Abstract
Given the rising trend in the consumption of chocolate confectioneries, the shortage in cocoa butter (CB) production remains a constant threat to food manufacturers. Therefore, exploring alternative plant sources of CB is essential. Sal fat, obtained from seed kernels of trees, has the potential to substitute CB in chocolate confectioneries. The primary aims of this randomised controlled, crossover trial was to compare the glycaemic, insulinaemic and lipidaemic response of two different oil types (CB and Sal fat) in people and the effects of these oils in two physical forms (liquid and oleogel). Seventeen healthy male participants (age 24.73 ± 2.63, height 173.81 ± 7.24 cm, weight 65.85 ± 8.06 kg, BMI 21.73 ± 1.65 kg/m2) completed the study. There were no significant differences in blood glucose iAUC (p = 0.995), plasma insulin (p = 0.760) and triglyceride (TG) (p = 0.129), regardless of oil type consumed. When comparing incremental area under the curve (iAUC) of insulin and TG between the different forms (liquid or oleogel), oleogel was found to be significantly lower (p = 0.014 and p = 0.024 respectively). Different types of oil transformed into oleogels are effective in reducing postprandial insulinaemia and lipidaemia. Sal fat, although not metabolically different from CB, can be an acceptable substitute for CB in the production of chocolate confectioneries.
Highlights
For several decades cocoa beans (Theobroma cacao) have been reported to be a natural source of antioxidant and contain flavonoids such as flavan-3-ols, procyanidins and epicatechin equivalents, which have been reported to be beneficial for cardiovascular health [1]
Similar to a previous study by Tan et al (2017) [23], our results showed that there was a significantly lower increase in plasma insulin and TG of the brownie incorporated with Cocoa Butter oleogel (CBOG) and Sal oleogel (SLOG) compared to the brownie with Cocoa Butter (CB) and seed oil (SL)
We have demonstrated for the first time that Sal fat has no metabolic difference to CB
Summary
Cocoa beans (Theobroma cacao) have been reported to be a natural source of antioxidant and contain flavonoids such as flavan-3-ols, procyanidins and epicatechin equivalents, which have been reported to be beneficial for cardiovascular health [1]. Cocoa butter (CB), a triglyceride (TG) found naturally in cocoa beans, is a key ingredient in the manufacturing of chocolate confectioneries. It is responsible for the melting properties of chocolate, consisting predominantly of fatty acids such as palmitic acid (C16:0), stearic acid (C18:0), oleic acid (C18:1) and linoleic acid (C18:2), with low levels of lauric acid (C12:0) and myristic acid (C14:0) [2]. Fatty acid profiles are categorized into saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Stearic, lauric and myristic acid are considered saturated fatty acids, oleic acid is a monounsaturated fatty acid while linoleic acid is a polyunsaturated fatty acid. The cocoa beans are first made into cocoa liquor and into CB or powder for producing chocolates and other products [3]
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