Gels could trick the stomach into believing it's full

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could eat something at lunchtime that would keep the 3 pm munchies at bay?

One solution is to design foods that alter their structure once ingested, helping you feel full and satisfied. This process could help control the rate of food digestion and trick the body’s sensory systems, especially the digestive tract, to make you feel fuller for longer.

Gels that form once inside the stomach are one possible way of doing this. This area of research is a difficult one, as control of the gel’s bulk, strength and longevity are affected by the unique pH environment of the stomach.

However, University of Birmingham chemical engineers have made an important step forward in this field by improving the control of gel formation inside the stomach.

Their research, to be published in Food Hydrocolloids, uses gellan gum - an existing food ingredient found in products such as sweets, soft drinks and soy milk. They found that, by altering the chemical structure of the gellan gum, they could change the properties of the gels, including important factors like its bulk, brittleness and texture.

“Despite being a part of everyday life, the science of managing appetites is a complex interaction of several factors and is not yet fully understood. However, the sensory signals from food, the digestive tract and the body’s energy reserves are all likely components affecting the desire to eat,” said David Brown, Chief Executive of the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE).

“Self-structuring gels like those researched by chemical engineers in Birmingham have a potentially important role in the future if we are to manage energy intake and address issues like obesity.

“Hopefully, this latest development by chemical engineers will help us to take another step forward to change lifestyles and improve the health and wellbeing of millions of people struggling to maintain a balanced diet.”

Source.