Bioavailability of freeze-dried and spray-dried grapefruit juice vitamin C

Abstract

An alternative as to offer higher stable and easy handling than fresh fruit is in powdered form, as long as the process used to obtain it ensures a high quality product. The objective of this study was to compare the bioavailability of the vitamin C of a juice prepared from powdered grapefruit obtained by freeze-drying and by spray-drying. A trial was conducted with 11 healthy volunteers. A relative increase of 1,4 – 25,8 % of blood serum vitamin C concentration was quantified after juices intake, with no significant differences (p>0.05) due to the process used to obtain the powder. Keywords: vitamin C; bioavailability in humans; grapefruit powder; freeze-drying; spray-drying.