Use of Defatted Chia Seeds to Enhance the Nutritional Quality of Wheat Pasta.

ARANIBAR, C; PIGNI, N.B.; MARTINEZ, M.L; AGUIRRE, A.; BORNEO, R.; WUNDERLIN, D.A.

Praga

Congreso; Food Integrity 2016; Assuring the Integrity of the Food Chain; 2016

FOOD INTEGRITY - UNIVERSIDAD DE PRAGA

Nutritional quality and foodauthenticity are issues of great interest in the food industry, which concernsnot only to consumers, but also to producers and distributors. Nowadays, thereis a widespread preference to the consumption of foods that, in addition to itsnutritional properties, provide components that could reduce the risk ofcertain diseases. One of the most studied functions corresponds to theantioxidant capacity, since it is involved in protection against oxidativedamage of cells and tissues, having an important role in the prevention ofnumerous diseases related to the overproduction of free radicals, such ascancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, etc. The antioxidant property isgenerally associated with high content of phenolic compounds. Chia (Salvia hispanica L.) isan annual species belonging to the Lamiaceae plant family, traditionally grown in pre-Colombian CentralAmerica. Chia seeds possess an interesting nutritional value due to thepresence of polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω-3/ω-6), vitamins, minerals and antioxidant). Inparticular, Chia seeds have the highest percentage of alpha linolenic acid (~60%) among the described natural sources. Therefore, Chia is considered animportant nutraceutical product being a good alternative for enriching foods,producing functional foods and gluten-free products. Recently, the EuropeanParliament and the European Council (2009/827/UE; 2014/890/UE) approved its useas a novel food ingredient.Within this framework, the aim of the presentwork was to assess the antioxidant capacity of pasta produced with partialsubstitution of wheat flour with different proportions of chia defatted flour (0%,2.5%, 5% and 10%), in order to exploit this residual by-product, obtained afteroil extraction, as an ingredient in the manufacture of a supplemented foodproduct. The evaluation of different quality indicators was performed, togetherwith the extraction of phenolic compounds. Antioxidant capacity of the extractswas measured by means of classical chemical methods, including:Folin-Ciocalteu, FRAP, TEAC and DPPH. Our results show that the increasingcontent of chia flour improves the antioxidant properties of the producedpasta, demonstrating that defatted chia seeds can be used as an ingredient toenhance the nutritional quality of foods.