Identifier

etd-11142007-164339

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

School of Nutrition and Food Sciences

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

Excessive consumption of sodium is associated with high blood pressure in people. Reduction of sodium intake and replacement of salt with salt substitutes are an essential component of the primary prevention of hypertension. Potassium chloride is the most widely used salt substitute. However, when used in large amounts, it imparts bitterness and metallic aftertaste. Therefore, bitterness masking agents need to be used in salt substitute formulations. L-Arginine has been reported to have bitterness masking properties. No research has yet been conducted to investigate the effects of KCl and L-Arginine on the perception of saltiness and bitterness in the mixture of NaCl, KCl, and L-Arginine. To develop acceptable reduced-salt food products, it is critical to understand how consumers perceive about saltiness and bitterness of the salt substitutes, which, will in turn, affect their decisions on product acceptance and purchase intent. The aim of the present study was to develop an acceptable low-sodium salt mixture by reducing the sodium chloride content and replacing it with potassium chloride and L-Arginine. The non-parametric R-Index approach was used to evaluate the effectiveness of L-Arginine as a bitterness masking agent in low sodium formulations. The formulations that contained 55% KCl, 35% NaCl and 10% L-Arginine in an aqueous solution at 0.5% w/v, 1.0% w/v and 1.5% w/v were not significantly different in bitterness perception from the control solution. A response surface methodology was used to optimize and characterize the sensory properties of low sodium formulations in a food system using a chicken broth as a model. Those formulations that contain 57-92% NaCl, 0-35.5% KCl, and 7.5% L-Arginine were as acceptable as the control formulation indicating that L-Arginine was able to mask the bitterness of salt formulations containing KCl. The optimized low sodium formulation was compared to existing commercial products using chicken broth as a model. The optimized product was equally accepted for all sensory attributes by consumers (n=200) compared with Morton Table Salt and Morton Lite Salt. This study demonstrated the potential of using NaCl/KCl/L-Arginine as a low sodium salt mixture by partially replacing NaCl while maintaining desirable sensory characteristics.

Date

2007

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Secure the entire work for patent and/or proprietary purposes for a period of one year. Student has submitted appropriate documentation which states: During this period the copyright owner also agrees not to exercise her/his ownership rights, including public use in works, without prior authorization from LSU. At the end of the one year period, either we or LSU may request an automatic extension for one additional year. At the end of the one year secure period (or its extension, if such is requested), the work will be released for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Witoon Prinyawiwatkul

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_dissertations.1406

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