ABSTRACT
The bioavailability of starch in several wheat-based bread products was studied in terms of the glucose and insulin responses of healthy subjects and the rate and extent of in vitro starch digestion. The bioavailability of calcium from a calcium supplement and calcium-fortified food products was evaluated by calcium balance studies in young adults. Sandberg reviewed the effects of food processing on phytate hydrolysis and the availability of iron and zinc in cereal and vegetable foods. A volume in the Advances in Applied Biotechnology series was devoted to technologies and strategies for reducing the fat and cholesterol content of foods. Hildebrand reviewed the potential of genetic engineering to improve food quality by manipulation of fatty acid metabolism in plants. Techniques for introducing new genes into agronomic plants are well established, and in theory it is possible to genetically engineer higher plants to produce fats and oils with predetermined fatty acid composition.
