Prevalence of vitamin D3 deficiency in orange county residents.

With the prevalence of sunlight exposure in Orange County, California, one would expect it to be rare and unusual to find high incidence of Vitamin D deficiencies among its residents. This study evaluated the concentration of Vitamin D3 as part of a larger study to evaluate bone health in Orange County residents. Our preliminary data shows that 19.2% of the 151 subjects evaluated had low Vitamin D3 (<30 pg/ml) and illuminates a growing problem in the United States. We speculate that the widespread sensitivity to skin cancer and sun exposure, the increased use of sun-screens and the filtering of UV waves in automobile glass has put the public at risk for low Vitamin D.

Irradiation and chlorination effectively reduces Escherichia coli O157:H7 inoculated on cilantro (Coriandrum sativum) without negatively affecting quality.

Cilantro (Coriandrum sativum) inoculated with Escherichia coli O157:H7 at levels approximating 10(7) CFU/g was dipped in 200 ppm chlorine solution followed by low-dose gamma irradiation. Samples were plated on tryptic soy agar containing 50 microg/ml nalidixic acid (TSAN) as well as TSAN plates with two 7-ml layers of basal yeast extract agar (TSAN-TAL). Levels of E. coli O157:H7 recovered from both types of media were determined over 11 days. Chlorination alone reduced counts by just over 1.0 log cycle, whereas irradiation at 1.05 kGy resulted in a 6.7-log reduction, and a combination of irradiation and chlorination reduced counts more than 7 log cycles. Trained panels performed analytical sensory tests at time intervals for 14 days to detect changes in yellowing, tip burn, browning, black rot, sliminess, off-aroma, and off-flavor. Sensory tests found no significant differences among attributes over time or dose in samples irradiated at 1.08 to 3.85 kGy. This study showed that combination treatments of chlorination and low-dose irradiation can significantly reduce levels of E. coli O157:H7 in fresh cilantro while maintaining product quality.

Low-dose irradiation can be used as a phytosanitary treatment for fresh table grapes.

Grapes (Vitis vinifera var. Sugraone and Vitis labrusca var. Crimson Seedless) were treated with 400, 600, and 800 Gy and the effects on physicochemical factors were measured alongside sensory testing during 3 wk of storage. Significant changes in texture and color with irradiation and age were measured but little visual difference was seen between control and irradiated grapes. However, age had a greater effect on firmness than irradiation for Sugraone grapes. Irradiation did not significantly (P ≤ 0.05) affect the SSC/TA ratio, which increased during storage. The trained panel detected significant changes in the berry texture and rachis color but rated sweetness and flavor significantly higher (P ≤ 0.05) for irradiated Sugraone as compared to the control. Consumers liked both the untreated and 800 Gy treated Sugraone grapes, but liked the untreated grapes more for texture (P ≤ 0.05). However, there was no difference in liking between irradiated (600 Gy or 800 Gy) and control samples of Crimson Seedless for any attribute. The results show that there are varietal differences in response to irradiation but the overall maintenance in quality of irradiated grapes during 3 wk of storage indicates that irradiation can serve as a viable phytosanitary treatment.

The effect of gamma irradiation as a phytosanitary treatment on physicochemical and sensory properties of bartlett pears.

A major concern in exporting agricultural commodities is the introduction or spread of exotic quarantine pests to the new area. To prevent spread of insect pests, various phytosanitary measures are used. Worldwide commercial use of irradiation as a phytosanitary treatment has increased greatly in recent years; however, trade has been limited to tropical fruits. Bartlett pear is a major summer variety of California pears with great potential and market for export. In this study, the effect of gamma irradiation at dose levels of 400, 600, and 800 Gy on physicochemical properties and sensory attributes of early and late harvest Bartlett pears was investigated. Firmness and color changes indicate that irradiation delayed the ripening of pears by 1 d. For the early harvest pears, scarring, bruising, and off flavor were significantly increased at the highest irradiation dose (800 Gy). The appearance of early harvest 800 Gy irradiated pears was the only attribute that received significantly (P ≤ 0.05) lower scores than the control in consumer testing. For the late harvest pears, the 400 Gy fruit had lowest levels of scarring and bruising as rated by trained panelist but consumers did not score the control and 800 Gy fruit differently for any attribute. Titratable acidity, total soluble solids, and chroma were significantly (P ≤ 0.05) decreased and hue increased by irradiation for the early harvest pears. These results suggest that there was a difference in radiotolerance of early and late harvest pears, but in both cases, irradiation at 400 to 600 Gy seemed to maintain best quality.

Sensory Aspects of UHT Milk Combined with Whole Pasteurized Milk 1.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the sensory quality of mixtures of whole pasteurized milk (WPM) containing from 0 to 75% ultrahigh-temperature (UHT) processed milk indirectly heated. Thirty experienced panelists were used to make multiple comparison tests between samples. From 75 to 87.5% of the panelists were able to distinguish differences between samples of UHT milk and WPM in multiple comparison tests. About 86% of the consumer panelists were neutral toward or liked WPM, whereas only 56% of the consumer panelists were neutral toward or liked mixtures containing 75% UHT milk. These studies show that people can accurately identify UHT milk and that they prefer WPM to indirectly heated UHT milk.