Illustrated Handbook of Functional Properties of Food Components

Food contains ingredients and bioactive compounds such as lipids, peptides and antioxidants that are important for human nutrition. The idea of producing foods with enhanced functionalities of inherent components has led the food industry to a wave of research activity and development of functional foods. Food processing has attracted public interest and the attention of researchers due to numerous indications from international organizations (e.g. the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization) about chronic diseases caused by lifestyle habits combined with unhealthy diet. The eating habits of the last few decades, based on the increased consumption of quickly processed and heavily processed foods, can affect the health of individuals. Functional food ingredients have been studied as additives to fortify foods with enhanced technological properties and to develop food products with health claims. Bioactive components have also been suggested during the pandemic to support the immune system against COVID-19 disease. Various epidemiological studies have shown that consumption of target nutrients is associated with a reduced risk of diabetes, stroke, coronary artery disease and other diseases.

This Illustrated Handbook of Functional Properties of Food Components introduces nutrition and functional food ingredients. The factors affecting these critical properties of food components are analyzed together with their interaction and preservation during processing.

Features:

• Presents the nutritional and technological aspects related to the development of functional foods.
• Contains more than 200 full-color photographs - plus detailed descriptions on each topic.
• Concise, comprehensible structure of the text allows readers to navigate the content with affluence.
• Wide-ranging glossary of key terms provides readers with the precise facts they need to clarity.

This book serves as an essential reading for students and professionals from both academia and industry working in related disciplines.