Determination of sodium and lactose content in Mozzarella and Colonial cheese consumed in Southwestern Paraná

Abstract

Research has indicated that Brazilian cheeses have high salt content, which can be seen as a public health problem due to the large consumption of these products by the population. In addition, few studies have evaluated the lactose content in cheese. Moreover, the introduction of new products lactose free in the market is large. Cheeses commonly have low lactose content, in this way, for some types of cheese, the development of product lines that are low or free from lactose is justified, but this is not true for all varieties of cheese, as they have been observed. The objective of this study was to determine the levels of lactose and sodium in the main types of cheese consumed in southwestern Paraná, Mozzarella and Colonial cheese. Samples from three different brands of each type of cheese were collected. Analyzes for the determination of lactose, sodium chloride, pH and acidity were carried out. The results show that the sodium content of cheese analyzed are high, which can bring harm to the health of consumers. It can also be observed that there is great variation between different brands of cheese as the sodium content. The average lactose content was higher for mozzarella cheese compared to colonial cheeses. The cheeses have a low lactose content, and therefore can be consumed by most lactose-intolerant people. Moreover, for these types of cheese, it is not necessary to develop lines of products “lactose free”.