Concentrated Liquid Food Viscosity Control for Reflux Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for tube feeding, such as nasogastric or oral tube feeding, face challenges with gastro-esophageal reflux due to the need for constant pressure injection of gel-like substances and insufficient viscosity to prevent reflux, making the process complex and burdensome for care workers and patients.
Innovation Solution
A concentrated liquid food formulation comprising a polysaccharide that gels with calcium, a chelating agent, a protein with emulsifiability, and soybean hemicellulose, allowing for easy gravity-fed injection and immediate thickening in gastric fluid to prevent reflux, while maintaining dispersion stability after storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If concentrated liquid food is in gel state to suppress gastro-esophageal reflux, then reflux prevention is improved, but injection requires high pressure and special devices
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state parameter of the liquid food from gel to liquid by controlling viscosity (20-40 mPa·s), enabling injection without high pressure while maintaining reflux prevention through controlled thickening in the stomach
Solution Approach 2:
The liquid food dynamically changes its viscosity state: remaining liquid during injection for ease of administration, then thickening in the stomach to prevent reflux, adapting its properties to different physiological environments
2Object-affected harmful factors
If concentrated liquid food is injected at low speed to prevent gastro-esophageal reflux, then reflux prevention is improved, but injection time increases and burden on care workers increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes viscosity parameters (20-40 mPa·s) to achieve a balance where the liquid flows easily during injection (reducing time) but thickens sufficiently in the stomach (preventing reflux), eliminating the need for slow injection
3Object-affected harmful factors
If concentrated liquid food has high viscosity to prevent gastro-esophageal reflux, then reflux prevention is improved, but injection becomes difficult and requires constant pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent precisely controls viscosity parameters (20-40 mPa·s) to achieve optimal injection flow while ensuring sufficient thickening in the stomach, avoiding both too thin (reflux risk) and too thick (injection difficulty) extremes
4Ease of operation
If concentrated liquid food is in liquid state for easy injection, then injection ease is improved, but gastro-esophageal reflux occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid food dynamically transitions from liquid state during injection (easy administration) to thickened state in the stomach (reflux prevention), with the thickening triggered by gastric environment conditions
Solution Approach 2:
The patent controls viscosity parameters to enable this dynamic transition: low enough during injection for ease of use, but capable of increasing sufficiently in the gastric environment to prevent reflux
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables easy and effective injection of the liquid food without constant pressure, suppresses gastro-esophageal reflux, and improves storage stability by ensuring the food remains dispersed and non-aggregated.
Implementation Method 1
a polysaccharide which is one or more members selected from the group consisting of pectins, and alginic acids or salts thereof that becomes gelated or thickened by combining with calcium
Implementation Method 2
the concentrated liquid food has a viscosity of 250 mPa·s or less before contact with a simulated gastric fluid, and has a viscosity of 1,500 mPa·s or more after contact with a simulated gastric fluid
Implementation Method 3
0.005 mass% to 0.25 mass% on a calcium basis of a water-soluble calcium source having a solubility of 0.1 g/100 mL or more at 20.0°C under a pH of 7.0; 0.10 mass% to 2.0 mass% of at least one member selected from the group consisting of trisodium citrate and tripotassium citrate
Data Source
AI summary
An object of the present invention is to provide a concentrated liquid food that enables easy injection and suppresses gastro-esophageal reflux. The object can be solved by a concentrated liquid food, comprising: (A) a polysaccharide that becomes gelated or thickened by combining with calcium; (B) a calcium source; optional (C) a chelating agent; (D) a protein having emulsifiability; and (E) a soybean hemicellulose, (with the proviso that, when the calcium source (B) is a water-soluble calcium source, the concentrated liquid food comprises the chelating agent (C)), wherein the concentrated liquid food has a viscosity of 250 mPa·s or less before contact with a simulated gastric fluid, and has a viscosity of 1,500 mPa·s or more after contact with a simulated gastric fluid.