Category: F

  • Flavin

    The group of compounds containing the iso-alloxazine ring structure, as in riboflavin (vitamin B2), and hence a general term for riboflavin derivatives. Also known as lyochrome. One of a group of pale yellow, greenly fluorescing biological pigments widely distributed in small quantities in plant and animal tissues. Flavins are synthesized only by bacteria, yeast, and…

  • Fibre, crude

    The term given to the indigestible part of foods, defined as the residue left after successive extraction under closely specified conditions with petroleum ether, 1.25% sulphuric acid, and 1.25% sodium hydroxide, minus ash. No real relation to dietary fibre. The indigestible carbohydrate constituent of foodstuffs. It is kept at low levels in formulated foods, especially…

  • Fertility

    The ability to reproduce, which differs from fecundability, which is the ability of a woman to become pregnant. The capacity to conceive or induce conception. The fact of being fertile. The biological capacity to reproduce. Human fertility varies with age. A woman’s fertility begins with the onset of menstruation, peaks when she reaches her 20s,…

  • Ferritin

    An iron-carrier protein, found in large amounts in liver and spleen, and also at low concentrations in serum which can be measured as an index of iron stores in the body. However, it is also sensitive to the acute phase reaction: its concentration in serum increases markedly during infection or inflammation. An iron-protein complex (a…

  • Fenton-type reactions

    The formation of hydroxyl radical (OH) from hydrogen peroxide reacting with iron (II) or copper (I) ions in a process first observed by Fenton in 1894.  

  • Fat-replacers

    Substances that provide a creamy, fat-like texture used to replace or partly replace the fat in a food. Made from a variety of substances with lower energy content. A substance that tastes like fat or acts like fat in food preparation, but has fewer calories.  

  • Fat, neutral

    Fats that are esters of fatty acids with glycerol, triacylglycerols. Compounds of the higher fatty acids (palmitic, stearic, and oleic) with glycerol. They are the common fats of animal and plant tissues.  

  • Fasting

    Going without food. The metabolic fasting state begins some 4 hours after a meal, when the digestion and absorption of food is complete and body reserves of fat and glycogen begin to be mobilized. Choosing not to eat anything or a particular food item for a specified period of time. Frequently associated with religious observances…

  • Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

    Founded in 1943; headquarters in Rome. Its goal is to achieve freedom from hunger worldwide. According to its constitution the specific objectives are ‘raising the levels of nutrition and standards of living and securing improvements in the efficiency of production and distribution of all food and agricultural products’; website http://www.fao.org. Established in 1945, the main…

  • Famine

    Famine

    A catastrophic disruption of the social, economic, and institutional systems that provide for food production, distribution, and consumption. Pronounced scarcity of food in a broad geographical area, causing widespread starvation, disease, and/or death in a population.