Edible Nutritional Compositions/Products Fortified with Iron (II) Mineral Sources
AssigneeOTC Nutrition LLC
InventorDavid K. Yang
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Edible compositions or products which are nutritionally supplemented with one or more iron (II) mineral sources, one or more high ferric ion reducing agents such as ascorbic acid, edible ascorbic acid salts, edible ascorbic acid esters, erythorbic acid, edible erythorbic acid salts, or edible erythorbic acid esters, an edible carboxylic acid component, such as a citric acid and malic acid component, to lower the pH of such products to about 4.5 or less (e.g., about 4.0 or less), and one or more calcium mineral sources which can be solubilized by the edible carboxylic acid component and which ameliorate the sour taste of the edible carboxylic acid component.
Claims46
A product comprising an aqueous liquid edible nutritional composition containing:
- a nutritionally supplemental amount of one or more iron (II) mineral sources;
- one or more edible high ferric ion reducing agents in amount sufficient to measurably retard conversion of the iron (II) mineral sources from ferrous to ferric species and to form a stable high ferric ion reducing potential environment for the iron (II) mineral sources in the edible nutritional composition;
- an edible carboxylic acid component in an amount sufficient to lower the pH of the edible nutritional composition to about 4.5 or less;
- and
- one or more calcium mineral sources which form a can be solubilized calcium complex with by the edible carboxylic acid component in the edible nutritional composition and which are in an amount sufficient to ameliorate the sour taste of the edible carboxylic acid component.
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A product comprising a nutritionally supplemented aqueous liquid beverage composition having a pH of about 4.0 or less, and containing:
- a nutritionally supplemental amount of one or more iron (II) mineral sources;
- one or more edible high ferric ion reducing agents selected from the group consisting of ascorbic acid, edible ascorbic acid salts, edible ascorbic acid esters, erythorbic acid, edible erythorbic acid salts, and edible erythorbic acid esters in amount sufficient to measurably retard conversion of the iron (II) mineral sources from ferrous to ferric species and to form a stable high ferric ion reducing potential environment for the iron (II) mineral sources in the liquid beverage composition;
- an citric acid and malic acid component in an amount sufficient to lower the pH of the composition to about 4.0 or less, and in a weight ratio of citric acid to malic acid of from about 2:1 to about 1:4;
- and
- one or more calcium mineral sources which form a solubilized calcium complex with the citric acid and malic acid component in the liquid beverage composition and which are in an amount sufficient to ameliorate the sour taste of the citric acid and malic acid component.
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A process for preparing an aqueous liquid edible nutritional composition, which comprises the following steps:
- (a) combining a mixture of an edible carboxylic acid component in an amount sufficient to lower the pH of the edible nutritional composition to about 4.5 or less, and a nutritionally supplemental amount of one or more iron (II) mineral sources, with an aqueous solution of one or more edible high ferric ion reducing agents in an amount sufficient to measurably retard conversion of iron (II) mineral sources from ferrous to ferric species to provide a solution of iron (II) mineral sources in a stable high ferric ion reducing potential environment;
- (b) combining one or more calcium mineral sources which can be solubilized by the edible carboxylic acid component with the solution of step (a) in an amount sufficient to ameliorate the sour taste of the edible carboxylic acid component and to form a solution comprising a solubilized calcium complex with the edible carboxylic acid component;
- and
- (c) combining with the solution of step (b) any remaining components of the edible nutritional composition to provide a prepared edible nutritional composition having a pH of about 4.5 or less.
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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.