Caproic acid also known as Hexanoic acid, is a carboxylic acid derived from hexane with chemical formula CH3(CH2)4COOH. It is a colorless oily liquid with cheesy, fatty, and waxy odor resembling goats and barnyard animals. This fatty acid is naturally found in fats and oils and is a chemical which provides decomposing fleshy seed coat of ginkgo indicating unpleasant odor. It is used for manufacturing its esters for artificial flavors or manufacturing hexyl derivatives such as hexylphenols. Esters and salts of caproic acid are known as caproates and hexanoates. The word caproic acid was derived from Latin word caper which…
Author: Emily
Pentadecanoic acid is a saturated fatty acid with molecular formula CH3(CH2)13COOH. In nature, it is rare and found at the level of 1.2% in the milk fat from cows. The butterfat in cow’s milk is the major dietary source and used as a marker for consumption of butterfat. Pentadecanoic acid occurs in hydrogenated mutton fat. It composes of 3.61% of the fats from fruit of durian species Durio graveolens. It may promote mother-to-child transmission of HIV through breastfeeding. Food Sources Food name Weight (g) Pentadecanoic acid (g) Veal 113 0.444 Cheddar cheese 132 0.420 Swiss cheese 132 0.403 Parmesan cheese…
Myristic acid is a common saturated fatty acid having CH3(CH2)12COOH as molecular formula. Its salts and esters are known as myristates. The name was termed after binomial name for nutmeg from which it was first isolated by Lyon Playfair in 1841. It is a saturated fatty acid belonging to the sub-group known as long chain fatty acids from 14 to 18 carbon atoms. It naturally occurs in some foods. Myristic acid (in purified form) occurs as hard, faintly yellow or white, glossy crystalline solid or as yellow-white or white powder. Myristic acid and its esters and salts are used in…
Coconut oil is a must in natural beauty as well as health regimens. Natural health websites and countless blogs has claimed it as a miracle product which is able to soothe cracked skin and reverse cavities. Lauric acid is a medium length long chain fatty acid which makes about half of fatty acids in coconut oil. It is a powerful substance which is extracted from coconut for developing monolaurin (an antimicrobial agent that counteract viruses, bacteria, other pathogens and yeasts). As lauric acid could not be ingested alone, it could be obtained in form of coconut oil and fresh coconuts.…
Capric acid (C10:0) also known as decanoic acid or decylic acid, is a saturated fatty acid with formula CH3(CH2)8COOH. Salts and esters of capric acid are known as caprates or decanoates. The word capric acid is derived from Latin word capra or caper due to the sweaty or unpleasant smell of compound similar to goats. It is a medium chain fatty acid which is found in saturated fats. It is present in goat’s milk and cow’s milk in small amounts but is abundant in tropical oils such as palm kernel oil and coconut oil. In purified form, it is a…
Caprylic acid is a medium chain fatty acid which is found in coconut oil, palm oil and milk of humans and bovines. It is the common name for eight carbon saturated fatty acid known by systematic name octanoic acid. The compounds are found naturally in milk of various mammals and as a minor constituent of coconut oil and palm kernel oil. This oily liquid is minimally soluble in water having a slight unpleasant rancid like smell and taste. Food Sources of Caprylic Acid Food name Weight (g) Caprylic acid (g) Coconut milk 240 4.008 Coconut oil 13.6 0.925 Babassu…
Butyric acid also known as butanoic acid, is a carboxylic acid with CH3CH2CH2-COOH as structural formula. Butyric acid is a colorless liquid which is soluble in water. It has other chemical names such as butanoic acid, n-butanoic acid, n-butyric acid and propylformic acid. Salts and esters of butyric acid are called butanoates or butyrates. It could be found in plant oils, animal fat, breast milk, bovine milk, parmesan cheese, butter and as a product of anerobic fermentation (including in colon and as body odor). The taste of Butyric acid is like butter with unpleasant odor. It is used as a…
Linoleic acid, also known as an omega-6 fatty acid, is found in vegetable and nut oils, such as sunflower, safflower, corn, soy, and peanut oil. It is a polyunsaturated fatty acid with its endmost double bond six carbons from the end of the carbon chain. Linoleic acid is metabolized in the body to arachidonic acid, which is a precursor to a number of eicosanoids. Linoleic acid is also needed for cell membrane structure and is required for the lipoproteins that transport fats in our blood. Biological effects of Omega-6 fatty acids are produced largely during and after physical activity for…
While it is easy to think of fats and fatty acids as bad for your health, in the case of omega-3 fatty acids, the reverse is true. They are polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Most people get PUFAs in their diet from vegetable oils. While there are two groups of PUFAs, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, omega-3 fatty acids are more important for good health. Most vegetable oils have more omega-6 than omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s come from different sources, with fish being the best-known food rich in omega-3s. The omega-3s include three fatty acids called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosa- pentaenoic…
Fructose, a monosaccharide, is naturally present in fruits and is used in many food products as a sweetener. Fructose or fruit sugar, the intensely sweet sugar of fruit, is made by rearranging the atoms in glucose molecules. Fructose occurs naturally in fruits, in honey, and as part of table sugar. However, most fructose is consumed in sweet beverages, desserts, and other foods sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or other added sugars. Glucose and fructose are the most common monosaccharides in nature. Fructose is also called levulose, or fruit sugar. In many processed foods, it comes in the form of…