A dietary fiber composition, and a method for preparing and using the same

Abstract

The application discloses a dietary fiber composition and a preparation method and application thereof, and relates to the field of food technology.The application provides a dietary fiber composition, which comprises the following components in parts by weight: 10-20 parts of inulin, 15-30 parts of polydextrose, 10-20 parts of galactooligosaccharide, 20-40 parts of isomaltooligosaccharide and 1-5 parts of citrus fiber.The application provides a dietary fiber composition, which is obtained by matching and combining dietary fibers with different viscosities, water-retention properties and gel properties, and has high dietary fiber content, good taste, good stability, high tolerance and the property of helping to improve the health of the gastrointestinal tract.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of food technology, and in particular to a dietary fiber composition, its preparation method, and its application. Background Technology

[0002] Gut health and its correlation with overall health, such as weight, mood, intelligence, and immunity, are receiving widespread attention from consumers and researchers. By properly consuming dietary components such as probiotics and dietary fiber, it is possible to regulate the growth and reproduction of gut microbiota, and ultimately improve the body's condition and reduce the risk of disease. As a result, the demand for dietary fiber products in daily life is also increasing. High-fiber foods are emerging in large numbers. Most existing dietary fiber products are in powder or liquid form. The dietary fiber content of gummy candies is significantly lower than that of other dosage forms. Moreover, when the amount of raw materials such as polydextrose and inulin is too high, it can easily produce unpleasant flavors. For example, CN201510437019.7 "Lip-lowering gummies with improved taste and their manufacturing method" uses inulin, maltitol, sorbitol liquid, pectin and many plant-derived ingredients as dietary fiber sources to make gummies, with a water-soluble dietary fiber content of >45g / 100g; CN202010895403.2 "A high-fiber gummies and their preparation method" uses citrus fiber, white sugar, fruit pulp, sweeteners and other soluble dietary fibers as raw materials to make gummies, with a fiber content of less than 10%.

[0003] Besides being low in dietary fiber, these types of gummies also suffer from a soft texture lacking chewiness, poor sweetness, and a tendency to absorb moisture and become sticky. CN201710333591.8, "A Composition for Improving Intestinal Microbiota and Gummies for Improving Intestinal Microbiota," describes gummies made from inulin, Bacillus coagulans powder, sugar, natural flavorings, acidulants, and colloids, with a shelf life of 2-3 months at room temperature. Furthermore, most low-sugar and sugar-free gummies on the market use sugar alcohols instead of white sugar and starch syrup. However, some sugar alcohols have low tolerance, and excessive intake can easily lead to diarrhea. Additionally, two or three colloids, such as gelatin, carrageenan, and xanthan gum, need to be combined to maintain texture and taste, resulting in complex product compositions.

[0004] Therefore, in response to the problems of low dietary fiber content (20%-40%), lack of chewiness, easy moisture absorption and stickiness, and low tolerance of common dietary fiber gummies on the market, a dietary fiber composition with high dietary fiber content, good taste, good stability and high tolerance, which helps to improve gastrointestinal health, has broad application prospects. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Based on this, the purpose of the present invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a dietary fiber composition with high dietary fiber content, good taste, good stability, and high tolerance, which helps to improve gastrointestinal health, as well as its preparation method and application.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: a dietary fiber composition comprising the following components in parts by weight: 10-20 parts inulin, 15-30 parts polydextrose, 10-20 parts galactooligosaccharide, 20-40 parts isomaltooligosaccharide, and 1-5 parts citrus fiber.

[0007] This invention provides a dietary fiber composition that, through the combination of dietary fibers with different viscosities, water retention properties, and gelling properties, yields a dietary fiber composition with high dietary fiber content, good taste, good stability, and high tolerability, which helps improve gastrointestinal health.

[0008] Inulin is a soluble dietary fiber with low hygroscopicity, which helps to form a fine and homogeneous gel. Citrus fiber is a dietary fiber extracted from citrus fruits. It is mainly composed of soluble (natural pectin) and insoluble dietary fiber (cellulose, hemicellulose), fat, etc., and also contains active ingredients such as flavonoids and polyphenols. It has good water retention, thickening, emulsifying and gelling properties. Citrus fiber contributes the main texture in dietary fiber compositions.

[0009] Polydextrose has a highly branched structure and does not crystallize. Filling is one of the main functions of polydextrose. Galacto-oligosaccharides have strong moisture retention capabilities, and isomaltooligosaccharides have excellent processing stability. The synergistic use of polydextrose, galacto-oligosaccharides, and isomaltooligosaccharides can replace sugars, improve texture and mouthfeel, make the product more flavorful, ensure good chewability, and at the same time, have excellent processing stability and inhibit crystallization.

[0010] Preferably, the dietary fiber composition comprises the following components in parts by weight: 15-18 parts inulin, 20-25 parts polydextrose, 13-15 parts galactooligosaccharide, 25-35 parts isomaltooligosaccharide, and 2-4 parts citrus fiber.

[0011] During actual experiments, the inventors discovered that when the components in the dietary fiber composition are selected in the above-mentioned weight proportions, the performance in all aspects is better.

[0012] Preferably, the inulin and citrus fiber constitute 20-25% of the dietary fiber composition by mass.

[0013] Preferably, the weight ratio of inulin to citrus fiber is (5-8):1.

[0014] This invention further regulates the texture and stability of dietary fiber by controlling the mass percentage of inulin and citrus fiber in the dietary fiber composition. When the weight ratio of inulin to citrus fiber is (5-8):1, the texture and stability are better, and the tolerance is higher.

[0015] Furthermore, the dietary fiber described in this invention also provides the application of dietary fiber compositions in the preparation of dietary fiber products.

[0016] Preferably, the dietary fiber product includes one of the following: gummies, solid beverages, compressed candies, and liquid beverages.

[0017] The present invention provides a gel gummy, the gel gummy comprising the dietary fiber composition described above.

[0018] This invention provides a dietary fiber composition that combines dietary fibers with different viscosities, water retention properties, and gelling properties. On the one hand, it can completely replace the raw materials such as white sugar, syrup, sugar alcohols, and animal and plant colloids in existing gummies, eliminating the need to introduce conventional colloids and ensuring label cleanliness. On the other hand, this composition is more suitable for gummy formulations and ensures the product's taste (e.g., good chewiness, moderate sweetness), stability, increased dietary fiber content, good tolerability, and label cleanliness, thus contributing to improved gastrointestinal health.

[0019] Preferably, the gel gummies further include an acidity regulator, fruit and vegetable products, and a coating agent.

[0020] Preferably, the acidity regulator includes at least one of citric acid, lactic acid, DL-malic acid, tartaric acid, and sodium citrate; the fruit and vegetable products include at least one of hawthorn concentrate, hawthorn pulp, prune concentrate, celery concentrate, arugula concentrate, mango pulp, sea buckthorn concentrate, banana pulp, elderberry concentrate, jujube pulp, purple carrot concentrate, hibiscus concentrate, and monk fruit concentrate; and the coating agent includes at least one of coconut oil, sunflower seed oil, white oil, carnauba wax, beeswax, and paraffin wax.

[0021] The present invention provides a gel gummy, comprising the following components in parts by weight: 75-95 parts of dietary fiber composition, 0.1-1.5 parts of acidity regulator, 5-20 parts of fruit and vegetable products, and 0.1-0.5 parts of coating agent.

[0022] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: (1) The present invention provides a dietary fiber composition, which, by combining dietary fibers with different viscosities, water retention and gelling properties, obtains a dietary fiber composition with high dietary fiber content, good taste, good stability and high tolerance, which helps to improve gastrointestinal health without the addition of conventional gelling agents. (2) The dietary fiber composition provided by the present invention is sugar-free, sugar alcohol-free, highly tolerable, and the finished product has a dietary fiber content of up to 65% or more. Detailed Implementation

[0023] To better illustrate the purpose, technical solution, and advantages of this invention, the invention will be further described below with reference to specific embodiments. The purpose is to provide a detailed understanding of the invention, not to limit it. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without inventive effort are within the scope of protection of this invention. Unless otherwise specified, the experimental reagents and instruments designed in the embodiments and comparative examples of this invention are commonly used reagents and instruments, all of which are commercially available. Unless otherwise specified, the experimental methods used in the embodiments and comparative examples are conventional methods; and unless otherwise specified, the raw materials used in parallel experiments are from the same batch.

[0024] The raw materials used in the embodiments and comparative examples are described below, but are not limited to these materials:

[0025] Inulin: NanoST P90, Inner Mongolia Weinihao Biotechnology Co., Ltd.;

[0026] Polydextrose: Common polydextrose, Shandong Xingguang First-of-its-kind Biotechnology Co., Ltd.;

[0027] Galacto-oligosaccharides: GOS-90 powder, Shandong Xingguang First-of-its-kind Biotechnology Co., Ltd.;

[0028] Isomaltooligosaccharide: IMO900 powder, Shandong Xingguang First-of-its-kind Biotechnology Co., Ltd.;

[0029] Citrus fiber: Ceamfibre 7240, CEAMSA, Spain;

[0030] Resistant dextrin: Ordinary resistant dextrin, Shandong Xingguang First-of-its-kind Biotechnology Co., Ltd.;

[0031] Fructooligosaccharides: FOS95 powder, Shandong Xingguang First-of-its-kind Biotechnology Co., Ltd.;

[0032] Apple fiber: AF apple fiber, JRS GmbH, Germany;

[0033] Coating agent: Polishing and anti-sticking oil; Model 4915; Suzhou Puricon Food Co., Ltd.

[0034] Examples and Comparative Examples

[0035] The present invention provides a dietary fiber composition. The components and weight parts of the dietary fiber composition described in the examples and comparative examples are shown in Tables 1-2.

[0036] The preparation method of the dietary fiber composition of the present invention is as follows: weigh each component according to the proportion, and dry mix them evenly with a powder mixer to obtain the dietary fiber composition.

[0037] Table 1

[0038]

[0039] Table 2

[0040]

[0041]

[0042] Application Examples 1-7

[0043] A type of gel gummy, comprising the following components in parts by weight: 80 parts of the dietary fiber composition described in Examples 1-7, 0.9 parts of citric acid, 0.4 parts of sodium citrate, 8 parts of jujube pulp, 8 parts of hawthorn pulp, 2.5 parts of arugula concentrate, and 0.2 parts of coating agent.

[0044] In Example 1, the dietary fiber composition described in Example 1 is used. In Example 2, the dietary fiber composition described in Example 2 is used, and so on.

[0045] Compare and contrast examples 1-7

[0046] A type of gel gummy, comprising the following components in parts by weight: 80 parts of the dietary fiber composition described in Comparative Examples 1-7, 0.9 parts of citric acid, 0.4 parts of sodium citrate, 8 parts of jujube pulp, 8 parts of hawthorn pulp, 2.5 parts of arugula concentrate, and 0.2 parts of coating agent.

[0047] In Comparative Application Example 1, the dietary fiber composition described in Comparative Example 1 was used. In Comparative Application Example 2, the dietary fiber composition described in Comparative Example 2 was used, and so on.

[0048] Application Example 8

[0049] A type of gel gummy, comprising the following components in parts by weight: 90 parts of the dietary fiber composition described in Example 1, 0.9 parts of citric acid, 0.4 parts of sodium citrate, 4.5 parts of hawthorn pulp, 2 parts of hawthorn concentrate, 2 parts of sea buckthorn concentrate, and 0.2 parts of coating agent.

[0050] Performance Testing - 1 Texture Property Testing

[0051] Instrumental analysis method for textural properties: The gummies were cast using the same cylindrical mold. Samples with smooth surfaces and uniform size were taken for measurement. Texture analyzer: TMS-PRO, FTC Corporation, USA; measurement mode TPA (test cycle 2 times, simulating the changes when the sample is chewed), universal cylindrical probe (diameter 25.4 mm), speed 30 mm / min before, during and after the test, trigger force 0.5 N, sample deformation percentage 30%, each sample was measured in parallel 3 times, and the hardness, elasticity and chewiness of the samples were compared.

[0052] The test results are shown in Table 3 below.

[0053] Table 3

[0054]

[0055] As shown in the table above, the application examples used to prepare gel gummies can form a gel structure with a certain degree of hardness, elasticity, and integrity, ensuring the gel strength and acceptable taste of the product. Comparing sensory evaluation and instrumental analysis data, it was found that when the hardness is between 13-17 N, the gummies have a moderate firmness; when the hardness is less than 13 N, the gummies are soft; and when the hardness is greater than 17 N, the texture is firm. When the chewiness is between 30-37 mJ, the gummies are quite palatable and have a certain degree of chewiness; when the chewiness is greater than 37 mJ, the gummies are slightly difficult to chew and stick to the teeth; when the chewiness is less than 30 mJ, the texture is soft and the chewing sensation is weak. Regarding elasticity, a certain degree of elasticity can be felt when the elasticity is greater than 3.1 mm, while there is no obvious elasticity when it is less than 3.1 mm. However, given that the gel system itself is not a typical elastic texture and due to experimental errors, the difference in elasticity between different samples is not very significant.

[0056] Using dietary fiber compositions as texture fillers for gummies avoids the problems associated with using single dietary fiber fillers, such as: single inulin may lead to loss of gel structure, sticky texture and poor sweetness; single polydextrose may cause the sugar solution to turn yellow, have poor sweetness and a bitter aftertaste; single isomaltooligosaccharide or galactooligosaccharide, although with high transparency and smooth gel, may have problems with a soft texture and insufficient hardness; using only citrus fiber will be limited by the high viscosity of the solution, making it impossible to achieve a high content.

[0057] Meanwhile, the comparative application examples show that the composition ratio also has advantages. Comparative application examples 1 and 2 did not add inulin and polydextrose, respectively. The gel system may have a sticky texture and be difficult to chew due to the lack of supporting filling, resulting in a poor taste. Comparative application example 5, which uses resistant dextrin to replace inulin, can cause obvious foaming and poor fluidity during the sugar solution cooking process, and the surface of the finished product is prone to crystallization, which can also lead to a sticky texture. Comparative application example 6, which uses fructooligosaccharides to replace galactooligosaccharides, may have increased stickiness (presumably because fructooligosaccharides have poor acid and heat resistance and are easily decomposed during cooking). Comparative application examples 3, 4, and 7, which do not use citrus fiber or replace it with apple fiber, cannot obtain a complete gel structure.

[0058] In this composition, all dietary fibers used are water-soluble. Inulin has low hygroscopicity, and polydextrose has a high glass transition temperature, high solubility, and solution properties similar to sucrose. Both are used as fillers to replace solid raw materials like sucrose, which can make the texture fuller and improve the stability of the product. Galacto-oligosaccharides and isomaltooligosaccharides are low molecular weight dietary fibers with pure sweetness, low viscosity, and strong moisturizing and processing stability. They can replace liquid raw materials like syrups, correct the sweetness of the formula, and help control the crystallization of the system.

[0059] Performance testing - 2. Dietary fiber content test, stability test, adhesion test, and taste test.

[0060] Testing standards:

[0061] Dietary fiber content test: The total dietary fiber content of the product was tested according to GB 5009.88-2023 National Food Safety Standard for Determination of Dietary Fiber in Food to verify the dietary fiber content of the product.

[0062] Stability test: The above samples were individually packaged in aluminum foil bags and stored under room temperature (temperature: 25℃; relative humidity: 65%) and accelerated degradation conditions (temperature: 35℃; relative humidity: 75%) respectively. The samples were taken out after 90 days of storage, and the changes in their sensory characteristics and surface viscosity were compared to evaluate the storage stability of the product.

[0063] Surface tack test: Refer to performance test 1 - texture property test, compare the changes in surface tack of the sample before and after storage (if the sample surface is sticky after being deformed by pressure, it will generate a certain negative force on the probe, which can be used to evaluate the degree of surface adhesion of the sample, and thus reflect the degree of sample becoming sticky).

[0064] Taste test: 20 people were randomly selected internally for sensory testing and scored according to Table 4 below.

[0065] Table 4

[0066]

[0067]

[0068] The test results are shown in Table 6.

[0069] Table 6

[0070]

[0071] As shown in the table above, the dietary fiber content of all samples is ≥65%. The sensory characteristics of the products did not change significantly after accelerated storage. As for the surface condition, whether it is the surface smoothness in terms of sensory perception or the surface adhesion measured by the texture analyzer, the changes during storage are within an acceptable range, indicating that the products have a certain degree of storage stability.

[0072] After adjusting or replacing parts of the composition, the sensory properties and storage stability were significantly affected, resulting in problems such as condensation and crystallization. On the one hand, this may be due to excessive addition of low molecular weight dietary fiber in the formula, or degradation into low molecular weight sugars during storage, leading to high hygroscopicity and condensation (Comparative Application Examples 1, 2, and 6); on the other hand, it may be due to insufficient hygroscopicity of the raw materials used, causing the product to easily crystallize and crystallize (Comparative Application Example 5); in addition, the unformed samples were not tested for storage stability (Comparative Application Examples 3, 4, and 7).

[0073] In summary, by combining inulin, polydextrose, galactooligosaccharides, isomaltooligosaccharides, and citrus fiber, products with good taste and chewiness can be obtained, and these products can maintain their excellent characteristics after storage.

[0074] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications or equivalent substitutions can be made to the technical solutions of the present invention without departing from the essence and scope of the technical solutions of the present invention.

Claims

1. A type of gel gummy, characterized in that, The gel gummies are composed of a dietary fiber composition, an acidity regulator, fruit and vegetable products, and a coating agent. The dietary fiber composition consists of the following components in parts by weight: 10-20 parts inulin, 15-30 parts polydextrose, 10-20 parts galactooligosaccharide, 20-40 parts isomaltooligosaccharide, and 1-5 parts citrus fiber. The inulin and citrus fiber account for 20-25% of the dietary fiber composition by weight, and the weight ratio of inulin to citrus fiber is (5-8):

1.

2. The gel gummy as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The dietary fiber composition comprises the following components in parts by weight: 15-18 parts inulin, 20-25 parts polydextrose, 13-15 parts galactooligosaccharide, 25-35 parts isomaltooligosaccharide, and 2-4 parts citrus fiber.

3. The gel gummy as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The acidity regulator includes at least one of citric acid, lactic acid, DL-malic acid, tartaric acid, and sodium citrate; the fruit and vegetable products include at least one of hawthorn concentrate, hawthorn pulp, prune concentrate, celery concentrate, arugula concentrate, mango pulp, sea buckthorn concentrate, banana pulp, elderberry concentrate, jujube pulp, purple carrot concentrate, hibiscus concentrate, and monk fruit concentrate; and the coating agent includes at least one of coconut oil, sunflower seed oil, white oil, carnauba wax, beeswax, and paraffin wax.

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