Review article

Folate Stability During Food Processing and Different Cooking Methods

Ivana Rumbak orcid.org/0000-0002-6419-0427 ; Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, Zagreb, Croatia
Duška Ćurić ; Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, Zagreb, Croatia
Irena Colić Barić ; Faculty of Food Technology and Biotechnology, Zagreb, Croatia

Abstract

Biologically active folate forms are reduced metabolites of folic acid - tetrahydrofolates. Tetrahydrofolate acts as a carrier of one-carbon
units in biochemical reactions that lead to the synthesis of the purines and the pyrimidines, which are the base constituents of deoxyribonucleic acid. In another important reaction, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate donates its methyl group to homocysteine to form methionine. The predominant folate vitamers in animal tissues are polyglutamyl forms of tetrahidrofolate, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate, and 10-formyltetrahydrofolate; tetrahydrofolate is main folate form found in several fi sh species while the plant tissues contain mainly 5-methyltetrahydrofolate. Folic acid can be isolated from liver but in most other foods it does not occur naturally to a signifi cant extent. Presence of folic acid may occur due to oxidation, as an oxidation of tetrahydrofolates in foods stored in the presence of oxygen. Folate loss may occur during food processing, or as result of cooking and food storage. The degree of loss can be infl uenced by the type of food, oxygen content, chemical surrounding, heating and applied cooking method as well as the folate form present in food.

Keywords

folate; food processing; cooking methods

Hrčak ID:

63983

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/63983

Publication date:

31.12.2010.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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