Minerals in Food Science and Technology

Vocabulary flashcards covering the classification, bioavailability, factors affecting absorption, food processing effects, and chemical/functional properties of minerals.

Minerals

Naturally occurring, inorganic substances excluding carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen ($\text{C}$, $\text{H}$, $\text{O}$, $\text{N}$) that perform essential structural and regulatory functions in the body.

Macrominerals

Nutritionally essential minerals required by the body in amounts greater than $100\,\text{mg/day}$, including sodium, chloride, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and sulfur.

Trace Minerals

Essential minerals required by the body in amounts less than $100\,\text{mg/day}$, including iron, zinc, iodine, selenium, copper, manganese, fluoride, chromium, and molybdenum.

Bioavailability

The proportion of a mineral or substance that enters the circulation when introduced into the body, reflecting how usable it is in biological systems.

Phytic Acid (Phytate)

Inositol hexakisphosphate ($\text{IP}_6$), a saturated cyclic acid serving as the primary storage form of phosphorus in seeds and grains, which acts as an anti-nutrient by binding minerals into insoluble chelates.

Ligand

A molecule or ion that binds to another (usually larger) mineral or molecule, such as fiber components that bind minerals and limit absorption.

Redox Activity ($E_h$)

The oxidation-reduction state of food components involving electron transfer, which affects the mobility, toxicity, and body utilization of minerals.

Hard-to-Cook Defect

A textural alteration in legumes partly attributed to the binding of $\text{Ca}^{2+}$ ions by pectin molecules to form insoluble complexes.

Oxalates

Dietary compounds that bind specific minerals within the intestines, reducing their bioavailability and absorption.

Polyphenols

Plant compounds, such as tannins in tea and coffee, that inhibit mineral bioavailability by forming complex bindings in the digestive tract.

Leavening Acid

A substance causing dough or batter expansion through gas release, creating a porous structure in baked products (e.g., sodium aluminium sulphate or monocalcium phosphate).

Dough Improver

An oxidizing agent, such as potassium bromate ($\text{KBrO}_3$) or potassium iodate ($\text{KIO}_3$), added to flour to enhance gas retention, elasticity, and baked volume.

Comminuted Meats

Meat products that have been mechanically chopped or ground, often utilizing phosphates like sodium tripolyphosphate as emulsification aids.

Whey

The liquid byproduct remaining after milk has been curdled and strained during cheese making, through which pH-dependent mineral losses occur.

Water Activity ($a_w$)

A thermodynamic property of food reduced by sodium chloride ($\text{NaCl}$) to preserve food by inhibiting microbial growth.

Ascorbic Acid

Vitamin C, which indirectly acts as an oxidizing agent in dough development to replace potassium bromate ($\text{KBrO}_3$), and enhances intestinal absorption of $\text{Fe}^{2+}$.

Phosphoric Acid

An acidulant ($\text{H}_3\text{PO}_4$) added to soft drinks to provide a crisp, tangy taste and improve shelf life.

Milling Losses

The removal of minerals during cereal grain processing, resulting in significant mineral retention reductions ranging from $16\%$ to $86\%$.