Zero-calorie fats and oil: the future of healthy and delicious food
20 April 2023
In recent years, the food industry has witnessed a growing trend towards healthier eating habits and lifestyles. As consumers become increasingly health-conscious, there has been a surge in demand for food products that offer nutritious benefits without compromising on taste. While providing flavour and texture to various dishes, traditional fats and oils are often associated with adverse health effects when consumed in excess. The rising prevalence of health conditions such as obesity, heart disease, and diabetes has spurred the need for innovative solutions that can meet the demands of a health-conscious society.
Food scientists and researchers have been tirelessly exploring alternatives to traditional fats and oils to address this challenge. Dr Lee Yee Ying from the School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, is no exception. She has been working to develop sustainable, natural, and low-calorie fat substitutes and mimetics (substances that mimic the properties or actions of other substances in the body) to help people maintain a healthy lifestyle.
As a food scientist, Dr Lee is focused on developing zero or reduced-calorie fats and oils alternatives to substitute vegetable oils or animal fats to cater to the rising demand for healthy dietary lifestyles. Her research project mainly utilises palm derivatives to fabricate fat mimetics/substitutes.
What sets Dr Lee's research apart is the use of green, sustainable, and environmentally friendly enzymes to fabricate fat substitutes or mimetics rather than chemicals. Fat mimetics or substitutes work by going through a different pathway of digestion and absorption in the body. Therefore, they are not only able to substitute vegetable oils and fats but also provide touted health benefits in managing several health complications.
Dr Lee's research group has successfully transformed waste (palm-pressed fibre) from the palm industries into zero-calorie food ingredients. The team used palm waste generated after the oil extraction rich in cellulose or fibre to fabricate food ingredients via nanotechnology. In the production process, they pretreated and broke down the cellulose/fibre in the waste into a nanosize dimension to produce the fat substitute known as nanocellulose. The nanocellulose appears transparent and possesses a solid-like three-dimensional gel network that can structure fats and oils products.
Dr Lee's research also modifies the chemical structure of palm-based oil via an enzymatic interesterification process to change the fatty acid composition and structure of palm-based oils for creating fat substitutes. The fat substitute can be used in many food applications for consumers looking for healthy dietary alternatives.
Dr Lee's research aims to improve the health and well-being of the community by fabricating multiple functional fat substitutes that can be used as food ingredients to replace a portion of fats and oils in food products to meet the demand of the industries and consumers seeking healthier choices and clean labelled products. Another objective of their research is to create more value-added products for the palm industry and other sectors.
Dr Lee and her team have tested the feasibility of the fat substitute, nanocellulose, to replace vegetable oils in mayonnaise. Their study found that only 0.5 per cent of nanocellulose can replace around 10-15 per cent of the fat in mayonnaise. They have also tested the nanocellulose to develop a liquid coconut milk emulsion. The nanocellulose demonstrated the potential to stabilise the coconut milk emulsion, which helps to replace the commonly used synthetic food stabiliser that is often associated with several negative implications.
Dr Lee and her team have published articles in peer-reviewed journals and won a bronze award in a national competition for their research work. They are considering the possibility of using nanocellulose in various food systems. They have also tested the health attributes of the nanocellulose in a gastrointestinal simulated model system, where the ingestion of nanocellulose was shown to slow down the digestion and absorption of fat and cholesterol levels. They plan to further expand the research to evaluate its effect in mice subjects and human models.
Overall, nanocellulose has a remarkable potential to be used as a multi-functional food ingredient as a fat substitute as well as a natural and sustainable food stabiliser for the development of clean, labelled and healthy food products.
Dr Lee's research involves collaboration with academia and industries. They work closely with international collaborators and welcome more collaboration from the industries.
"Our research project addresses not only the health issue but also the environmental issue by transforming the waste generated from industries such as the palm industries into value-added, eco-friendly, healthy food ingredients that can be incorporated for the development of functional food or cleanly labelled food products," Dr Lee stated.