Develop functional foods with omega-3 fatty acids.

The consumption of dietary omega-3 fatty acids is essential for maintaining good health, especially for pregnant and lactating women, and individuals with coronary heart disease, diabetes, mental illness and immune response disorders. Omega-3 fatty acids improve our health by a variety of mechanisms. They help maintain cell membrane function. They are involved in eicosanoid pathways and the depression of blood lipid levels.

Fish are a major source of dietary omega-3 fatty acids. Several studies have shown that increased consumption of seafood can optimize our health. Nevertheless, there is strong evidence that the amount of omega-3 fatty acids currently consumed by the general population is inadequate.

Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop inexpensive, desirable and convenient functional foods that contain physiologically significant amounts of omega-3 fatty acids. Such foods could be produced from a variety of omega-3 sources including fish oils, algal oils, linseed oil and ethyl esters of omega-3 fatty acids. These oils vary considerably in their concentration and type of omega-3 fatty acids, price and oxidative stability.

To be able to successfully incorporate these oils into functional foods, it is necessary to control the extent of their oxidation. Several strategies have been developed to increase the oxidative stability of bulk oils high in omega-3 fatty acids. Unfortunately, many of these antioxidative strategies show limited success when utilized in heterogeneous food systems.

Developing functional foods that have nutritionally significant levels of omega-3 fatty acids that do not undergo oxidative deterioration is essential if these products are to be accepted by consumers. To prevent oxidative deterioration, it is often important to apply multiple antioxidant hurdle technologies to stabilize n-3 fatty acid fortified functional foods. Incorporating n-3 oils into oil-in-water emulsions and the use of emulsions as delivery systems of n-3 fatty acids into functional foods may present opportunities to apply multiple hurdle technologies.

Further information. Eric Decker, Department of Food Science, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, 236 Chenoweth Laboratory, Box 31410, Amherst, MA 01003; phone: [phone]; fax: [phone]; email: [e-mail].