BOOKS

FREE RADICALS IN FOOD: CHEMISTRY, NUTRITION, AND HEALTH EFFECTS. Michael J. Morello, Fereidoon Shahidi, and Chi-Tang Ho, eds. American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C. Symposium Series 807. ISBN-08412-3741-7. 2002. 356 pp. $140.

Reactions triggered by free radicals began to fascinate me in the early 1960s. As a young food technologist, I thought I could use them to upgrade gelatin by increasing its molecular size. My method of creating free radicals, however, was very primitive (UV light), and the results of my experiments, although promising, were not reproducible. Sometimes I would increase the molecular size, sometimes I would degrade gelatin, producing what is known to the indoctrinated as “a wet dog odor.” My interest in free radicals, especially in their reactions in the human body, continued on an intellectual level. Thus, I was very pleased that a state-of-the-art book is now available dealing with their chemistry, nutrition, and health effects in foods.

Following a short overview of the fundamental aspects of free radicals chemistry, the book divides into three sections.

“Free Radicals and Food Chemistry” covers EPR methods of studying free radicals and their formation in specific foods, e.g., meat, emulsions, coffee, and products formed by extrusion.

“Natural Antioxidants” discusses among others, antioxidants in green tea, antioxidants in other plants and oleaginous seeds, effect of roasting, and isoflavones as scavengers of lipid peroxyl radicals.

“Nutritional Biochemistry and Health” contains information on inhibition of reactive oxygen species (ROS) by tea polyphenols, scavenging of DNA damage by peroxyl radicals, and specific beneficial effects of Japanese wasabi root (of the cruciferae family) on microbe control and of the Chinese medicinal herb Salvia Miltiorrhiza on blood pressure and atherosclerosis.

Being a compilation of papers presented at an ACS symposium, the book will please readers who look for recent developments in the field, but will disappoint those who would prefer a tutorial text.

Alina Surmacka Szczesniak, IFT Fellow and retired Principal Scientist, General Foods Corp. (now Kraft Foods), Mount Vernon, N.Y.

BOOKS RECEIVED
Active Packaging for Food Applications. Aaron L. Brody, Eugene R. Strupinsky, and Lauri R. Kline. Technomic Publishing Co., 851 New Holland Ave., Box 3535, Lancaster, PA 17604. Call 800-233-9936 or fax 717-295-4538. ISBN: 1-58716-045-5. 2002. 211 pp.

Botanical Medicines: The Desk Reference for Major Herbal Supplements, 2nd Ed. Dennis J. McKenna, Kenneth Jones, and Kerry Hughes. The Haworth Herbal Press, 10 Alice St, Binghamton, NY 13904. Call 800-HAWORTH or fax 800-895-0582. ISBN:0-7890-1266-9. 2002. 1,140 pp. $79.95.

Brewing, 2nd Ed. Michael J. Lewis and Tom W. Young. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, P.O. Box 358, Accord Station, Hingham, MA 02018-0358. Call 866-269-9527 or fax 781-681-9045. ISBN: 0-306-47274-0. 2002. 398 pp. $55.00.

Case Studies in Food Microbiology for Food Safety and Quality. Rosa K. Pawsey. Royal Society of Chemistry, Thomas Graham House, Science Park, Milton Rd, Cambridge CB4 0WF, UK. ISBN: 0-85404-626-7. 2002. 460 pp.

Encyclopedia of Dairy Sciences, Vol. 2. Hubert Roginski, John W. Fuquay, and Patrick F. Fox, eds. Academic Press, 525 B Street, Suite 1900, San Diego, CA 92101-4495. Call 800-545-2522 or fax 800-568-5136. ISBN: 0-12-227235-8. 2002. 1,279 pp.

Encyclopedia of Dairy Sciences, Vol. 3. Hubert Roginski, John W. Fuquay, and Patrick F. Fox, eds. Academic Press, 525 B Street, Suite 1900, San Diego, CA 92101-4495. Call 800-545-2522 or fax 800-568-5136. ISBN: 0-12-227235-8. 2002. 2,095 pp.

Food Industry Briefing Series: Shelf Life. Dominic Man. Iowa State Press, 2121 S. State Ave., Ames, IA 50014-8300. Call 800-862-6657 or fax 515-292-3348. ISBN: 0-632-05674-6. 2002. 128 pp.

Food Systems for Improved Human Nutrition: Linking Agriculture, Nutrition, and Productivity. Palit K. Kataki and Suresh Chandra Babu, eds. Food Products Press, 10 Alice St., Binghamton, NY 13904. Call 800-HAWORTH or fax 800-895-0582. ISBN: 1-56022-103-8. 2002. 394 pp. $49.95.

Fundamentals of Packaging Technology, 3rd Ed. Walter Soroka. Institute of Packaging Professionals, 1601 N. Bond St., Naperville, IL 60563. Call 630-544-5050. ISBN: 1-930268-25-4. 2002. 600 pp.

Microorganisms in Foods 7: Microbiological Testing in Food Safety Management. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, P.O. Box 358, Accord Station, Hingham, MA 02018-0358. Call 866-269-9527 or fax 781-681-9045. ISBN: 0-306-47262-7. 2002. 388 pp. $125.00.

Seed Policy, Legislation and Law: Widening a Narrow Focus. Niels P. Louwaars, ed. Food Products Press, 10 Alice Street, Binghamton, NY 13904-1580. Call 800-HAWORTH or fax 800-895-0582. ISBN:1-56022-093-7. 2002. 260 pp. $29.95.

Winemaking: From Grape Growing to Marketplace, 2nd Ed. Richard P. Vine, Ellen M. Harkness, and Sally J. Linton. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, P.O. Box 358, Accord Station, Hingham, MA 02018-0358. Call 866-269-9527 or fax 781-681-9045. ISBN:0-306-47272-4. 2002. 477 pp.

Advanced Dairy Chemistry, Vol. 1. Proteins, 3rd Ed., Part B. P.F. Fox and P.L.H. McSweeney, eds. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, P.O. Box 358, Accord Station, Hingham, MA 02018-0358. Call 866-269-9527 or fax 781-681-9045. ISBN:0-306-47271-6. 2003. 1,346 pp.

A Guide to Understanding Dietary Supplements. Shawn M. Talbott. The Haworth Press, 10 Alice St, Binghamton, NY 13904. Call 800-HAWORTH or fax 800-895-0582. ISBN: 0-7890-1456-4. 2003. 740 pp. $34.95.

Beverage Quality and Safety. Tammy Foster and Purnendu C. Vasavada. CRC Press LLC, 2000 N.W. Corporate Blvd., Boca Raton, FL 33431. Call 800-272-7737 or fax 800-374-3401. ISBN: 0-58716-011-0. 2003. 229 pp.

Concise Encyclopedia of Temperate Tree Fruit. Tara Auxt Baugher and Suman Singha, eds. Food Products Press, 10 Alice St, Binghamton, NY 13904. Call 800-HAWORTH or fax 800-895-0582. ISBN:1-56022941-1. 2003. 388 pp. $39.95.

Crop Production in Saline Environments: Global and Integrated Perspectives. Sham S. Goyal, Surinder K. Sharma, and D. William Rains, eds. Food Products Press, 10 Alice St, Binghamton, NY 13904. Call 800-HAWORTH or fax 800-895-0582. ISBN:1-56022-097-X. 2003. 427 pp. $69.95.

Encyclopedic Dictionary of Plant Breeding and Related Subjects. Rolf H.J. Schlegel. Food Products Press, 10 Alice St, Binghamton, NY 13904. Call 800-HAWORTH or fax 800-895-0582. ISBN:1-56022-950-0. 2003. 563 pp. $89.95.

Essentials of Food Science, 2nd Ed. Vickie A Vaclavik and Elizabeth W. Christian. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, P.O. Box 358, Accord Station, Hingham, MA 02018-0358. Call 866-269-9527 or fax 781-681-9045. ISBN: 0-306-47363-1. 2003. 482 pp.

Expectations and the Food Industry: The Impact of Color and Appearance. John B. Hutchings. Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, P.O. Box 358, Accord Station, Hingham, MA 02018-0358. Call 866-269-9527 or fax 781-681-9045. ISBN: 0-306-47291-0. 2003. 180 pp.

Extraction Optimization in Food Engineering. Constantina Tzia and George Liadakis, eds. Marcel Dekker, Inc., 270 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. Call 800-228-1160 or fax 845-796-1772. ISBN:0-8247-4108-0. 2003. 442 pp.