There are some comments attached to the explanations about the
data, especially in some food groups. For quite a few foods,
there is a direct relationship between the contents of one
component to one or several other components.
The work concerning the investigation of these relationships
is under constant development and is improved as new and better
analyses of foods become available. The relationship between the
fat content and fat soluble vitamins in milk products is used in
the calculation of the content of these components in milk and
milk products. Similar relationships are used for the cholesterol
content in dairy and meat products. The remarks concerning fatty
acid trans C 18:1 have also been derived from
calculations.
The specific relationships are explained in the following
paragraphs.
Milk and milk products
Fat soluble vitamins in dairy products
As the content of the fat soluble vitamins (retinol, carotene,
vitamin D and vitamin E) in dairy products closely follows the
milk fat content, the values are calculated on the basis of the
milk fat content. The manufacturing of these products has not
been shown to have any impact on the content or degradation of
these vitamins.
It should be noted, though, that the content of the fat
soluble vitamins in dairy products shows a significant seasonal
variation. In the food composition databank, only the yearly
averages are shown.
The values used in the calculation of the fat soluble vitamins
are shown in table 9.
The factors have been derived from the results in the references
no. 00128, 00142, 00143, 00151 and 00161.
Fatty acids in dairy products
The fatty acid content of dairy products are calculated in a
similar manner when specific analytical results are missing. It
is assumed that the fatty acid content of milk and milk products
shows a constant and uniform distribution, this presumption is
not completely right as the fatty acid distribution in milk has
a clear seasonal variation and dependent on the feed and race of
the cow.
Table 10 shows the average values used in the calculation of
the fatty acids in dairy products (the values have been derived
from results in reference no. 00324).
Table 10. Average
fatty acid profile in cow's milk fat
Fatty acid
g fatty acid/100 g milk
fat
C 4:0
3.4
C 6:0
2.2
C 8:0
1.4
C 10:0
3.1
C 12:0
3.9
C 14:0
11.0
C 16:0
29.6
C 18:0
10.1
C 14:1
1.4
C 16:1
2.2
C 18:1
22.2
C 18:2
2.1
C 18:3
0.8
C 20:1
1.2
Cholesterol in dairy products
The cholesterol content in dairy products is also closely
related to the content of milk fat. In the case of cholesterol,
however, it is necessary to take the processing of the milk
product into account. Products that have undergone a separation
(e.g. skimmed milk) contain a proportionally larger amount of
cholesterol than 'unseparated' products. On the basis of data
from USA (reference no. 00800), the relationship between the
content of milk fat and content of cholesterol is shown in table
11.
Table 11.
Relationship between cholesterol and milk fat
Milk product
mg cholesterol per g milk
fat
Whole milk and
semi-skimmed milk
4
Skimmed milk
11
Cheese and cream
3.3
Skimmed milk powder
25
Whole milk powder
4
Cereals and cereal products
Niacin in cereals and cereal products
For cereals, the niacin equivalent value has been calculated
only from the tryptophan content, as niacin (nicotinic acid) is
regarded unavailable in this food group of foods due the binding
of all present niacin.
Meat and meat products
General remarks
For meat and uncured meat there is a direct relationship
between the proximate fractions and vitamin and mineral content,
and vales can be derived as follows.
Fatty acids in meat and meat
products
Fatty acids in meat and meat products are always calculated on
the basis of the fatty acid profile for the meat type in question
and the content of total fat.
Amino acids in meat and meat products
Amino acids in meat and meat products are always calculated on
the basis of the amino acid profile for the meat type in question
and the content of nitrogen.
Cholesterol in meat and meat products
For meat cuts and uncured meat, there is a direct connexion
between the content of protein and fat and the content of
cholesterol. For these meat cuts, the cholesterol content can be
calculated on the basis of the protein and fat content.
The values for meat cuts have been calculated in the basis of
the following algorithm (derived from US data, reference no.
00800), if no analytical data have been available:
cholesterol [mg/100g] =
protein [g/100g] * x + total fat [g/100g]*y
where
x:
2.6 mg/g protein for pork
2.65 mg/g protein for beef
3.25 mg/g protein for lamb,
mutton
y:
1 mg/g fat for all types of meat
Information about meat cuts
Meat cuts vary considerably over time and is dependent on the
market trends (consumer demands, trade traditions, etc.). These
developments will invariably cause changes in especially the fat
and protein content and hence, also in the content of micro
nutrients.
For Danish pork, the changes have been obvious. During the
last 25 years, pork has become gradually more lean, new cuts have
been introduced, and some cuts have changed names.
Beef cuts have only undergone minor changes during the same
period.
When using the values for meat cuts, it is important to notice
that the component values are average values, and that the
content of fat (fatty acids) and protein (amino acids) can be
different in a concrete meat cut. If, for example, a concrete
meat product is estimated to being more lean than the same cut
mentioned in this data collection, in nutrient calculations you
can substitute the values with values for a similar more lean
meat type.
Department of Nutrition - Mørkhøj Bygade 19 - DK-2860 Søborg, Denmark - Phone +45 35 88 70 00
