Los lípidos de los alimentos cumplen un papel fundamental en nutrición humana. Con base en los potenciales efectos perjudiciales para la salud de las dietas altas en ácidos grasos trans (AGT) y la necesidad de contar con información sobre los niveles en alimentos de consumo local, se han investigado el contenido de AGT por espectrometría infrarroja, grasas totales y el porcentaje de AGT con respecto a lípidos totales en algunos alimentos procesados y materia prima grasa comercializados en cuatro ciudades de zonas urbanas del Paraguay. De los 28 tipos de alimentos analizados, el 84,7% contenía ≥0,2 gAGT/porción. Alrededor del 79% superó 5% de AGT totales en el contenido lipídico del alimento, nivel superior al recomendado actualmente por la OMS. En las muestras de materia prima grasa, se encontraron niveles excepcionalmente altos de AGT totales (77,6%) en comparación con los niveles recomendados (5%). Este trabajo presenta los primeros datos sobre el contenido de AGT en alimentos tradicionales de consumo en Paraguay como la chipa 1 , y destaca la importancia del control de la composición de los alimentos de venta local y sin etiquetado, así como la necesidad de apuntar a la reformulación de estos alimentos, con menores niveles de AGT con base en las recomendaciones nutricionales actuales a nivel mundial para la prevención de enfermedades cardiovasculares. Palabras clave: Lípidos, ácidos grasos trans totales, alimentos procesados, espectrometría infrarroja. Processed foods as source of total trans fatty acids in urban areas of Paraguay A B S T R A C TThe food fats play a fundamental role in human nutrition. Based on the known adverse health effects of diets high in trans fatty acids (TFA) and the need for information on levels in food for local consumption, in this work we investigated the content of total lipids and total TFA in some processed foods and fat raw material commercialized in four cities in urban areas of Paraguay. Of the 28 types of foods analyzed, 84.7% contained ≥0.2 g TFA/serving. Approximately 79% exceeded 5% of total TFA in food fat, which is higher than those levels currently recommended by the WHO. In raw material fat samples, exceptionally high levels of total TFA were found (77.6%) compared to the recommended level (5%). This paper presents the first data on the content of TFA in traditional foods of consumption in Paraguay, as "chipa", and highlights the importance of the control of the composition of the foods of local sale and without labeling, as well as the need to point to the reformulation of these foods, with lower levels of trans fatty acids based on the current nutritional recommendations worldwide for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

In this study, we aimed to describe the antioxidant content and physicochemical characteristics of the marmalade and fruits of Plinia peruviana “Yvapurũ”, harvested in Paraguay. The morphological characteristics, moisture, pH, vitamin C, total phenols, and anthocyanins were analyzed in mature wild and cultivated fruit samples. The values of anthocyanins (282–288 mg of cyanidin 3-O-glucoside/100 g) and total phenols in fruits and marmalades (214–224 and 719–817 mg GAE/100 g, respectively) make this fruit and its marmalade byproduct potential sources of phenolic compounds of interest to the dye, flavoring, and antioxidant industries.

Native to South America, the Sicana sp. fruits, known in Paraguay as “kurugua”, belongs to the Cucurbit family and is almost extinct in the region. The aim of this study was to determine the physicochemical characteristics, composition and antioxidant activity of “kurugua” with reddish peel color. The determinations were made by official and regional standardized methodologies on fresh weight (FW). The pulp has an alkaline pH (7.41 ± 0.11), and its main components are carbohydrates (9.44 ± 0.45 g·100 g−1), followed by dietary fiber (1.74 ± 0, 04 g·100 g−1), as minor proteins (0.53 ± 0.05 g·100 g−1) and lipids (0.08 ± 0.01 g·100 g−1). On the evaluated antioxidants compounds, they were higher in peel than in pulp as; total phenols (279.2 ± 12.1, 55.7 ± 10.3 mg of GAE·100 g−1), Vitamin C (9.67 ± 0.09, 7.84 ± 1.71 mg·100 g−1) and beta-carotene (0.37 ± 0.03, 0.19 ± 0.01 mg·100 g−1), respectively. Fresh seeds have a high moisture content (38.8%), dietary fiber (40.2%) and lipids (11.74%), they mineral composition showed a high content of Mg and Ca and a high content of micronutrients such as Cu, Mn, Fe and Zn, which can represent a great contribution to the daily requirements of the diet. The red kurugua fruits are a natural source of nutritious and bioactive compounds beneficial to health, with multiple potential applications in foodstuff, which should be promoted in healthy dietary guidelines for the benefit of the populations.