Designing food structure to slow down digestion in starch-rich products

The category of starch-rich foods is on the spot for its role in the development of obesity and related diseases. Therefore, the production of food having a low glycemic index should be a priority of modern food industry. In this paper three different food design strategies that can be used to modulate the release of glucose during the gastrointestinal process of starch-rich foods, are illustrated. The structure of the starch granules can be modified by controlling processing parameters (i.e. moisture, temperature and shear) thus influencing the gelatinization and retrogradation behavior. The intactness of plant cell walls hindering the access of amylases to the starch granules and the formation of a stiffed food matrix using the crosslinking between proteins and the melanoidins generated by Maillard reaction are also very effective approaches. Following these food design strategies several practical approaches can be pursued by food designers to find reliable solutions combining the consumers request of palatable and rewarding foods with the public health demand of having food products with better nutritional profile.