Processed foods as source of total trans fatty acids in urban areas of Paraguay

Abstract

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.

Fatty acid profile of lipid-rich food consumed in Paraguay

“…Another aspect that is worth mentioning is that whereas the traditionally home-made chipas contained no TFAs, the comercial ones presented TFAs ranging from 2.8% to 6.7%. In the present study, the amount of lipids found in chipa was 16.0%, with TFAs of only 0.1%; these values are quite close to the values reported by Mereles for traditionally home-made chipas produced from animal fat 21 .…”

“…Another point that deserves mentioning is that considering that there is some reasonable degree of variability in terms of the ingredients used and ways of preparation of the traditional foods investigated, one should expect differences in the lipid content of foods. For instance, one study analyzed chipas from different origins and found that the lipid content of home-made chipas was 16.4%, whereas that of comercially marketed chipas varied from 18.2% to 21.9% 21 . Another aspect that is worth mentioning is that whereas the traditionally home-made chipas contained no TFAs, the comercial ones presented TFAs ranging from 2.8% to 6.7%.…”

“…Foods containing the highest amounts of these acids included milk-based ice cream (5.1%), chipa guazú (3.8%), and cheese bread (2.9%). The presence of TFAs in these foods can be attributed to the use of hydrogenated fats in the preparation process 21 .…”

Estrategias para evitar el consumo excesivo de grasas trans en la población ecuatoriana

“…Teniendo en cuenta la evidencia que relaciona el consumo grasas trans con las enfermedades cardiovasculares y su impacto potencial en la resistencia a la insulina, la inflamación sistémica y el estrés oxidativo, es por ello que varias organizaciones internacionales han brindado orientación destinada a regular el contenido de grasas trans en los alimentos. (Mereles, L. et al 2017).…”