Triglyceride-Recrystallized Phytosterols for Oxidative Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for delivering phytosterols to reduce cholesterol levels often require high doses due to limited solubility in fats and oils, leading to inefficiencies and increased costs, and they can result in oxidized fats and emulsified products prone to rancidity.
Innovation Solution
The use of non-esterified phytosterols recrystallized with fats or oils, without emulsifiers, to form triglyceride-recrystallized phytosterols (TRPs), which are heat-solubilized and then cooled to create a stable, effective cholesterol-lowering agent that also stabilizes fats against oxidation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If phytosterols are provided in solid form or as coarse particles, then high doses are required to achieve meaningful cholesterol lowering, but this increases cost and reduces efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state parameter of phytosterols from solid/coarse particle form to dissolved/recrystallized form in fat. This parameter change enables the phytosterols to be absorbed in much smaller doses (e.g., 1-2 grams per day) while maintaining effective cholesterol lowering, thereby resolving the contradiction between quantity required and efficiency achieved.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses fat or oil as an intermediary medium to dissolve and carry the phytosterols. This intermediary enables the phytosterols to be delivered in a bioavailable form that enhances absorption efficiency, allowing lower doses to achieve the same cholesterol reduction effect that would otherwise require much higher doses of solid phytosterol.
2Reliability
If phytosterols are dissolved in edible oil to improve solubility and bioavailability, then cholesterol lowering efficacy is improved, but the fat becomes prone to oxidation and rancidity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the problematic emulsifier component from the fat-phytosterol mixture. By eliminating the emulsifier that causes instability and rancidity, the patent achieves a stable fat-phytosterol recrystallized product that maintains both bioavailability and oxidative stability, resolving the contradiction between reliability and harmful factors.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical state of the fat-phytosterol mixture from emulsified/liquid to recrystallized solid form. This parameter change stabilizes the mixture against oxidation and rancidity while preserving the bioavailability benefits of the dissolved phytosterol form, thereby resolving the contradiction between reliability and harmful factors.
3Reliability
If emulsifiers are used to solubilize phytosterols in fat, then bioavailability is improved, but the product becomes emulsified and prone to rancidity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the emulsifier from the system entirely. By eliminating this unstable component, the patent achieves a recrystallized fat-phytosterol product that is stable and resistant to rancidity while still providing effective phytosterol solubility and bioavailability, resolving the contradiction between reliability and stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the emulsifier-based system with a simple recrystallization process that creates a stable, long-lasting product. This substitution eliminates the need for unstable emulsifiers and produces a fat composition that maintains its structure and resistance to rancidity over time, resolving the contradiction between reliability and stability.
Data Source
AI summary
A nutritional supplement, prepared food product, or direct food additive for ingestion by mammals, and methods for preparing such products, are provided. Products of the invention comprise an oxidation-resistant fat-based composition substantially free of exogenous solubilizing and dispersing agents for phytosterols. The fat-based composition includes greater than 25% and less than 75% by weight of one or more triglyceride-based edible oil or fat, and greater than 25% and less than 75% by weight of one or more non-esterified phytosterols. The fat-based composition, when exposed to air, contains a reduced amount of oxidative by-products compared to a similar fat-based composition lacking non-esterified phytosterols. Also provided are methods for reducing plasma cholesterol in mammals, and methods for protecting plasma lipoproteins and cholesterol from oxidation by ingestion of products of the invention.