Cambridge Journals Online

Research Article

Functional food properties of non-digestible oligosaccharides: a consensus report from the ENDO project (DGXII AIRII-CT94-1095)

Jan Van Looa1 c1, John Cummingsa2, Nathalie Delzennea3, Hans Englysta2, Anne Francka1, Mark Hopkinsa2, Nadine Koka3, George Macfarlanea2, Dorothy Newtona2, Michael Quigleya2, Marcel Roberfroida3, Trinette van Vlieta4 and Ellen van den Heuvela4 a1 ORAFTI, Aandorenstraat 1, B3300 Tienen, Belgium a2 Dunn Clinical Nutrition Centre, Hills Rd, Cambridge CB2 2DH, UK a3 Catholic University Louvain, Brussels, Belgium a4 TNO, Zeist, The Netherlands

Article author query loo jv   cummings j   delzenne n   englyst h   franck a   hopkins m   kok n   macfarlane g   newton d   quigley m   roberfroid m   van vliet t   van den heuvel e

Abstract

This paper results from the final phase of the ENDO project (DGXII AIRII-CT94-1095), a European Commission-funded project on non-digestible oligosaccharides (NDO). All participants in the programme met to perform a consensus exercise on the possible functional food properties of NDO. Topics studied during the project (including a workshop on probiotics and prebiotics) and related aspects, for which considerable evidence has been generated recently, were evaluated on the basis of existing published scientific evidence. There was a general consensus that: (1) there is strong evidence for a prebiotic effect of NDO in human subjects. A prebiotic effect was defined as a food-induced increase in numbers and/or activity predominantly of bifidobacteria and lactic acid bacteria in the human large intestine; (2) there is strong evidence for the impact that NDO have on bowel habit; (3) there is promising evidence that consumption of inulin-type fructans may result in increased Ca absorption in man; (4) there are preliminary indications that inulin-type fructans interact with the functioning of lipid metabolism; (5) there is preliminary evidence in experimental animals of a preventive effect against colon cancer. Human nutrition studies are needed to substantiate these findings. It was concluded that the nutritional properties of NDO may prove to be a key issue in nutritional research in the future.

(Received June 26 1998)

(Revised September 11 1998)

(Accepted September 14 1998)

Key Words: Functional foods; Non-digestible oligosaccharides; Prebiotics

Correspondence:

^c1 *Corresponding author: Dr Jan Van Loo, fax +32 16 801308, email jvl@rafti.eunet.be