science teacher's guide - DepEd Naga City

Teacher's GuideModule 3: Elements & CompoundsActivity4The Iron-y of FoodMost of the minerals added to the food are in the form of compounds,for it is more easily absorbed by the body if it is in such form. Being so,rarely that the element itself is added. However, there are food productswhich are fortified with element iron.Iron in the blood is the one responsible in carrying oxygen from thelungs to the rest of the body. For the body to function well, oxygen iscritically needed. Health officials had to find ways to ascertain that there isenough iron in the food. Besides, there was a time when a lot of people werestricken with anemia — sickness caused by a deficiency of iron. To addressthis, most of the food products especially milk and cereal were required tobe fortified with iron. Some food are added with compounds of iron such asferrous sulfate, ferric pyrophosphate, and ferrous fumarate. However,addition of some of these compounds affect the taste of the food. In effect,consumers may not buy or patronize the food product. Food technologistsdevised other ways to add iron to food products. One of which is tomanufacture a food grade iron. This is the elemental iron which wassubjected into a reduction process that makes it permissible to be added tofood. Being the element iron itself, properties of this substance are retainedsuch as its ability to be attracted by a magnet.In this activity, students will be able to recover the iron present in afood product. Emphasize though that the iron in the food is safe to eatcompared to the iron that makes up the concrete nail and other productsthat are not meant to be ingested. Also, the ones that will be recovered fromthe activity should not be ingested.Most of the equipment needed for this activity may be available inyour TLE laboratory. A video* is provided in case the materials for thisactivity are not easily accessible/available.*http://curriculum.nismed.upd.edu.ph/2012/04/the-iron-y-of-food/Answers to Activity QuestionsQ1. There are small, black pieces or bits that are attached to the magnet.Q2. With its attraction to the magnet, it is highly possible that the blackbits recovered from the food are pieces of iron.Grade 7 Science: MatterDiversity of Materials in the Environment 38