Effect of high DHA and ARA fortification on lipid oxidation of infant formula powder

ABSTRACT

Our objective was to assess the impact of fortified high-dose docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (ARA) in infant formula powders (IFs) on stability. We compared and evaluated the stability of IFs containing high and low doses of DHA and ARA over a 6-month storage period at 37°C. While most formulations showed minimal changes in unsaturated fatty acid content of during storage, significant losses of DHA and ARA were observed in some high-dose formulations. Furthermore, this study noted consistent trends in the changes of vitamin C and vitamin E across both formula groups. Notably, the high-dose group formulas exhibited a higher presence of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during storage, along with a more pronounced increase in thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance values (TBARS). In conclusion, the inclusion of high doses of DHA and ARA in IFs may compromise their oxidative stability.

KEYWORDS:

• Infant formula
• unsaturated fatty acid
• volatile organic compounds
• docosahexaenoic acid
• antioxidant

Acknowledgments

This project was supported by Shanghai State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission Enterprise Innovation Development and Capacity Enhancement Program (No. 2022013). We thank Brightdairy (Shanghai, China) for providing the samples of infant formula powders.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Supplemental material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/19476337.2023.2300812.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the Shanghai State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission Enterprise Innovation Development and Capacity Enhancement Program [No. 2022013].