Wood of Gliricidia sepium as a potential source of dietary fiber

Abstract

In recent years it has been established that several health problems common in developed societies are con- nected to a lack of dietary fiber content in the daily meal. Among such health hazards are excessive body weight and its secondary implications, such as atherosclerosis, cancers of the colon, hemorrhoids, appendicitis, colitis and diverticulosis. Therefore, due to the indispensable benefits of dietary fibers intake and the health hazards resulting from their deficiency, nutritional experts have come up with a number of new ideas for food recipes. One of these ideas is related to wood anatomy, i.e. addition of wood fiber to wheat flour to produce or bake breads of low caloric value and a high dietary fiber content. Intake by experimental rats of a feed-supplemented with insoluble wood fiber of Gliricidia sepium during four weeks revealed that wood fiber supplements were acceptable to the rats. There was no significant difference in the blood packed cell volume (PCV) between experimental and control animals. This result indicates that fiber intake did not have any side effect on the blood of experimental animals. Furthermore, incorporation of wood fibers into wheat flour did not adversely affect the physical and baking properties of bread. This study recommends use of the wood of G. sepium as a potential source of dietary fibers.