Oxidative stabilization, pigmentation, and photosensitization properties of curcumin in vanaspati fat system under accelerated oxidation and irradiation photooxidation conditions

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate antioxidant and pigmentation properties of curcumin in vanaspati fat over 30 days under accelerated oxidation (AOC) and irradiation photooxidation conditions (IPC). For this purpose, different concentrations of curcumin (0.05%, 0.10%, and 0.20%) were added to vanaspati and the oxidation stability of the fat was examined in terms of peroxide value, p-anisidine value, TOTOX value, carbonyl value, and induction period of oxidation at 110°C. Results of AOC revealed the favorable antioxidant effect of curcumin. The increasing trend of the oxidative parameters was significantly slowed down over time (p < .05). In contrast, curcumin showed prooxidant properties under IPC and its addition intensified the increasing trend of oxidation parameters. The Lovibond red color of vanaspati increased by 0.8 unit, after the addition of curcumin. Although curcumin can be considered a good natural antioxidant in fatty products under thermal conditions, it acts as a photosensitizer in light conditions. Novelty impact statement The vanaspati fat containing 0.20% curcumin showed better oxidative stability performance than the one containing 0.01% ascorbyl palmitate under accelerated oxidation (AOC) condition (p < .05). The curcumin acted as an antioxidant under thermal conditions and as a photosensitizer in vanaspati fat under light conditions. The color resulting from adding curcumin showed very high stability over time under AOC and irradiation photooxidation conditions.