Browsing by Author "Charles, Christina"

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Development of a natural product rich in bioavailable OMEGA-3 DHA and EPA using locally available ingredients in Tanzania
(NM-AIST, 2020-05) Charles, Christina
Poor mental health remains a serious public concern worldwide. The most vulnerable individuals are children and adolescents in developing countries. Nutritional deficiency of Omega-3 DHA and EPA has long been recognized as a major contributing factor for mental health illnesses. Provision of ready-to-use natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA could address this problem. However, most commonly used products are expensive and contain less or no preformed Omega-3 DHA, making them less suitable for prevention of mental illnesses in resource-poor countries. The main objective of this study was to develop a natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and EPA from locally available ingredients. Linear programming (LP) was used to formulate a natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and other essential nutrients using locally available ingredients other than fish and dairy products. Laboratory analysis was then performed to validate the nutritional value of the LP-formulation using standard analytical methods. The relative difference between the LP tool calculated values and the laboratory-analysed values were calculated. Sensory testing was also done to evaluate consumer acceptance of the final product. Optimal formulation contained 220 mg of preformed Omega-3 DHA+EPA, enough to meet the RDI for children aged 2-10 years. The LP analysis further showed that the cost of present product is USD 0.15/100 g, which is 50% lower than that of Plumpy’nut. Laboratory analysis revealed similar results as that of LP at P=0.05. These findings indicate that readyto-use natural food rich in preformed DHA and EPA can be developed from locally available ingredients.
Development of a Natural Product Rich in Bioavailable Omega-3 DHA from Locally Available Ingredients for Prevention of Nutrition Related Mental Illnesses
(Taylor & Francis Online, 2020-03-19) Charles, Christina; Swai, Hulda; Msagati, Titus; Chacha, Musa
Objectives: Poor mental health remains a serious public concern worldwide. The most vulnerable individuals are children and adolescents in developing countries. Nutritional deficiency of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, particularly docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), have long been recognized as a major contributing factor for mental health illnesses. Provision of ready-to-use natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and EPA could address this problem. However, most commonly used products are expensive and contain less or no preformed Omega-3 DHA and EPA, making them less suitable for prevention of mental illnesses in resource-poor countries. The main objective of this study was to develop a natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and EPA from locally available ingredients. Methods: Linear programing (LP) was used to formulate a natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and other essential nutrients using locally available ingredients other than fish and dairy products. Laboratory analysis was then performed to validate the nutritional value of the LP-formulation using standard analytical methods. The relative difference between the LP tool calculated values, and the laboratory-analyzed values were calculated. Sensory testing was also done to evaluate consumer acceptance of the final product. Results: Optimal formulation contained about 220 mg of preformed Omega-3 DHA + EPA, enough to meet the RDI for children aged 2-10 years. The LP analysis further showed that the cost of the developed product is USD 0.15/100 g, which is 50% lower than that of Plumpy’nut. Laboratory analysis revealed similar results as that of LP at P = 0.05. Conclusions: These findings indicate that ready-to-use natural food rich in preformed DHA and EPA can be developed from locally available ingredients.
Development of a Natural Product Rich in Bioavailable Omega-3 DHA from Locally Available Ingredients for Prevention of Nutrition Related Mental Illnesses.
(Taylor & Francis online, 2020-03-19) Charles, Christina; Swai, Hulda; Msagati, Titus; Chacha, Musa
Poor mental health remains a serious public concern worldwide. The most vulnerable individuals are children and adolescents in developing countries. Nutritional deficiency of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, particularly docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), have long been recognized as a major contributing factor for mental health illnesses. Provision of ready-to-use natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and EPA could address this problem. However, most commonly used products are expensive and contain less or no preformed Omega-3 DHA and EPA, making them less suitable for prevention of mental illnesses in resource-poor countries. The main objective of this study was to develop a natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and EPA from locally available ingredients. Linear programing (LP) was used to formulate a natural product rich in preformed Omega-3 DHA and other essential nutrients using locally available ingredients other than fish and dairy products. Laboratory analysis was then performed to validate the nutritional value of the LP-formulation using standard analytical methods. The relative difference between the LP tool calculated values, and the laboratory-analyzed values were calculated. Sensory testing was also done to evaluate consumer acceptance of the final product. Optimal formulation contained about 220 mg of preformed Omega-3 DHA + EPA, enough to meet the RDI for children aged 2-10 years. The LP analysis further showed that the cost of the developed product is USD 0.15/100 g, which is 50% lower than that of Plumpy'nut. Laboratory analysis revealed similar results as that of LP at P = 0.05. These findings indicate that ready-to-use natural food rich in preformed DHA and EPA can be developed from locally available ingredients.
Microalgae: An alternative natural source of bioavailable omega-3 DHA for promotion of mental health in East Africa
(Elsevier, 2019-10-11) Charles, Christina; Msagati, Titus; Swai, Hulda; Chacha, Musa
Mental health illness associated with poor nutrition is a serious public concern worldwide. The most at risk individuals are children and adolescents in the developing world. Deficiencies in omega-3 DHA fatty acids have long been recognized as a major contributing factor for mental health illnesses. Provision of products rich in omega-3 DHA could address this problem. But most commonly used products do not have preformed omega-3 DHA, making them less suitable for prevention of mental illnesses in resource-poor countries. The objective of this study was to provide a narration of the best alternative source of bioavailable omega-3 DHA for promotion of mental health in developing countries. This study identified microalgae as the best natural source of preformed omega-3 DHA over fish oil which has been reported to contain heavy metals, antibiotics and other contaminants that may pose a serious safety concerns to consumers. The study has further narrated future opportunities around microalgae in East Africa. One of the opportunities is development of a business model that could accelerate sustainable production and utilization of microalgae for improved nutrition and health in Eastern Africa.