the+issues+Lecithin+12-2

Food additives have been used to preserve food from one harvest to the next with better appearance and nutritional value. More recently, technology and the discovery of new, effective food additives has led to their widespread use. These include emulsifiers in margarine (to keep it in a solid block), baking soda in cake mixes and gelling agents in jams. The use of these additives has offered consumers a wide range of reasonably priced foodstuffs of a high and constant quality. In fact, without food additives, it would be impossible to produce low-calorie or low-fat products such as margarine. Lecithin (Greek : lekithos - λεκιθος) is a term usually used as a synonym for fosfatidyl coline, a phospholipid that becomes a major component in the extract fraction fosfatida that can found in egg yolks, cabbage, cauliflower, split peas, organic meat, seeds, nuts or soy beans that were isolated mechanically, or chemically by using hexane. The word //Lecithin// was originally coined in 1847 by French chemist and pharmacist Theodore Gobley to designate pure phosphatidyl coline. Gobley originally isolated lecithin from egg yolks. Lecithin is also a term synonymous with the other organic compounds are slightly different: • Fosfatidil inositol • Fosfatidil etanolamina One of the by-products of soybean processing is soy lecithin. In the application, the lecithin in egg yolks and soybean most often used as an emulsifier agent who can mix oil and water, as in mayonnaise, cheese, animal feed, etc. This can happen because the lecithin has a hydrophilic head and a tail that is hydrophobic. Lecithin in eggs is dominated by a high content of fosfatidyl coline, gliserolfosfolipid, long chain unsaturated fatty acid like arachidonic acid, and DHA content that is not contained in the other lecithin sources (such as nuts).Lecithin can be obtained commercially with high purity for food additives or medical purposes. In addition, lecithin is also known to help the stability of mayonnaise and make it look more thick mayonnaise.
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** 2. **** Surrounding about Lecithin ** Lecithin is an organic compound that have phosphate and amine group, so it can soluble in polar and non-polar solvent and can used as an emulsifier to mix the oil and water. Lecithin granules are great ways to add additional lecithin to your diet. Lecithin is a naturally occurring fatty substance found in a variety of different foods such as soybeans, egg yolks, and whole grains. It helps the body utilize certain vitamins such as Vitamin A, B, E, and K. Lecithin granules also help to break down fat and cholesterol into smaller pieces. Each tablespoon (7.5 grams) of lecithin granules contains about 1700 mg of phosphatidyl choline, 1000 mg of phosphatidyl inositol, and about 2,200 mg of essential fatty acids as linoleic acid. Lecithin can easily be extracted chemically (using hexane ) or mechanically from readily available sources such as soy beans. It has low solubility in water. In aqueous solution its phospholipids can form either liposomes, bilayer sheets, micelles , or lamellar structures, depending on hydration and temperature. This results in a type of surfactant that is usually classified as amphipathic. Lecithin is sold as a food supplement and for medical uses.

** 3. **** Some Uses of Lecithin ** Lecithin has emulsification and lubricant properties, and is a surfactant. Lecithin can be totally metabolized by humans, so is well tolerated by humans and non-toxic when ingested; some emulsifiers can only be excreted via the kidneys. Lecithin is used for applications in human food, animal feed, pharmaceutical, paint, and other industrial applications. Applications listed by one manufacturer in addition to food applications include: •In the pharmaceutical industry it acts as a wetting, stabilizing agent and a chlorine enrichment carrier, helps in emulsifications and encapsulation, and is a good dispersing agent. It can be used in manufacture of intravenous fat infusions and for therapeutic use. •In animal feed it enriches fat & protein and improves pelletization. •In the paint industry it forms protective coatings for surfaces with painting and printing ink, has antioxidant properties, helps as a rust inhibitor, is a color intensifying agent, catalyst, conditioning aid modifier, and dispersing aid; it is a good stabilizing and suspending agent, emulsifier, and wetting agent, helps in maintaining uniform mixture of several pigments, helps in grinding of metal oxide pigments, is a spreading and mixing aid, prevents hard settling of pigments, eliminates foam in water-based paints, and helps in fast dispersion of latex-based paints. •Lecithin can also be used as a release agent for plastics, an anti-sludge additive in motor lubricants, an anti-gumming agent in gasoline, and an emulsifier, spreading agent, and antioxidant in textile, rubber and other industries.

structure of Lecithin :