Jul 2026· International Journal of Food Science & Technology· Vol 61· 0 citations
TL;DR
The feasibility of creating high-protein gel systems suitable for dysphagia patients by adjusting the levels of egg white protein and collagen hydrolysate is examined, offering a viable approach for designing tailored high-protein food formulations for dysphagia.
Abstract
Dysphagia is characterized by difficulties in swallowing and chewing. Texture-modified soft foods are intended for patients with dysphagia to facilitate safe swallowing and meet nutritional requirements, with a primary focus on increasing protein intake. This study examined the feasibility of creating high-protein (35%) gel systems suitable for dysphagia patients by adjusting the levels of egg white protein and collagen hydrolysate.
It was observed that increasing the concentration of egg white and decreasing the amount of collagen improved water-binding capacity (from 95.23% to 100%), hardness (0.85 N to 5.43 N), elasticity (higher G' moduli), and network protein content (from 89.59% to 96.33%), while structural recovery declined (from 54.89% to 36.85%). Based on the International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative test, hydrogels are classified as Level 6, fulfilling texture safety standards for dysphagia management. This classification makes them more appropriate for patients with mild dysphagia. FTIR, DSC, and SEM analysis confirmed that the main network in the hydrogel composition is formed by egg white protein, with collagen serving more as an inactive filler. Hydrophobic interactions were dominant and primarily contributed to the stabilization of the gel network. The protein hydrolysis rate in hydrogels gradually declined as egg white concentration increased, resulting in a denser, firmer, and less porous structure that may reduce enzyme interactions.
The findings offer a viable approach for designing tailored high-protein food formulations for dysphagia.
Adequate hydration and nutrition are crucial for preventing health complications and functional decline in older adults, especially those with dysphagia. This study examined the use of direct frozen and reverse spherification, with different residence times, to create alginate-based, high-water-content (>95%) bite-sized structures that are safe to swallow and capable of encapsulating vitamins B9 and B12 for delayed release in the gastrointestinal tract. Residence time notably affected the beads’ microstructure and texture. Reverse-spherified liquid-core beads were soft and stable, maintaining high water content; however, they were not suitable for people with dysphagia because of their uneven texture and water release when compressed or bitten. Conversely, direct frozen spherification yielded solid-core alginate beads with low hardness (77.46–136.25 g), minimal adhesiveness (~11 g·s), good cohesiveness (>0.3), and rheological properties compatible with swallowing. A fiberoptic endoscopic swallowing assessment found that the patients rated these solid-core beads as easy to chew and comfortable to swallow. Over six weeks, vitamin retention was 59.4–79.4% for vitamin B9 and 69.6–97.0% for vitamin B12, with 80–90% released during simulated digestion. These results highlight frozen direct spherification’s potential to create dysphagia-friendly, high-water-content finger foods that improve hydration, nutrition, and vitamin encapsulation.
Enrika Lazickaitė, M. Keršienė, I. Jasutienė et al.· Gels· 0 citations
A soft matter physics framework offers a systematic approach to designing texture-modified foods (TMFs) that can improve swallowing safety, nutritional adequacy, and acceptability in older adults with dysphagia, malnutrition, and sarcopenia. This narrative review synthesizes experimental and clinical studies published from 2020 onwards that treat TMFs as soft-matter systems, including gels, emulsions, and composite biopolymer networks used in geriatric nutrition and dysphagia care. Evidence on rheology, tribology, microstructure, particle size, protein-polysaccharide and emulsion gels, three-dimensional (3D) food printing, and thermal and non-thermal processing is integrated to relate material parameters to swallowing safety and nutritional outcomes. Across studies, safer boluses are consistently soft, shear-thinning, cohesive, low-adhesive and sufficiently extensible, with quantitative windows of viscosity, yield stress, viscoelastic moduli, extensional viscosity and friction offering better prediction of swallowability than qualitative texture levels alone. Protein-polysaccharide gels, emulsion-filled matrices, plant-based networks and 3D-printed structures can be engineered to meet standardized dysphagia diet levels while increasing protein density, hydration, and delivery of bioactive compounds; processing conditions and particle-size control further tune tenderness, cohesion, digestibility and nutrient bioaccesibility. A physics-aware soft-matter approach thus provides actionable design rules linking formulation and processing to bolus flow, lubrication and sensory properties, enabling TMFs that are safer, more palatable, and more nutritious for older adults, although phenotype-specific targets and long-term clinical trials remain important gaps for future research on healthy ageing. Unlike prior reviews that emphasize either clinical dysphagia management or processing technologies in isolation, this work uniquely integrates rheology, tribology, microstructure, particle size, 3D printing, and thermal/non-thermal processing under a single soft-matter physics design framework, and translates these soft-matter descriptors into quantitative, phenotype-aware engineering windows for safer and more nutritious geriatric TMFs.
Jaydeep Dave, N. Nirmal, Satish Kumar et al.· Journal of NutriLife· 0 citations
This study investigated the improvement of gel properties in low-salt chicken breast mince and its underlying mechanism by adding different proportions of egg yolk (EY). Results showed that adding 1.0% EY significantly improved the textural properties of the low-salt chicken breast mince, the hardness increased from 900 to 1 059 g, and the springiness rose from 0.88 to 0.95. Meanwhile, the cooking loss decreased from 12.3% to 9.02%, and the water-holding capacity (WHC) increased from 60.67% to 82.67%. The relaxation peaks of immobilized water (T22) and free water (T23) both shifted toward lower relaxation time, which resulted in a dense microstructure and enhanced WHC, comparable to the positive control group. Further extraction of myofibrillar protein (MP) revealed that 1.0% EY addition significantly increased particle size and surface hydrophobicity while reducing free sulfhydryl content, the particle size increased from 44.29 to 96.63 μm, the surface hydrophobicity rose from 151.9 to 164.20 μg, and the free sulfhydryl content decreased from 18.99 to 15.14 μmol/g, this was accompanied by a structural shift from α-helix to β-sheet and enhanced fluorescence intensity. Additionally, increased disulfide bond and hydrophobic interactions enhanced cross-linking between EY and MP. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and laser confocal analysis confirmed protein aggregation, forming a compact gel network structure. This study elucidates the improvement of EY on the gel properties of low-salt minced meat and its mechanism of action, providing a theoretical basis for its application in low-salt minced meat products.
Duo Shang, Chao Ai, Hui Teng et al.· Food Science of Animal Produ...· 0 citations
The environmental challenge posed by non-degradable plastics is initiating research into safe, biodegradable food packaging materials. This study presents the fabrication of a degradable food packaging film with antioxidant properties by incorporating apple polyphenols (AP) into a mung bean starch (MBS) and whey protein (WP) matrix. The optimal formulation of the composite film, identified through response surface methodology, comprises the MBS:WP ratio of 5:1, 37.5 wt% glycerol, and 6.5 wt% AP. Under these conditions, the MBS-WP-AP composite film exhibited key mechanical and barrier properties: tensile strength of 16.15 MPa, elongation at break of 10.03%, and water vapor permeability of 2.16 × 10-10 g-1 s-1 Pa-1. The structure, optical properties, thermal performance, antioxidant activity, and biodegradability of the films were systematically characterized. The MBS-WP-AP composite film demonstrated excellent component compatibility, enhanced thermal stability, and significantly improved antioxidant activity, with DPPH radical scavenging activity increasing from 6.12% to 94.50% and ABTS from 8.16% to 93.23%. The composite film also retained favorable color and low opacity, and excellent biodegradability. When applied to blueberry preservation, it effectively reduced weight loss and decay incidence while stabilizing total soluble solids, thereby prolonging shelf life. These combined properties position the MBS-WP-AP film as a promising candidate for sustainable food packaging applications.
Minghui Zhang, Jiahui Ning, F. Guo et al.· International Journal of Bio...· 0 citations
A novel fiber-based oleogel was prepared by capillary force-driven structuring of pomegranate seed meal insoluble dietary fiber (PSMF) in pomegranate seed oil (PSO). The effects of particle fraction (φ) and secondary fluid (water) content (S) on oleogel formation were assessed through microstructural, rheological, textural, and oil loss analyses. Increasing S shifted the system from fluid-like to gel-like behavior, with optimal properties at S = 0.5 and φ = 0.4, yielding the highest yield stress (1286 Pa), greatest hardness (109.44 N), and lowest oil loss. The formulation with S = 0.5 and φ = 0.33 showed textural properties comparable to a commercial spread. In vitro digestion of the selected oleogel increased free fatty acid release versus bulk oil. The optimized oleogel remained structurally stable under temperature changes, while bulk oil showed greater oxidation during 40 days of storage. Oxidation kinetic models successfully predicted changes in oxidation values over storage time.
Maryam Moradabbasi, S. Goli, Y. Soleimanian et al.· Food Chemistry· 0 citations
Dysphagia refers to difficulty swallowing which is estimated to affect more than 800 million people worldwide and occurs by conditions (e.g. neurological diseases, aging, stroke, head and neck cancers). Swallowing is one of the most complex and coordinated physiological activities that human beings engage in but patients with dysphagia may have impaired safe intake of food and liquids, necessitating innovative solutions to avoid complications including aspiration pneumonia, malnutrition, dehydration. Dietary modification, most notably in terms of texture-modified foods (TMFs) and thickened liquids, has emerged as one of the mainstay non-pharmacological approaches in dysphagia management. Due to their unique capacity of modifying viscosity and bolus cohesion at swallowing, stability; hydrocolloids are a major formulation component in these type of foods. These biopolymers consisting of polysaccharides and proteins are common food ingredients to be used as thickening, gelling and stabilizing agents in various food systems; hence utilised in dysphagia diets. This review aims to give an comprehensive overview of the unique characteristics that hydrocolloids play to modify food consistency for patients with dysphagia. The paper first considers the pathophysiology of dysphagia and its nutrition implications, then provides a background on the International Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative (IDDSI) framework for food textures and liquid thickness classification. It explores functional and physicochemical properties of hydrocolloids, focusing on their rheological behaviour and the production of swallowing-safe products. This has led to efforts aimed at leaving the corresponding backgrounds of dysphagia and its diet in reformation, selecting appropriate hydrocolloids for use as thickening vehicles in persons with dysphagia and analysing their properties such as molecule thickening and stability as well as teaching how thickness can help take care of swallowing situation between mechanisms. The review also emphasizes the role of rheological characterization in safe swallowing and optimal bolus flow.
In addition, the uses of hydrocolloids in thickened beverages, pureed meals and ready-to-eat dysphagia products are also described. This article critically reviews the challenges of hydrophilic hydrocolloids investigated for food fortification purposes, in particular with regards to sensory acceptance, variability in viscosity and risk of nutritional dilution. The article is also reviewed to assess the potential of novel approaches (eg, hydrocolloid blends, microstructural design and 3D food printing) in developing high-quality or personalized diets for dysphagia management.
In conclusion, hydrocolloids serve as functional components to enhance the safety, stability and palatability of texture-modified foods frequently consumed by dysphagia patients. Ongoing endeavours to elucidate the mechanism of hydrocolloid action, as well as investigations into optimally rheological properties and consumer acceptability, will ultimately work to inform improvements in dysphagia management
Tanzia Islam Shorna, Zou Ping· International journal of res...· 0 citations