Zamorano Food Analysis Laboratory (Laboratorio de Análisis de Alimentos ZAMORANO, LAAZ) together with the American Oil Chemists’ Society (AOCS) and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), participated in an international collaborative study seeking to establish an official method that would measure phytosterols * in food, additives and concentrates.
Participants in this study, led by the FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN), included fourteen laboratories from six countries. The study results showed a robust method that will become the Official Method in the seventh edition of Official Methods and Recommended Practices of the American Oil Chemists’ Society (AOCS) to be published in May 2017.
LAAZ is the first laboratory within ZAMORANO to participate in the validation of a method to be established under the official method number AOCS Ce 12-16 which will be used internationally. The study results also showed that the essays reported by LAAZ were within one to two standard deviations of the average of results reported by all laboratories with regards to the five main phytosterols. This confirms LAAZ’s technical capacity and reliability of results.
Phytosterols* are of paramount importance within an organism. They help eliminate cholesterol in the blood. Among the most common phytosterols one finds the stigmasterol, beta-sitosterol and campesterol making up 98% of all phytosterols found in plants and vegetable extracts (Valenzuela y Ronco, 2004). These three components are present at an 80% when the esters are made by esterification from edible oils, according to the FDA. These sterols can be found in corn, sunflower, soybean, rapeseed and palm oils as well as in legumes and nuts although in smaller quantities (Palou et al 2005). According to the FDA the minimum consumption of 1.3g daily of these compounds help reduce cholesterol and therefore minimize the risk of coronary heart disease, adding of course physical activity and good nutrition. The FDA also cites that these compounds should be added to foods low in saturated fats.
LAAZ provides food analysis services to national agribusiness with methods governed by a Quality Management System based on the norm ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accredited by A2LA (Certificate Number: 3592.01). Should you have any queries or require any further information, please contact Dr. Juan Antonio Ruano Ortiz at [email protected].
Bibliography
Palou A., C. Pico, M. Bonet, P. Oliver, F. Serra, A. Rodríguez, J. Ribot. 2005. El libro blanco de los esteroles vegetales. 4ª ed. España.
Valenzuela A., A. Ronco. 2004. Fitoesteroles y Fitoestanoles: Aliados naturales para la protección de la salud cardiovascular. Revista chilena de nutrición. [Consultado 2016 sep 05] Vol 21 N°1 161-169 http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-75182004031100003
