DF characteristic | GIT effect | Systemic effect | References |
---|---|---|---|
Water-holding capacity & viscosity | Slows gastric emptying; Changes digesta mixing; Alteration of digestive enzyme activity; Stimulates passage rate; | Slows digestion, especially of protein and lipids; Associated with reduced plasma cholesterol; Blunting of glycaemic response | |
Bulking | Gastric distension; Changes in mixing & diffusion; | Decrease food intake; | |
Adsorption of compounds (e.g. bile salts, polyphenols & minerals) | Increases bile acid excretion & other compounds; Retention of polyphenols until large intestine; | Blood cholesterol; fermentation of polyphenols; | |
Encapsulation | Plant cell walls encapsulate e.g. starch granules; | Transport of starch (resistant) to LI for fermentation; | |
Fermentability | Increases microbial biomass & fermentation end-products (e.g. SCFA); Induces selection of specific microbes; | Energy for colonocytes; influences satiety; faecal bulking; “colonization resistance” to pathogens; |