GB2343101A

GB2343101A - Antioxidant formulations

Info

Publication number: GB2343101A
Application number: GB9825719A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Diarmaid Joseph Long
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1998-10-27
Filing date: 1998-11-25
Publication date: 2000-05-03
Anticipated expiration: 2018-11-25
Also published as: IES990789A2; IE980887A1; GB9825719D0; GB2343101B

Abstract

A formulation used in the prevention of oxidation in the fat phase, particularly in food preparations containing poly-unsaturated fatty compounds, fat-soluble vitamins and natural colourants, characterised in that said formulation comprises a delta tocopherol homologue and an ascorbyl moiety. The formulation is a fat-soluble synergistic antioxidant formulation producible in a 'one pot' reaction vessel, which can utilise heat to increase the dispersion of the formulation. A dispersing agent may be used in preparing the formulation, with removal of the agent once the dispersion has been formed.

Description

ANTI-OXIDANT FORMULATIONS The present invention relates to anti-oxidant formulations. Anti-oxidants are well known substances and are found in many of the foods we eat. Anti-oxidants are used to stabilise constituents in food as such constituents can be prone to oxidation and if oxidation occurs, the quality of the food can be adversely affected. Anti-oxidants are also useful as part of a healthy diet and provide a number of physiological benefits to a consumer. As a result consumers look for the presence of antioxidants in the products they use today.

One such anti-oxidant is the naturally occurring vitamin E (Tocopherol). Vitamin E is naturally fat-soluble. Vegetable oil naturally contains vitamin E however this vitamin E is lost during the purification process used in the production of vegetable oil. Therefore it is useful to add an appropriate amount of vitamin E to the purified vegetable oil to replace what was lost during the purification process. Vegetable oils are rich in unsaturated fatty acids, which require anti-oxidants to prevent oxidation.

Fat soluble vitamins A, D and beta-carotene are very susceptible to oxidation. The addition of vitamin E to products containing these fat-soluble vitamins will prevent their oxidation and therefore enhance the properties of the product in which they are contained.

Some of the colourants used in food today can undergo discolouration due to oxidation resulting in a decrease in their commercial value. Vitamin E can also assist in reducing this discolouration.

The effectiveness of vitamin E can be enhanced by the use of a synergist. An example of which is vitamin C. As vitamin E works to prevent oxidation of fats, oils etc. it is itself oxidised and as a result loses its anti-oxidant ability. In the presence of vitamin C (ascorbic acid), vitamin E is regenerated by reduction and is then available to resume its anti-oxidant effect.

However at present, the combined use of vitamin E and vitamin C is hampered in that naturally occurring vitamin C is water-soluble and not at all fat-soluble. This reduces the versatility of the synergistic combination of vitamin E and vitamin C.

In an effort to overcome this problem, research has been carried out into various methods of dissolving vitamin C into fat-soluble systems. The use of micro-emulsions sometimes referred to as'reversed micelles'is one such method. Research work carried out in this area was in relation to fish oil and the solvation of vitamin C (JAOCS, Vol. 68 No. 10 (Oct.

1991) Daeseok Han, Ock-Sook Yi and Hyun-Kyuny Shin). This system uses water and lecithin along with the fish oil. This combination allows for vitamin C to be dissolved in the fish oil and in turn act as an synergist to vitamin E. There are other chemicals which can be used as surfactants to dissolve vitamin C instead of lecithin for example dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate and cetylbrimethyl ammonium bromide. By using any of the above synthetic chemicals, further additives are being introduced which are usually expensive and sometimes undesirable from the point of view of the customer.

It is an object of the present invention to alleviate the problems associated with the prior art.

The present invention accordingly provides formulations used in assisting in the prevention of oxidation in the fat phase, particularly in food preparations containing poly-unsaturated fatty compounds, fat-soluble vitamins and natural colourants, characterised in that said formulation comprises a delta tocopherol homologue and an ascorbyl moiety.

Preferably the delta tocopherol homologue and ascorbyl moiety are present in a ratio of 0.1 to 100 when expressed in the form; Weight of d-delta tocopherol Weight of ascorbyl moiety Advantageously the tocopherol homologue is a delta isomer of tocopherol and the ascorbyl moiety is L-ascorbyl palmitate.

Conveniently the formulation is a fat-soluble synergistic anti-oxidant formulation producible in a'one pot'reaction vessel which can utilise heat to increase the dispersion of the formulation.

Preferably a method for producing the formulation involves a dispersing agent used to improve the dispersion of the components of said formulation which is removable at the end of the production process under vacuum.

The synergistic formulation is usable in fat phase (non-aqueous) systems due to the solubility of the compounds used. Vitamin E is naturally fat-soluble and the vitamin C (ascorbyl moiety) is in the form of a palmitate ester, which is fat-soluble.

D-delta Tocopherol is the most potent homologue of the fat-soluble naturally occurring forms of vitamin E and its properties as an anti-oxidant are well known. As a consequence of the anti-oxidant activity of d-delta Tocopherol, it is itself oxidised. In order to extend the life of d-delta Tocopherol a second element is required. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is a compound that can increase the working life of d-delta Tocopherol as an anti-oxidant. By using palmitate ester of vitamin C the ascorbic moiety is capable of regenerating oxidised d-delta Tocopherol in the fat phase by reduction of the oxidised d-delta Tocopherol it can then resume its anti-oxidant activity.

The present invention will now be described fully with reference to the following nonlimiting examples, which are given by way of example only.

Examples Example 1.

The formulation for the anti-oxidant can be dispensed in an ampoule form for a dedicated application. The ingredients are used in the following amounts; Ingredient Amount d-delta Tocopherol 29gms L-ascorbyl palmitate 70gms The ingredients are combined in a high-speed blender. The mixing vessel is warmed to 100 to increase dispersion of the formulation mixture and the formulation is dispensed into the ampoules as required Example 2.

A dispersing agent for example ethanol and a solubilising agent, for example distilled monoglyceride at an approximate level of 0.25% W/W of the ascorbyl palmitale used are mixed with d-delta Tocopherol. This mixture is then blended (homogenised) with the ascorbyl moiety. The dispersing agent is removed under vacuum at the end of the process.

The formulation can then be packed into ampoules as required.

Example 3.

The formulation of d-delta tocopherol and ascorbyl palmitate are dispensed separately but in the ratio outlined example 1 into separate compartments of an ampoule, allowing for separate dispensation to liquid and solid components of a users process before eventual combination to form the synergistic mixture.

It will of course be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific details described herein, which are given by way of example only, and that various modifications and alterations are possible within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

Claims 1. A formulation useful in assisting in the prevention of oxidation in the fat phase, characterised in that said formulation comprises a delta tocopherol homologue and an ascorbyl moiety.
2. A formulation as claimed in claim 1 wherein the delta tocopherol homologue and ascorbyl moiety are present in a ratio of 0.1 to 100 when expressed in the form: Weight of d-delta tocopherol Weight of ascorbyl moiety
3. A formulation as claimed in claim 1 wherein the tocopherol homologue is a delta isomer of tocopherol.
4. A formulation as claimed in claim 1 wherein the ascorbyl moiety is L-ascorbyl palmitate.
5. A formulation as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the formulation is a fat-soluble synergistic anti-oxidant formulation which can be produced as a"one pot" formulation.
6. A method for producing a formulation as claimed in claim 1 wherein a dispersing agent is used to improve the dispersion of the components of said formulation, the method including the step of removing the dispersing agent after it has performed its function.
7. A method as claimed in claim 6 wherein the dispersion agent is removed under vacuum.
8. A formulation according to claim 1, substantially as herein described with reference to the examples.
9. A method according to claim 6, substantially as herein described with reference to the examples.