The link between diet and health is profound. The overconsumption of foods rich in lipids is a significant factor contributing to obesity and has been linked to the increased incidence of chronic diseases such as type II diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and some cancers. The objective of this study was to investigate if a change in physical state induced by cooking alters the metabolic response of lipids in food. Lipid digestion of beef longissimus muscle cooked to different temperatures was assessed utilizing the advanced TIM-1 simulated gastrointestinal tract, which is a dynamic in-vitro system that mimics human digestion. Digestion kinetics consisting of lipid digestion rate constants, induction times and bioaccessibility were measured over 6 hour simulated digestions. The changes in network structure of the different heat treatments were analyzed using rheology, differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and confocal microscopy. Preliminary results show significant differences in lipid digestion between raw and cooked meat. This research will enable a better understanding of the mechanisms of digestion with relation to changes in food structure and matrices due to processing; ultimately serving in the development of foods that minimize the amount of free fatty acid release, which could help prevent metabolic diseases associated with lipid intake and their resulting health complications.
