Development of functional foods with stable encapsulated docosahexaenoic acid
Abstract
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid, plays a pivotal role in human health, especially related to neurological development, cardiovascular health, and anti-inflammatory activities. However, its use in functional food products is hindered by susceptibility to oxidation and poor stability during processing and storage. This review describes recent advances in biotechnology to address these issues by using encapsulation methods that can enhance DHA's stability and bioavailability. Firstly, DHA's structural characteristics, food sources, and health advantages are discussed followed by challenges in incorporating DHA into functional foods. Encapsulation offers significant advantages, including enhanced oxidative stability, extended shelf life, controlled release, and improved sensory acceptance, thereby enabling broader application of DHA in diverse functional food products. Different encapsulation strategies, such as microencapsulation, nanoencapsulation, and emulsion systems, are discussed. The review also highlights strategies for enhanced DHA encapsulation as well as applications for functional food focused on microalgae-based DHA products used in foods and raw materials.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Promising Sources of Plant-Derived Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids: A Narrative Review
- Effects of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid intake in patients with chronic kidney disease: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
- Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on cognition: an updated systematic review of randomized clinical trials
- The role of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation in the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus: A narrative review
- Paucity of evidence for a relationship between long-chain omega-3 fatty acid intake and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a systematic review
- Omega-3 fatty acid nanocarriers: Characterization and potential applications
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.