Nutritional and Health Aspects of Sweeteners - Sweeteners: Nutritional Aspects, Applications, and Production Technology - page 341

Certain bacteria, namely, biidobacteria and lactobacilli, are regarded as health promoting,
interacting with the host immune system, cells of the intestinal mucosa, and other members of the
gut microbiota, and play a role in immune homoeostasis and the ability to ight off infections, muco-
sal integrity, the production of vitamins, beneicial fats, and other metabolites used by the host.
Dietary prebiotics, recently deined as “selectively fermented ingredient(s) that result(s) in spe-
ciic changes in the composition and/or activity of the gastrointestinal microbiota, thus, conferring
beneit(s) upon host health” (Gibson et al. 2004), have been repeatedly shown to bring about elevated
numbers of fecal biidobacteria in human feeding studies (Kolida and Gibson 2007; Kolida et al.
2002; Gibson 1999).
Many of the sugar replacements used in the confectionery industry are nondigestible in the
upper gut and therefore have the potential to be prebiotics. However, the problem for consumers is
that the overconsumption of certain prebiotics has been reported to result in unwanted intestinal
side effects such as increased latulence or intestinal bloating or pain. Doses of about 15 g/day of
fructooligosaccharides and inulin have been shown to induce laxation effects, increased stool fre-
quency, and gas production (Cummings et al. 2001).
Beards et al. (2010) have measured the microbiota modulatory potential and intestinal tolerance
of chocolate-containing blends of sugar replacers (in place of sucrose) likely to be used in manu-
facturing low-energy confectionery and compared that to traditional sucrose chocolate. To date,
there are no data on the effects that these sugar replacers may exert on the gut microbiota in vivo .
The aim of this study was therefore to assess the potential prebiotic supplementation of chocolate to
selectively increase numbers of beneicial fecal bacteria and to measure the tolerability of high-level
(45.6 g of sugar replacer/day) consumption of this low-energy, highly nondigestible carbohydrate
chocolate. For this, a placebo-controlled, double-blinded, dose-response human feeding study was
conducted using 40 healthy human volunteers in a parallel manner. Forty volunteers consumed a
test chocolate (low-energy or experimental chocolate) containing 22.8 g of MTL, MTL and PDX,
or MTL and RS for 14 consecutive days. The dose of the test chocolate was doubled every 2 weeks
over a 6-week period. Numbers of fecal biidobacteria signiicantly increased with all the three
test treatments. Chocolate containing the PDX blend also signiicantly increased fecal lactobacilli
( P = 0.00001) after 6 weeks. The PDX blend also showed signiicant increases in fecal propionate
and butyrate ( P = 0.002 and 0.006, respectively). All the test chocolates were well tolerated, with
no signiicant change in bowel habit or intestinal symptoms even at a daily dose of 45.6 g of non-
digestible carbohydrate sweetener. This is of importance not only for giving manufacturers a sugar
replacement that can reduce energetic content but also for providing a well-tolerated means of deliv-
ering high levels of nondigestible carbohydrates into the colon, bringing about improvements in the
biomarkers of gut health.
Worldwide interest in oligosaccharides has been increasing ever since they were accorded the prebi-
otic status (Patel and Goyal 2011). Oligosaccharides of various origin such as bacteria, algae, fungi, and
higher plants have been used extensively both as food ingredients and pharmacological supplements.
Two novel oligosaccharides—β-d-fructopyranosyl-(2 → 1)-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(2 ↔ 1)-∝-d-glucopy-
ranose and β-d-fructopyranosyl-(2 → 6)-∝-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 ↔ 2)-β-d-glucopyranose—have
also been isolated from a fermented beverage of 50 kinds of fruits and vegetables (Okada et al.
2010). Nondigestible oligosaccharides have been implicated as a dietary iber, sweetener, weight-
controlling agent, and humectant in confectioneries, bakeries, and breweries. Functional oligo-
saccharides have been found effective in gastrointestinal normal lora proliferation and pathogen
suppression, dental caries prevention, the enhancement of immunity, and the facilitation of mineral
absorption and as a source of antioxidant, an antibiotic alternative, and regulators of blood glucose
in diabetics and serum lipids in hyperlipidemics. Apart from the pharmacological applications, oli-
gosaccharides have found use in drug delivery, cosmetics, animal and ishery feed, agriculture, etc.
Keeping in view the importance of the functional oligosaccharides, they presented an overview of
their natural sources, types, structures, and physiological properties.