding