Desenvolvimento de preparações alimentares fontes de ferro para pré-escolares: aceitação e avaliação das boas práticas

Abstract

Iron deficiency anemia is a condition in which there is a reduction of the total body iron, where iron absorption is also insufficient to meet physiologic needs, causing various effects, such as fatigue, growth retardation, lack of attention, among others. The occurrence of iron deficiency anemia in children is fairly high, and is usually associated with the need for larger amount of iron and shortage of iron rich foods in infant feeding. However, iron rich foods such as fresh vegetables and animal entrails are routinely excluded from the infant diet because they are not well tolerated by this population. The present study aimed to develop low cost culinary preparations containing iron rich foods. Culinary preparations were subjected to sensory evaluation using facial hedonic scale test in preschool children from four to six years old, students of local schools from the county of Capão do Leão - RS. The school kitchens were also evaluated for adequacy related to the handling of food offered by analysis of good practices through the application of a checklist based on Resolution 216/04 of ANVISA. The cooks and teachers received training on how to reproduce the recipes that were approved in the sensory evaluation, as well as notions of Good Practice for food production. The article presents the results obtained in the evaluation of preparations developed which indicates acceptance above 85% in two of the three recipes analyzed by preschoolers, following the acceptability index of resolution 32/06 of PNAE. Moreover, all preparations provide the minimum equivalent amount of iron needed for the age group. Also present in the article is the percentage of Good Practice adequacy, which indicated serious microbiolgy contamination risks, obtaining an overall average of 33.4% compliance among preschools.