Protein and sensory quality of a food supplement formulated for the elderly

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the composition, the protein quality, and the acceptability of a powder dietary supplement formulated for elderly people. The centesimal composition was analysed according to A.O.A.C. methods and the protein quality was assessed in weaning rats, by comparing Protein Effi ciency Ratio (PER), Net Protein Ratio (NPR), and True Digestibility (TD) of the supplement with a casein-control based on AIN-93G diet. For the acceptance test samples of four fl avours of the supplement dissolved in whole milk were offered to each judge, in monadic form. To assess the overall acceptability a scale of seven points was used. The sensory panel was composed of 121 Brazilian panellists, with mean age of 68.28±5.78 years. The supplement is promising in reaching the nutritional demands of the elderly, providing high content of protein and fi bre and low content of fat. The values found for PER and NPR were shown to be superior to the control group of casein (P<0.05) and the digestibility was higher than 90%, showing that the supplement presented characteristics of a high nutritional value protein source. The supplements with banana, vanilla, and strawberry fl avour were the most accepted and did not differ signifi cantly for the overall acceptability.

Sensorial and Nutritional Properties of a Collagen-Fortified Snack Bar Designed for the Elderly

“…Costa and colleagues also stated that their food supplement, specifically designed for the consumption of older individuals, contains 12.7 g of protein per serving (30 g) and provides a significant contribution to meeting their nutritional needs [ 31 ]. Regarding to the protein content of the snack bar samples in this study (6.8–8.8 g of protein per serving), protein inclusion in the daily diet of elderly individuals may contribute to supporting protein intake.…”