Abstract
The development of food-borne and infectious diseases has increased globally at an anomalous rate and is combined with emerging social and economic problems. This highlights the need for new and improved antibacterial agents with novel and different mechanisms of action at regular intervals. Some chemical or artificial food additives are considered harmful if they are used beyond their permissible levels. Today, consumers are demanding alternative, green, safer, and natural food additives to increase the shelf life of food. Essential oils (EOs) are concentrated liquid mixtures of volatile compounds with antioxidant and antibacterial properties that can be used as natural, eco-friendly, renewable, and cost-effective additives. The use of combinations of different EOs and their components is a promising strategy to increase the synergistic and additive effects of EOs in foods. In this article, we review the recent literature on EOs concerning the chemical constituents, extraction methods, antioxidant and antibacterial activities, and their mechanisms of action. Additionally, we discuss the synergistic interaction of different EOs and their components, challenges, and future directions of EOs as natural food preservatives, with special emphasis on shelf life extension and applications in the packaging of food products.
Highlights
Microbial food spoilage and oxidative deterioration during the storage of foods are major concerns for our society
We review the recent literature on Essential oils (EOs) concerning the chemical constituents, extraction methods, antioxidant and antibacterial activities, and their mechanisms of action
When plant materials are subjected to distillation and EOs of plant material are drawn off, the remaining water still contains certain water-soluble constituents of the plant material, which are free from the lipophillic substances known as floral waters or hydrosols
Summary
Microbial food spoilage and oxidative deterioration during the storage of foods are major concerns for our society. Some properties of the additives with active functions in food packaging systems include absorbing/scavenging properties (additives include moisture, oxygen, carbon dioxide, ethylene, flavors, and UV light); releasing/emitting properties (e.g., antioxidants, preservatives, sulfur dioxide); removing properties (e.g., lactose and cholesterol); and temperature, and microbial control [7] Several diseases, such as cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, as well as deterioration of food and meat have been attributed to free radicals. EOs are liquid mixtures of volatile and hydrophobic compounds obtained from different parts of aromatic medicinal plants, such as leaves, buds, flowers, shoots, peels, barks, twigs, fruits, seeds, and roots They provide the essence of the plant with specific odoriferous and lipophilic characteristics, which are responsible for the aroma and flavor of spices [13]. We have discussed the synergistic interaction of different EOs and their constituents and shelf-life extension of packaged food with current trends and future perspectives
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