Estudo de plantas alimentícias não convencionais e aplicação em produtos lácteos

Abstract

Functional foods are found in virtually all food categories, however these products are not homogeneously spread across all segments of the market. As an ingredient used in formulations of functional foods, the so-called prebiotics, which according to Brazilian legislation are defined as any nondigestible food ingredient that beneficially affects the organism by selectively stimulating the growth and / or activity of colon bacteria, stand out. Many ingredients have been studied for their application as prebiotics in foods, among them the vegetables Helianthus tuberosus L., Moringa oleifera and Pereskia aculeata Mill. These vegetables are still little studied as a prebiotic ingredient and present great potential to perform such function. Thus, the present project aimed at the development of a symbiotic yogurt using the vegetable with higher inulin content as a prebiotic source. The developed yoghurts were evaluated as to their functional properties by in vitro and in vivo tests. Analyzes for physico-chemical characterization of products as well as microbiological and shelf life evaluation will also be performed. The average results of the physicochemical characterization of the flour of Pereskia aculeata Mill, Moringa oleifera and Helianthus tuberosus were: moisture (0.88, 0.88 and 0.86 g, 100 g -1), ashes (16,34,7, 75 and 5.07 g 100 g -1), lipids (3.27, 5.57 and 0.48 g 100 g -1), proteins (22.41, 24.79 and 6.53 g 100 g -1 ), carbohydrates (1.71, 13.83 and 67.38 g 100 g-1) and dietary fiber (55.39, 48.21 and 19.68 g 100 g-1), in relation to the mineral composition flours evaluated are considered mineral sources, being the tupinambor flour source of Ca and Mg, the flour of ora-pro-nobis of P, Ca and Mg and the moringa flour of Ca and P. When evaluating the chromatographic profile of sugars Helianthus tuberosus flour, we identified the inulin with 44.44% and when we used this flour as a prebiotic ingredient in symbiotic igurte we obtained a preferred formulation (F1), these yoghurts remained stable in the 30 days shelf life, in relation to the acidity, pH and bacterial counts. This preferred formulation was inserted into the feed of New Zealand white rabbits exerting symbiotic potential through serological evaluation and cecal microbiology, with lower levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides and glucose in the animals that consumed the symbiotic product when compared to the control. The development of new products that provide some health benefit in addition to being economically feasible is increasingly investigated by food industries and researchers in the area, such as Helianthus tuberosus, Moringa oleifera and Pereskia aculeata Mill. can stand out as important functional ingredients, and Helianthus tuberosus L. stands out as a prebiotic ingredient for the food industry.