Vitamin factors influencing stability

Vitamin Summation formuia Reiative moiecuiar mass Factors influencing stability ... 

It appears from Figs. 9.5 and 9.6 that there is a huge variation in colour stability between meat from different sources. A range of intrinsic factors influence the oxidative balance in raw meat and thereby the colour stability of the meat (Bertelsen et al., 2000). Thus the oxidative stability of muscles is dependent on the composition, concentrations, and reactivity of (i) oxidation substrates (lipids, protein and pigments), (ii) oxidation catalysts (prooxidants such as transition metals and various enzymes) and (iii) antioxidants, e.g., vitamin E and various enzymes. For review see Bertelsen et al. (2000). 

Table 2 External factors influencing vitamin stability (Adapted from Hoffinann (2005)) ...

At present economic factors also preclude the feeding of tocopherol concentrates to meat animals. Large doses of this vitamin in the feed do increase fat stability, but most of it is excreted. Only a small fraction of that fed is absorbed from the digestive tract and stored in the fat. It is possible that deposition of either tocopherol or fatty acids or both may be influenced by the feeding of substances which can affect fat metabolism, but such studies are too few and in too early a stage to warrant any conclusions at present. 

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