Effect of heat treatment on the physicochemical and functional properties of nutritional mixtures prepared for pregnant women
Abstract
The stages of pregnancy are divided into three phases; and in each phase, the fetus needs different nutritional components. Therefore, the aim of this study was to prepare three nutritional mixtures from plant and animal sources meet the nutritional needs during the different stages of pregnancy. Then, studying the effects of heat treatment on their physicochemical and functional properties. The mixtures were prepared using grains, legumes, oil seeds, dried fruits, legumes and whole milk powder with different proportions based on the fetus’s needs in the three stages of pregnancy. The first and second mixtures were cooked on a direct heat for 15 min after mixing them with water in a ratio of 1:10. Subsequently, the cooked samples were dried in an air oven at 40°C. The results indicated that the ability of the first mixture to bind water increased to almost double, and it was higher than the ability of the second mixture. It was noted that the swelling ability significantly increased (p≤0.05) for the first and second samples after cooking. The second mixture recorded the highest swelling ability, whether for the raw or cooked sample. The results showed that the solubility of the first and second mixtures significantly decreased after cooking from 14.98 to 9.32% and from 14.32 to 11.29%, respectively. The total ash content ranged b.1etween 2.07% and 2.60%. Whereas, the protein content in the studied samples ranged from 10.09% to 13.75%, which recorded by the third sample. Heat treatment led to an increase in the protein content in the first mixture, and decreased in the second mixture. It was found in this investigation that the third mixture had the highest level of total fiber (7.68%), while the first and second cooked samples documented the lowest value of dietary fiber (4.83 and 5.08%) respectively. The content of selenium, manganese, potassium and zinc significantly differed in the studied samples, whether raw or heat-treated once.
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