Functional Foods Incorporate Healthy Fats

Functional Foods Incorporate Healthy Fats

 by Heather Granato

From the pages of Consumer Reports to The New York Times,health writers are talking about the importance of consuming healthy fats topromote general wellness. The White House has even gotten in on the act, urgingthe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Health and Human Services (HHS) topromote increased consumption of omega-3 fatty acids in its Dietary Guidelinesfor Americans and the Food Pyramid.

There is very strong interest in nutritional oils, and demand isincreasing, said David Lewis, business unit manager/North America with LipidNutrition. Companies are searching for ingredients with clinically provenhealth benefits that they can use to increase the efficacy and benefits of theirproducts.

Nutritional ingredient suppliers are meeting the challenge, offering a broadrange of nutritional fats and ensuring the ingredients meet safety and usageguidelines. A number of companies, such as Lipid Nutrition and Martek, have GRAS(generally recognized as safe) status for some of their nutritional fat productswhile others are in the process of applying for selfaffirmation on theirofferings.

Nutritional fats encompass a range of products. Primary among them are theessential fatty acids (EFAs), which are integrally involved in maintainingcellular health and promoting proper prostaglandin function. EFAs arepolyunsaturated oils (meaning they contain more than one unsaturated carbon) andare chemically distinguished by the placement of their first double bond.Omega-3 fatty acids have their first double bond three carbons up from themolecules acid tail. Omega-3 EFAs include alpha linolenic acid (ALA),eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Omega-6s have theirfirst double bond six spots up the tail; they include linoleic acid (LA) andgamma linolenic acid (GLA).

Deep, coldwater fish are the primary dietary source of omega-3 fatty acids,particularly long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs) such as DHA.Omega-3 fatty acids are also found in short-chain form in vegetable sources,including flaxseed, hemp and perilla oils. Omega-3 fatty acids are linked tomany health conditions, including cardiovascular wellness and brain health.

Vegetable oils such as flax, black currant and borage supply considerableamounts of omega-6 LA. Black currant, borage and evening primrose oil are alsorich sources of GLA. Proper levels of omega-6 fatty acids are necessary forimmune function and control of inflammatory processes. A derivative of omega-6LA, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), is commercially produced through processingsunflower or safflower.

While fish oil has received a great deal of press for its heart healthyqualities, CLA is a strong second in the media sweeps. Many studies have linkedit to decreased body fat and increased lean body mass. A recent study from LipidNutrition has also linked CLA (as Safflorin) to increased immune function.

According to Duane Fimreite, Tonalin CLA product manager for CognisNutrition & Health, inquiries from the food industry about using CLA areincreasing in frequency. Some companies are looking for samples and doingdevelopment work, while others want to be informed when we obtain GRAS status,he said, referring to the companys Tonalin CLA. These healthier fats canbe added to new products and still offer flavor and mouthfeel.

Incorporating Healthy Fats

Functional food and beverage companies are turning to suppliers forinformation about how to add these healthy fats to product formulations.According to the June 2003 edition of Healthy Living Monthly fromfinancial analyst firm Adams, Harkness & Hill, the increase in research onhealthy fats should help grow the market. The mainstream food industryalready uses the ingredients to some extent in functional and fortified foods,the report said, but we expect to see a much broader selection of packagedfoods containing fish oil, algal DHA or flax on the market within the next 12 to24 months.

Bruce Miller Jr., executive vice president of Marine Nutraceutical Corp.,agreed with this assessment. With a staggering 58-percent growth in omega-3fatty acids in 2002, marketers are looking for new and unconventional ways toparticipate in the categorys growth, he said. Companies are exploringthe category as never before.

As these companies explore a new category, theyre coming up against someformulation challenges. Some companies underestimate the technical challengeof incorporating nutritional oils and fats into their products, said HelenZhong, sales and marketing manager with Sanmark LLC. It is important formanufacturers to have a good understanding of not only the nutritional benefitsbut also the technical properties and regulatory status of different nutritionalfats before starting a project.

Of primary concern is the fact that the polyunsaturated nature of thesehealthy fats makes them highly susceptible to oxidative damage. Many companiescontrol the extraction process from seed to oil, often running cold pressoperations in HACCP and GMP (good manufacturing practice) facilities to ensurequality. During production, suppliers also include antioxidants or use nitrogenflushing to eliminate possible oxygen that could cause rancidity in the oils.

Delivery form is another control point for suppliers to ensure quality offinished products. Some manufacturers offer EFAs in a powder form, while othersare taking it a step further and offering microencapsulation to protect thecontents. Microencapsulation and powder forms offer great value tomanufacturers because they offer enhanced stability while delivering a desiredfatty acid profile, said Carol Reynolds, marketing manager with Bioriginal.

Microencapsulation and other innovative delivery forms also address anothermanufacturer concernthe fishy odor and taste associated with somefish-based omega-3 products. Pronova Biocare, for example, noted it hasmicroencapsulated some of its concentrated oils on a test basis for use inenergy bars and other functional food products. Omega- 3 fatty acids tend tooxidize very easily when exposed to oxygen, so the best way to protect the oilis to microencapsulate it, said Baldur Hjaltason, Pronovas area salesdirector/United States. This does raise certain restrictions in applications,particularly when volume is important since a carrier can take up considerablevolume.

Another possible cause for a strong fishy taste or odor is that an oilhas already oxidized or was not fully deodorized. There is often a lack ofawareness in the differences between the varieties of oils available, Millersaid. At the low end are commodity grade oils that will taste and smellvery poor. While the fatty acid profile may be identical on the products, thereis far more to oil than a technical specification. In the final analysis, theconsumer is now sold on the virtues of fish oil, but will remain a consumer onlyif the product is of the highest quality and purity.

Finally, there continues to be a disconnect between knowing the benefits andbeing willing to pay for added value. While healthier fats can be added tonew products and offer flavor and mouthfeel, it is a challenge to get consumersto pay the premium price, Fimreite said. This is going to take a lot ofeducation and retraining for a society that has been trained that fat is bad foryou.

However, the benefits could be worth the investment. Consumers arebecoming more aware of EFAs and want to be able to access these healthy fats inan alternative delivery system, Reynolds said. With new technologies anddelivery systems being developed all the time, the industry needs to keep anopen mind for nutritional fats in functional food products.