Meat Products Enriched with Micronutrients
摘要
In recent times, the demand for healthy and functional foods that enhance immunity and combat diseases has surged. Micronutrients are crucial in maintaining immune function, as their deficiency can lead to various metabolic disorders. The most common metabolic diseases are due to deficiencies of iron, vitamin A, and iodine which can strategically be addressed through diverse dietary inclusions, food fortification and awareness programmes. Amongst these strategies, food fortification presents a viable approach to tackle micro-nutrient deficiency and in this context, meat products can be enriched with micronutrients to address deficiencies in essential nutrients in the human diet. Meat products can be enriched with a complex of microelements like zinc, manganese, iron, copper, and cobalt, along with riboflavin and lysine. Functional meat products with essential nutrients such as iodine, calcium, and iron may be developed that cover daily human needs for these micronutrients. As enriching meat with micronutrients presents a promising approach to improve the nutritional quality of meat products and addressing nutrient deficiencies in the population, this chapter will discuss the importance of micronutrients in detail and the role of muscle foods in delivering the micro-nutrients to tackle associated deficiencies.