18B-17

D. CHATTERJEE¹, L. Ye², R. R. Eitenmiller¹, and J. Exler³. (1) Dept. of Food Science and Technology, Univ. of Georgia, Food Science Bldg., Athens, GA 30602-7610, (2) Dept. of Food Science & Technology, Univ. of Georgia, Food Science Bldg., Athens, GA 30602-7610, (3) Nutrient Data Lab., USDA-ARS-Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, 10300 Baltimore Ave., Bldg. 005, Rm. 203, Belltsville, MD 20705-2350

Fast foods form an integral part of the U.S. consumers' diet. There is no comprehensive data on the Vitamin E content. To measure the amount of vitamin E in various fast foods and to determine the effect of baking on the vitamin E content of pizza. Tocopherol and tocotrienol contents of various fast foods were determined by saponification and normal phase liquid chromatography. Samples (253) were collected through the USDA National Food and Nutrient Analysis Program (NFNAP) or from a local pizzeria (20). The USDA samples consisted of 39 breakfast sandwiches, 4 cheese nachos, 14 fast food sandwiches, 4 French fries, 8 toaster pastries, 8 breakfast pastries, 24 fast food breakfast sandwiches, 32 tacos & burritos. Pizza samples consisted of 74 (unclassified), 25 cheese, 8 pepperoni, 6 meat and 7 meat and vegetable. Ten baked and ten uncooked pizzas were locally collected to study retention of vitamin E after baking. Alpha-Tocopherol (alpha-T) and Gamma-Tocopherol (gamma-T) were detectable in all of the products. The mean values of gamma-T ranged from 8mg/100g in cheese nachos to 0.8mg/100g in fast food sandwiches; whereas, alpha-T ranged from 1.3mg/100g in French fries to 0.3mg/100g in fast food sandwiches. For pizza, gamma-T ranged from 2.1mg/100g (pepperoni pizzas) to 0.9mg/100g (meat and vegetable pizzas). α-T ranged from 1.1mg/100g (unclassified fast food pizzas) to 0.7mg/100g (pepperoni pizzas). alpha And gamma-Tocotrienols were detectable in all the samples but at levels less than 0.1mg/100g. Overall means (n=120) for pizza were 0.9 ± 0.33mg/100g (α-T) and 1.8 ± 1.11mg/100g (gamma-T). Percent retention upon baking was 59.7 (supreme) and 53.1(vegetable) for alpha-T and 73(supreme) and 68(vegetable) for gamma-T. The study provides data on vitamin E content of fast foods in the U.S. diet.

Session 18B, Food Chemistry: Antioxidant and bioactive agents
2:00 PM - 5:30 PM, Sunday PM Room Hall I-2

2005 IFT Annual Meeting, July 15-20 - New Orleans, Louisiana