Salt reduction in foods using protein hydrolysates

As excessive intake of salt is regarded as a reason for health problems, the tendency of people to attempt to reduce intake of salt in their everyday lives is on the rise. In Korea, where many people have a higher intake of salt compared to those in other countries, there have been diverse efforts to improve on this eating habit. Protein hydrolysates are chemically, physically hydrolyzed protein that have been widely utilized as a material for not only regular food but health functional food due to have diverse biological effects such as anti-oxidation, anti-inflammation, prevention of diabetes, and regulation of blood pressure. Various amino acids such as glutamic acid, arginine and arginine dipeptides, which exist in the components of protein hydrolysates, have also been recently recognized as being helpful in decreasing the use of salt in foods as they can greatly enhance salty taste when used concurrently with salt due to having both salty and palatable flavors. In the case of protein hydrolysates that decompose soy protein or fish protein such as anchovy, they could reduce consumption of salt by as much as 50% without affecting people's food preferences when applied to food as they boost salty taste by approximately 10% to 70%. Although there are only a few studies on protein hydrolysates as a salty taste enhancer or salt substitute, the results of several studies are indicative of the potential of protein hydrolysates as a salty taste enhancing ingredient.

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