Chemical and biological evaluation of fortified biscuits with different concentrations of zinc or selenium

Document Type : Original Article

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Department of Studies and Field Research, National Nutrition Institute, Cairo, Egypt

Abstract

Biscuits are a favorite snack among the younger generation. Biscuits fortified with zinc (Zn) or selenium (Se) may help to avoid several diseases that are common in developing countries. The goals of this research were to determine the chemical makeup of reinforced biscuits and to see how different fortified biscuit samples affected feed intake, body weight, feed efficiency ratio, serum lipids profile, liver, kidney functions, and immunity. Forty male albino rats have been separated into eight groups: group (1) was a negative control; group (2) was fed a diet containing control biscuits without fortified; and the other groups have been fed biscuits fortified with 10, 15, and 20 mg of zinc or selenium for 28 days. The results showed that rats fed on selenium or zinc biscuits had a higher feed efficiency ratio (FER) (P ≤0.05) than the control groups. Adding zinc or selenium led to significantly improved serum liver, kidney functions, and lipid profile especially at the levels of 10 and 15% when compared with a control group.  Biochemical indicators were affected more by selenium levels than zinc levels. As a result, zinc and selenium are essential minerals that must be added to food or taken as dietary supplements to fulfill their crucial functions.

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