Effects of Sterilization, Packaging, and Storage on Vitamin C Degradation, Protein Denaturation, and Glycation in Fortified Milks

Abstract

Monitoring the nutritional quality of dietetic milk throughout its shelf life is particularly important due to the high susceptibility of some vitamins to oxidation, and the continuous development of the Maillard reaction during storage. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the vitamin C content and protein modification by denaturation and glycation on fortified milk samples (growth milks) destined for 1- to 3-yr-old children. The influences of the sterilization process, formulation, packaging, and storage duration at ambient temperature in the dark were studied. Vitamin C degradation was particularly influenced by type of packaging. The use of a 3-layered opaque bottle was associated with complete oxidation of vitamin C after 1 mo of storage, whereas in the 6-layered opaque bottle, which has an oxygen barrier, the vitamin C content slowly decreased to reach 25% of the initial concentration after 4 mo of storage. However, no significant effect of vitamin C degradation during storage could be observed in terms of Maillard reaction, despite the fact that a probable impact occurred during sterilization. Furosine content and the FAST (fluorescence of advanced Maillard products and soluble tryptophan) index-indicators of the early and advanced Maillard reaction, respectively-were significantly higher in the in-bottle sterilized milk samples compared with UHT samples, and in fortified milk samples compared with cow milk. However, after 1 mo, the impact of storage was predominant, increasing the furosine level and the FAST index at similar levels for the differently processed samples. The early Maillard reaction developed continuously throughout the storage period.In conclusion, only packaging comprising an oxygen and light barrier is compatible with vitamin C fortification of milk. Furthermore, short storage time or low storage temperature is needed to retard vitamin C degradation, protein denaturation, and development of the Maillard reaction.

Fluorescence and color as markers for the Maillard reaction in milk–cereal based infant foods during storage

“…Nevertheless, other excitation / emission wavelengths have also been reported (Siegl et al, 2000;Leclère, Birlouez-Aragon & Meli, 2002). On the other hand, the FAST method has been proposed to determine fluorescence compounds in milk-resembling systems and heated-treated foods, such as milk and breakfast cereals (Birlouez-Aragon et al, 2001;Leclère et al, 2001;Birlouez-Aragon et al, 2002;Gliguem et al, 2005;Guan et al, 2005).…”

“…However, studies on the effects of storage on the formation of fluorescent compounds in infant formulas (Ferrer, Alegría, Farré, Clemente & Calvo, 2005) and milks (Gliguem et al, 2005; Birlouez-Aragon, Sabat, Lutz, Leclère & Nicolas, 1999) are scarce, and there is a lack of reports on the formation of MR products in infant foods, as a consequence of either processing or storage.…”

“…Advanced Maillard products and Soluble Tryptophan) have been used to evaluate the progress of Birlouez-Aragon, 2001;Kulmyrzaev & Dufour, 2002;Birlouez-Aragon, Sabat & Gouti, 2002;Gliguem & Birlouez-Aragon, 2005;Guan, Liu, Ye & Yang, 2005) and infant formulas (Ferrer et al, 2000;Birlouez-Aragon et al, 2004;Birlouez-Aragon, Locquet, Louvent, Bouveresse & Stahl, 2005). However, studies on the effects of storage on the formation of fluorescent compounds in infant formulas (Ferrer, Alegría, Farré, Clemente & Calvo, 2005) and milks (Gliguem et al, 2005; Birlouez-Aragon, Sabat, Lutz, Leclère & Nicolas, 1999) are scarce, and there is a lack of reports on the formation of MR products in infant foods, as a consequence of either processing or storage.…”

The Impact of Physical Processes and Chemicals of the Antioxidants (Bioactivity Compounds)

“…Temperature fluctuations have a negative impact on balance between air humidity and products humidity resulting in drying or moisturizing of products. According to the Vant'Hoff Law (dependence of chemical reactions on temperature), metabolic activity products decreases at low temperatures to reduce the intensity of biochemical reactions [8,9]. Air temperature oscillations are influenced by environmental air temperature oscillations which are determined by a complex of physical processes.…”

Effects of Light on Riboflavin and Ascorbic Acid in Freshly Expressed Human Milk

“…According to the International Dairy Federation, the light transmittance through packaging into the food must not exceed 2% at 400 nm and 8% at 500 nm to protect the contents sufficiently from light oxidation [7][8][9]. Controlling photo-oxidation is an important component of maintaining nutrient quality in all milks, which requires more human milk studies to confirm the findings of the dairy industry.…”