Particle Coating in Food Industry

Iako je primarna namjena oblaganja čestica bila proizvodnja lijekova sa zaštitnim fi lmom, oblaganje čestica pronalazi sve veću primjenu i u prehrambenoj proizvodnji, uglavnom radi zadržavanja funkcionalnih svojstava nutraceutika i aditiva. Glavne pozitivne strane oblaganja čestica jesu da nastaju mikrokapsule s produženim vijekom trajanja, lakoćom manipuliranja, kontroliraniim oslobađanjem hranjivih tvari, boljim okusom, bojom i sveopćom prihvatljivošću za krajnjeg kupca (Dewettinck i Huyghebaert, 1999). Međutim, u usporedbi s farmaceutskom tehnologijom, prehrambena je više okrenuta smanjenju troškova proizvodnje, a time i drugačijem pristupu oblaganju čestica koje je samo po sebi jako skup proces. Iako skup, proces oblaganja čestica u prehrambenoj industriji koristi se u svrhu očuvanja dobrih svojstava pojedinih aditiva, nutraceutika, probiotičkih kultura i ostalih funkcionalnih sastojaka za koje je bitno da svoja funkcionalna svojstva zadrže tijekom proizvodnog procesa i perioda skladištenja kako bi mogli polučiti pozitivne učinke kod krajnjeg korisnika.Although the production of fi lm tablets in the pharmaceutical industry was the primary purpose of the coating process, it is also frequently used in the food industry. The basic purpose of making coated food products is maintaining functional properties of nutraceutics and food additives. Main positive effects of coating are products with a longer shelf life, easy to handle, with controllable substance release, better taste, color and appearance for the end customer. However, in comparison with the pharmaceutical industry, food industry is more focused on reducing production costs and therefore a different approach to an expensive particle coating process. Although expensive, particle coating process is used in food industry to preserve functional properties of additives, nutraceutics, probiotic microorganisms and other functional properties throughout the production process and storage, in order to achieve positive effects on the end customer

Comprehensive nursing care of patients in the terminal stage malignancies

Palijativna medicina jedna je od novijih grana moderne medicine. Glavno središte palijativne medicine je skrb za terminalno oboljele bolesnike koji su u završnom stadiju svoje bolesti. Organizacija palijativne medicine potrebna je na svim razinama zdravstvene zaštite. U palijativnoj skrbi pokušavamo poboljšati kvalitetu bolesnikova života i njegove obitelji te olakšati patnju, bol i druge simptome bolesti. Palijativni pristup potpuni je holistički pristup prema drugoj osobi, od kojih je jedan zdravstveni djelatnik, a drugi bolesnik. Palijativna skrb počinje kada su iscrpljene klasične metode liječenja. Dostupnost palijativne skrbi mora se osnivati na potrebama i ne treba je ograničavati na tip bolesti, geografsku lokaciju ili socioekonomski status onoga koji takvu skrb treba. Svi koji se skrbe za umiruće bolesnike trebali bi sudjelovati u radionicama, usmjerenim na psihološke oblike skrbi. Palijativna skrb zapravo podrazumijeva cjelokupnu skrb za bolesnika u terminalnoj fazi bolesti i njegovu obitelj. Terminalna bolest je medicinski izraz koji se koristi za opisivanje bolesti koja se ne može izliječiti ili adekvatno tretirati te od koje se očekuje da će rezultirati smrću pacijenta u kratkom vremenskom periodu. Smrt je dio života. Vrlo je važno što bolje i kvalitetnije poboljšati bolesnikove kvalitete života, a ujedno i pružati veliku podršku njegovoj obitelji, čak i nakon smrti, pa sve do završetka procesa žalovanja. Medicinska sestra koja prati stanje bolesnika u terminalnoj fazi bolesti zna kada treba uključiti i ostale članove zdravstvenog tima. Ovisno o prilikama, uključivani su i drugi članovi tima - fizikalni terapeut, psiholozi te nezdravstveni volonteri kao zamjena za zaposlene ukućane. Po potrebi se uključuju i konzultanti - dobrovoljci: kirurg, dermatolog, fizijatar, pravnik i duhovnik. Iz definicije palijativne skrbi Svjetske zdravstvene organizacije razaznaje se palijativni pristup: “Palijativna je skrb pristup koji kvalitetu života bolesnika i njihovih obitelji suočavajući se s problemima povezanim uz bolest koja prijeti životu. Medicinske sestre trebaju tijekom trajanja bolesti educirati obitelj, kako i na koji način će postupiti po dolasku smrti. Završno vrijeme čovjekova života nosi mnogo dublju dimenziju života. Znatno je važnije biti prisutan uz umiruću osobu. No za prisutnost je potrebno učenje, prihvaćanje boli, patnje, žalosti i umiranja kao sastavnog dijela života. Dobra komunikacija je zapravo dobar preduvjet za pravu skrb za bolesnike i njihove obitelji. Komunikacija je jedna od najčešćih vještina kojom se zdravstveni djelatnici koriste u svakodnevnom poslu. Vrlo je važno dobro baratanje komunikacijskim vještinama. To je sastavni dio svakog odnosa s bolesnikom i njegovom obitelji, a na kraju i ključ uspjeha medicinske sestre odnosno zdravstvenog tima.Palliative medicine is the one of the newer branches of medicine. Its focus is care for terminally ill patients in the final stage of their illness. The organisation of palliative medicine is necessary on all the levels of health care. Palliative care tries to improve the quality of life for both the patient and the family as well as to make suffering, pain and other symptoms of illness easier. A palliative approach is the complete holistic approach towards the other person, a healthcare professional and a patient. Palliative care starts when all the standard methods of cure have been exhausted. The accessibility of palliative care must be based on needs and should not be limited to the type of illness, geographical location or socioeconomic status of the person who needs such care. All those who care for dying patients should participate in workshops, aimed at the psychological forms of care. Palliative care implies the complete care for a patient in the terminal phase of illness as well as for the family. Terminal illness is a medical term used for describing an illness that cannot be cured or treated adequatelly and that is supposed to end with death of a patient in a short period. Death is a part of life. It is very important to improve patent's quality of life as much as possible and to give the family a big support, even after patient's death, all the way to the end of grieving.A nurse who observes the condition of a patient in the terminal phase of illness knows when the other members of the healthcare team should be included. Depending on the circumstances, the other team members are included – physical therapist, psychologists and volunteers who are not healthcare professionals as a replacement for the busy family members. If necessary, the consultants are included – volunteers; surgeon, dermatologist, physiatrist, lawyer and priest. The palliative approach can be recognized from the definition of palliative care according to World Health Organisation:“ Palliative care is an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing problems associated with life-threatening illness,“ During illness nurses should educate a family as to what will they do when death comes. The final period of life has much deeper dimension of life.It is of great importance to be with a dying person. This includes education, acceptance of pain, mourning and dying as a part of everyone's life. A good communication is an important precondition for an appropriate care for patients and their families. Communication is one of the most common skills healthcare professionals use in their everyday work. It is of great importance to communicate well. That is the essential part of the relationship with a patient and his family as well as the key to the success of a nurse and a healthcare team

NEAR INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY (NIRS) AS FOOD QUALITY AND FOOD FRAUD DETECTOR – APPLIED ON FISH STICKS

The aim of this study was to present the professional application of near infrared spectroscopy (NIRs) in the detection of food quality on purchased fish sticks. The measured NIR spectra of samples prepared from fish or squid were related to nutritional labels such as the amount of certain macronutrient and the proportion of the starting material (fish/squid). In the standard procedure, NIRs coupled with chemometric tools such as principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least square regression (PLSR) was used to investigate the qualitative and/or quantitative capabilities in determining food quality. Excellent qualitative differentiation was achieved with PCA, with biplots showing how the explanation of variation increased from 80.12 % when only nutritional information was used in the observation to 96.89% when nutritional information was coupled with the corresponding NIR spectrum. Since higher levels of animal protein in food are associated with an increase in price, the detection probabilities of different protein sources (fish/meat) were tested using PLSR, with 100% of the samples successfully detected. PLSR was also used to detect the correlation of the NIR spectra to the macronutrient contents and the strongest correlation was determined for proteins (R2 = 0.99). The results confirmed the feasibility of using NIRs in the qualitative evaluation of samples where it is possible to determine the predominance of fish or squid, and also to estimate the expected protein content. The protein content is related to the price of the product, since all products containing animal proteins have higher prices that grow proportionally to their share. NIRs is not a qualitative method, but it can help in the selection of products, whose exact composition and possible adulteration can be confirmed by additional laboratory analysis

Quality of life in Croatian Homeland war (1991-1995) veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic pain

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The aim of this study was to investigate the quality of life in Croatian homeland war veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic low back pain (LBP).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A total of 369 participants were included, classified in four study groups: those with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD; N = 59), those with both PTSD and lower back pain (PTSD+LBP; N = 80), those with isolated LBP (N = 95) and controls (N = 135). WHOQOL-BREF survey was used in the estimation of quality of life. The data were analysed using statistical methods and hierarchical clustering.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The results indicated a general pattern of lowering quality of life in participants with both psychological (PTSD) and physical (LBP) burden. The average overall quality of life was 2.82 ± 1.14 for the PTSD+LBP group, 3.29 ± 1.28 for the PTSD group, 4.04 ± 1.25 for the LBP group and 4.48 ± 0.80 for the controls (notably, all the pair-wise comparisons were significantly different at the level of P < 0.001, except for the pair LBP-controls, which was insignificant). This result indicated that quality of life was reduced for 9.9% in patients with LBP, 26.6% in patients with PTSD and 37.1% in PTSD+LBP, suggesting strong synergistic effect of PTSD and LBP. The analysis also identified several clusters of participants with different pattern of quality of life related outcomes, reflecting the complex nature of this indicator.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The results of this study reiterate strong impact of PTSD on quality of life, which is additionally reduced if the patient also suffers from LBP. PTSD remains a substantial problem in Croatia, nearly two decades after the beginning of the 1991-1996 Homeland war.</p

NEAR INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY (NIRS) AS FOOD QUALITY AND FOOD FRAUD DETECTOR – APPLIED ON FISH STICKS

The aim of this study was to present the professional application of near infrared spectroscopy (NIRs) in the detection of food quality on purchased fish sticks. The measured NIR spectra of samples prepared from fish or squid were related to nutritional labels such as the amount of certain macronutrient and the proportion of the starting material (fish/squid). In the standard procedure, NIRs coupled with chemometric tools such as principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least square regression (PLSR) was used to investigate the qualitative and/or quantitative capabilities in determining food quality. Excellent qualitative differentiation was achieved with PCA, with biplots showing how the explanation of variation increased from 80.12 % when only nutritional information was used in the observation to 96.89% when nutritional information was coupled with the corresponding NIR spectrum. Since higher levels of animal protein in food are associated with an increase in price, the detection probabilities of different protein sources (fish/meat) were tested using PLSR, with 100% of the samples successfully detected. PLSR was also used to detect the correlation of the NIR spectra to the macronutrient contents and the strongest correlation was determined for proteins (R2 = 0.99). The results confirmed the feasibility of using NIRs in the qualitative evaluation of samples where it is possible to determine the predominance of fish or squid, and also to estimate the expected protein content. The protein content is related to the price of the product, since all products containing animal proteins have higher prices that grow proportionally to their share. NIRs is not a qualitative method, but it can help in the selection of products, whose exact composition and possible adulteration can be confirmed by additional laboratory analysis

Application of NIR spectroscopy in gluten detection as a cross-contaminant in food

The determination of gluten is of critical importance when food screening is intended for special groups such as food ingredient intolerant and allergic persons. Cross-contamination of food that does not contain gluten is also possible in the sales chain. The aim of this study was to determine the applicability of Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRs) for the detection of gluten traces in rice, rice flour, corn flour and corn grits. In the cross-contamination simulation, two types of wheat flour were used. They were added to rice, rice flour, corn flour and corn grits in a range from 5 % to 30 %. Apart from the spectra of pure and contaminated samples, conductivity and total dissolved solids were monitored to determine changes in the samples. NIR spectroscopy was combined with chemometric techniques to determine at which wavelengths a glutenfree fingerprint can be detected. Although experiments were carried out with a NIR instrument that monitors molecular vibrations in the range of λ= 904-1699 nm, the gluten fingerprint was successfully determined, regardless of the type of flour that was added to the rice, rice flour, corn flour and corn grits. All concentrations of the added flours were successfully determined and models were developed to detect the concentrations of the added flours. Even the conductivity showed good prediction potential in gluten determination. Regardless if the investigated samples were contaminated or not, the determination coefficient R2 was over 0.9. Developed models could be used to predict possible wheat flour contamination of any rice or corn product samples or samples prepared for cooking in water

Učinak prehrane rogačevom prekrupom na krvne parametre u odbijene prasadi

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of dietary carob wholemeal (Ceratonia siliqua L.) through monitoring the changes in some blood parameters (RBC, LEU, CD45+, CD4+, CD8+, CD21+) on the growth and development of weaned pigs (Swedish Landrace and Yorkshire cross-breeds). Thirty pigs were divided into two groups. In the control group the pigs were fed with a standard feed mixture. In the second, the experimental group (EXP), the feed mixture was enriched daily with carob wholemeal in a dose of 40 g/ kg diet. Both groups were fed ad libitum. At the end of the 42-day experiment the pigs in the EXP groups were on average 23% heavier. The total sugar content, total phenolic content, flavonoids, anthocyanins, tannins and total antioxidant content of the carob wholemeal was determined. Carob wholemeal contains high carbohydrate content (73%). The total phenolic content value was 9.98 ± 0.18 mg GAE/g. The total flavonoid value was 6.56 ± 0.19 mg GAE/g, or 65% of total polyphenols, from which it can be seen that antioxidant activity is correlated to the total phenolic content. The total anthocyanins content was 34.00 ± 0.07 mg CE/g while the total tannin content was 658.75 ± 18.75 μg TAE/g. The ABTS method values were 89.50 ± 0.17 μmol TE/g sample while antioxidant activity determined by the DPPH method was 56.87 ± 0.66 μmol TE/g sample. Carobsupplementation did not affect the amount of red blood cells and leucocytes, but did affect the proportions of the proliferation rate of CD45+ lymphoid cells, CD4+ and CD8+ T cells and CD21+ B cells in peripheral blood. Between days 14 and 42 an increase in the proportions of CD45+, CD4+, CD8+, CD21+ cells (at p≤0.05 or p≤0.01, respectively) was observed. Dietary supplementation of weaned piglets with 4% carob wholemeal showed an advantageous or beneficial effect on the immunity and productivity of the weanlings.Svrha ovih istraživanja bila je utvrditi učinak hranidbe rogačevom prekrupom na rast i razvoj svinja (švedski landras × jorkšir) nakon odbića, prateći promjene nekih krvnih parametara (RBC, LEU, CD45+, CD4+, CD8+, CD21+). Trideset svinja podijeljeno je u dvije skupine. U kontrolnoj skupini svinje su hranjene standardnom krmnom smjesom, dok je u drugoj, eksperimentalnoj skupini, u krmnu smjesu dodana rogačeva prekrupa u količini od 40 g/kg obroka. Obje su skupine hranjene ad libitum. Na kraju 42-dnevnog pokusa svinje u eksperimentalnoj skupini bile su 23 % teže od svinja iz kontrolne skupine. U prekrupi rogača određena je količina ukupnih šećera, ukupnih polifenola, flavonoida, antocijana, tanina te količina ukupnih antioksidansa. Utvrđen je velik udio ukupnih ugljikohidrata je (73 %). Količina ukupnih polifenola iznosila je 9,98 ± 0,18 mg GAE/g, a količina ukupnih flavonoida 6,65 ± 0,19 mg GAE/g ili 65 % od ukupnih polifenola, što je vidljivo iz veze između antioksidacijske aktivnosti i količine ukupnih polifenola. Količina ukupnih antocijana iznosila je 34,00 ± 0,07 mg CE/g, dok je količina ukupnih tanina iznosila 658,75 ± 18,75 μg TAE/g. Antioksidacijska aktivnost određena metodom ABTS iznosila je 89,50 ± 0,17 μmol TE/g uzorka, dok je antioksidacijska aktivnost određena metodom DPPH iznosila 56,87 ± 0,66 μmol TE/g uzorka. Dodatak rogača u obroku nije uzrokovao promjenu broja crvenih krvnih stanica ni leukocita, ali je djelovao na promjene u proliferacijskom odnosu CD45+ limfoidnih stanica, kao i CD4+ and CD8+ T stanica i CD21+ B stanica u perifernoj krvi. Između 14. i 42. dana hranjenja u eksperimentalnoj skupini životinja ustanovljeno je znakovito povećanje udjela CD45+, CD4+, CD8+, CD21+ stanica (uz vjerojatnost pogreške P≤0,05 odnosno P≤0,01). Dodatak 4 % rogača po obroku za hranidbu svinja nakon odbića pokazao se korisnim za imunost i proizvodnost svinja nakon odbića

NEAR INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY (NIRS) COUPLED WITH CHEMOMETRIC TOOLS USED FOR FOOD PRODUCTS ADULTERATION DETECTION

The growing problem of food products adulteration requires a rapid and simple method for adulteration detection. Adulterants, which can range from plant material to natural and synthetic colours and compounds have a severe influence on customer trust as well as public health risks. Food safety regulations are being tightened and expanded, requiring a more thorough examination of hazards and risk management solutions. Due to its advantages, near infrared spectroscopy has been recognised as an effective method for food adulteration detection. In this work, an overview of the basics of NIR spectroscopy, NIR data analysis and the use of NIR for food adulteration detection are discussed

NEAR INFRARED SPECTROSCOPY (NIRS) COUPLED WITH CHEMOMETRIC TOOLS USED FOR FOOD PRODUCTS ADULTERATION DETECTION

The growing problem of food products adulteration requires a rapid and simple method for adulteration detection. Adulterants, which can range from plant material to natural and synthetic colours and compounds have a severe influence on customer trust as well as public health risks. Food safety regulations are being tightened and expanded, requiring a more thorough examination of hazards and risk management solutions. Due to its advantages, near infrared spectroscopy has been recognised as an effective method for food adulteration detection. In this work, an overview of the basics of NIR spectroscopy, NIR data analysis and the use of NIR for food adulteration detection are discussed

OPTIMIZATION OF ETHANOL/WATER SOLVENT EXTRACTION OF BIOACTIVE COMPONENTS ORIGINATING FROM INDUSTRIAL HEMP (Cannabis sativa L.)

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) contains a wide range of biocompounds with different beneficial properties such as anti-inflammatory, antithrombotic, antiarrhythmic, hypolipidemic and antioxidative. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) coupled with Box-Behnken design (BBD) was applied to determine the influence of extraction temperature, liquid to solid ratio, extraction time, rotational speed and ethanol/water solvent ratios at three levels on the solid-liquid extraction of the bioactives from the hemp (flowers, leaves, seeds, stems). Based on the obtained results, liquid to solid ratio, temperature and ethanol/water solvent ratio had statistically significant effects on the total polyphenolic content (TPC), while extraction time and rotational speed had no influence on the TPC extraction. Regarding antioxidant activity (AOX) determined by the DPPH method, only liquid to solid ratio had a statistically significant effect. Liquid to solid ratio, ethanol/water solvent ratio, temperature and rotational speed significantly influenced AOX determined by the FRAP method. According to BBD, the optimum extraction conditions were as follows: extraction temperature 45 °C, liquid to solid ratio 30 mL/g, extraction time 25 min, rotational speed 500 rpm, ethanol/water solvent ratio 25%. RSM coupled with a BBD model was shown to be effective for optimization the solid-liquid extraction of hemp