JP4793334B2 - Beverage composition and method for producing the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a beverage composition and a method for producing the same. More specifically, the present invention relates to a partially hydrolyzed agar lactic acid fermented beverage composition and a method for producing the same.

Agar consists of neutral agarose with gelling ability and ionic agaropectin without gelling ability. Agarose, the main component of agar, has a repeating structure of agarobiose and is [-D-galactopyranose-β (1 → 4) -3,6-anhydro-L-galactopyranose-] _n . Agaropectin is understood to include all ionic polysaccharides other than agarose in agar, and its structure is the same as that of agarose, but partially contains sulfate, methoxyl, pyruvate, and carboxyl groups. Contains a lot. In addition, agar is a water-insoluble dietary fiber that can hardly be digested by human digestive enzymes, as is the case with cellulose. Therefore, since agar as dietary fiber is non-caloric, it is effective as a diet food, and Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus, Clostridium perfringens, etc., called bad bacteria, hardly assimilate agar. It can be said that (polysaccharides and oligosaccharides) have very excellent properties for enhancing the detox and intestinal effect. In addition, agarooligosaccharides purified after enzymatic degradation or acid hydrolysis of agar can be used to improve the taste and texture, and to be used as cancer diseases, freshness-preserving agents and cosmetics (Patent Document 1, 2). It has also been confirmed that neo agarobiose, a kind of agarooligosaccharide, has a whitening effect, a moisturizing effect, an anti-inflammatory effect, an ultraviolet absorption effect, and an antioxidant effect (Patent Document 3).

  As described above, despite the fact that the partially decomposed product of agar is a substance having excellent functionality for humans, not a little galactose is produced when it is partially hydrolyzed with an enzyme or acid. Unlike the characteristics of agarooligosaccharides, galactose is consumed as a human calorie source and is also assimilated by the aforementioned bad bacteria. However, in order to remove these sugars, as shown in Patent Documents 1 and 2, it is necessary to perform purification by chromatography column purification, ultrafiltration, or the like, and it is necessary to spend a large amount of time and a long time. There is a problem.

In addition, there is a report of adding to a food as a dietary fiber for improving bowel movement, bowel regulation and cosmetic effects as agar functionality. Patent Document 4 confirms that a combination of water-soluble dietary fiber, lactic acid bacteria, oligosaccharides, ascorbic acid, and proanthocyanidins is effective as a beauty food for producing beautiful skin. The breakdown includes dietary fiber, lactic acid bacteria, and oligosaccharides for the purpose of removing ingredients harmful to the skin, using lactic acid bacteria, oligosaccharides, and dietary fiber, and ascorbic acid and proanthocyanidins for the purpose of beautifying skin. I am going to use it. However, there are various types of oligosaccharides and various effects. In addition, adding a fermented liquor of lactic acid bacteria to foods often does not make sense because of the high cost of the cells.
WO00 / 69285 JP 2006-282675 A Japanese Patent No. 3505003 JP 2003-339353 A

  The object of the present invention is to improve the intestinal regulation / beauty effect inherent in dietary fiber or oligosaccharide derived from agar so as to be equal to or better than that of the conventional examples, and to make a beverage composition and an outer beverage composition that can be easily produced It is in providing the manufacturing method of a thing.

  As a means for solving the above-mentioned problems, the inventors have excessively converted galactose produced during agar decomposition by chemical conversion by fermentation using lactic acid bacteria so as not to assimilate agar-derived agarooligosaccharides or polysaccharides. We have developed a beverage composition that further enhances health and beauty without labor and cost. In addition, instead of simply using hydrolyzed agar / agaro-oligosaccharides as beverages, it is possible to improve the intestinal adjustment / beauty effect by making high use of galactose that has been ignored or removed in the past. As a result, the present invention was completed.

That is, the gist of the present invention is as follows.
(1) Add lactic acid bacteria that can assimilate galactose to partially hydrolyzed agar and cannot substantially assimilate agarooligosaccharide or agar, and add lactic acid without adding other sugar sources other than partially hydrolyzed agar A beverage composition characterized by being obtained by fermentation;
( 2 ) The lactic acid bacteria belonging to the genus Enterococcus, the bacteria belonging to the genus Lactobacillus, the bacteria belonging to the genus Streptococcus, the bacteria belonging to the genus Lactococcus, the genus Leuconostoc It belongs bacteria, and Pejiokokkasu (Pediococcus) bacteria belonging to the genus Bifidobacterium (Bifidobacterium) is at least one selected from the group consisting of bacteria belonging to the genus (1) Symbol placement beverage composition,
(4) Agar is swollen and liquefied in an aqueous acid and / or enzyme solution having a partial hydrolyzing action, and then the resulting partially hydrolyzed agar is assimilated without adding a sugar source other than the agar. It is related with the manufacturing method of the drink composition characterized by carrying out lactic acid fermentation by the lactic acid bacteria which can be made and can not substantially utilize agarooligosaccharide or agar .

  By continuously ingesting the beverage composition of the present invention, the health and / or beauty of the ingested person is improved or maintained in good condition.

The present invention is described in detail below.
The beverage composition of the present invention is obtained by adding lactic acid bacteria to partially hydrolyzed agar and subjecting it to lactic acid fermentation. Hereinafter, the food composition according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. Note that the configuration described below does not limit the present invention and can be variously modified within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

The partial hydrolysis agar can be obtained by swelling and liquefying in an acid and / or enzyme aqueous solution having a partial hydrolysis action.
As the agar, materials derived from red algae such as Gracilaria verrucosa, Gracilaria gigas, Gelidium amansii, Pterocladia capillacea, Atanegusa (Ahnfeltia plicata) and the like are used in particular. The origin of is not limited. There are various types of agar, such as rods, powders, granules, etc., but there is no particular limitation in the present invention.
The acid used for hydrolysis may be any acid that can partially hydrolyze agar. Examples include strong acids such as hydrochloric acid, weak acids such as acetic acid, citric acid, and fumaric acid, and mixtures of these acids. However, the type of acid is not particularly limited. Moreover, you may hydrolyze with an enzyme and it is possible to use the hydrolase for foodstuffs, such as a cellulase, hemicellulase, agarase, and galactosidase, as an enzyme used in that case.

  In the present invention, the agar is subjected to acid treatment or enzyme treatment, but the above-described method may be used in combination if necessary. When performing the acid hydrolysis treatment, for example, a 0.5% to 20% weak acid aqueous solution is prepared in advance, and agar is added thereto. Furthermore, it heats to 80 to 100 degreeC, and maintains the temperature range mentioned above for 10 minutes-24 hours. In order to confirm whether the agar has decomposed, a part of the solution is taken, and the viscosity (20 rpm, 30 ° C.) measured with a B-type viscometer is preferably 3.5 Pa · s or less. However, when the agar before decomposition is less than or equal to this viscosity, it may be confirmed using size exclusion chromatography or various molecular weight fractionation methods. Moreover, when performing an enzyme process, if it describes as an example, the optimal buffer solution for an enzyme will be produced beforehand and the enzyme suitable for the amount of agar will be solubilized. Furthermore, the solvent is kept at the optimum temperature and the agar is dissolved. If agarase for food can be used, it is possible to finally obtain an agar solution having a high concentration (40% to 70%).

Agar that has undergone only partial enzyme decomposition may be heated to 100 ° C. and then cooled, or lactic acid fermentation may be performed without heating. Moreover, in order to optimize the growth conditions of lactic acid bacteria used in lactic acid fermentation described later, it is preferable to adjust the pH of the agar aqueous solution to 5.5 to 7.5.
The partially hydrolyzed agar obtained as described above, when partially hydrolyzed, is not completely gelled at pH 4 to 10 and 50 ° C. and is liquid, and 1% partially hydrolyzed agar. When the viscosity of the solution is measured with a B-type viscometer (20 rpm, 30 ° C.), it is preferably 3.5 Pa · s or less.

In the present invention, lactic acid bacteria are added to the partially hydrolyzed agar for lactic acid fermentation.
The lactic acid bacterium may be any species or strain that has assimilability that can assimilate galactose and cannot substantially assimilate agarooligosaccharide and agar. Sugar assimilation means that cells can grow using the sugar as a necessary carbon source. In addition, as agar that cannot be assimilated, it may be prepared from the usual red algae-derived material, and may contain agarose and agaropectin, and may be subjected to a low molecular weight treatment such as partial hydrolysis. Included.

In the present invention, by using lactic acid bacteria having such characteristics, galactose, which is an assimilation factor such as bad bacteria contained in partially hydrolyzed agar, can be reduced. Therefore, by suppressing the growth of bad bacteria, the original intestinal regulation / beauty effect of partially hydrolyzed agar is improved. Moreover, since the obtained beverage composition contains lactic acid bacteria, the intestinal regulation / beauty effect can be further improved. In addition, galactose, which required various complicated operations to be removed from the partially hydrolyzed agar, can be reduced more easily by using lactic acid fermentation.
Therefore, the present invention is in terms of intestinal and cosmetic effects and ease of manufacture compared to a lactic acid bacteria beverage obtained by adding agar to a lactic acid bacteria beverage or a lactic acid bacteria beverage obtained by collecting lactic acid bacteria from an agar medium and subjecting them to lactic acid fermentation. The present invention relates to a novel partially hydrolyzed agar-containing lactic acid fermented beverage composition that exhibits an excellent effect.

The following bacteria are illustrated as lactic acid bacteria used for this invention.
Bacteria belonging to the genus Enterococcus: Enterococcus malodratus, E. faecium, E. faecalis, E. durans, Lactobacillus Lactobacillus: Lactobacillus plantarum, L. salivarius, L. bifidus, L. bulgaricus, L. casei, L. acidphilus, gasseri (L. gasseri), fermentum, L. helveticus, L. jugurti, L. delbrueckii sub.bulgaricus, L. delbrueckii sub.bulgaricus, L. delbrueckii), L. rhamnosus, Streptococcus spp .: Streptococcus thermophilus, S. bovis Fungi belonging to the genus S. mutans, S. sanguis, S. cremoris, S. lactis, Lactococcus: Lactococcus lactis subspices lactis lactis sub. lactis), Lactococcus lactis sub. cremoris, Lactococcus lactis, Leuconostoc bacteria: Leuconostoc mesenteroides), Leuconostoc dextranicum, Pediococcus genus: Pediococcus pentosaceus, Bifidobacterium genus: Bifidobacterium longum longum), Bifidobacterium breve (B breve).
In the present invention, it is possible to perform fermentation using one or more bacterial cells selected from these lactic acid bacteria groups.

In the present invention, the lactic acid fermentation of the lactic acid bacterium can be performed by culturing the lactic acid bacterium in partially hydrolyzed agar.
The conditions for the lactic acid fermentation (pH of the partially hydrolyzed agar during culture, culture temperature, etc.) may be appropriately adjusted depending on the type of lactic acid bacteria.
Among them, from the viewpoint of further improving the efficacy of agar, it is a major feature of the present invention that during lactic acid fermentation, fermentation is performed without adding a carbohydrate that serves as a sugar source for lactic acid bacteria, except that the partially decomposed agar is used. It is one of. That is, it has been confirmed that galactose derived from agar generated by hydrolysis treatment can sufficiently proliferate lactic acid bacteria, and thereby the effect of the present invention is in a suitable state of lactic acid fermentation. Also, depending on the lactic acid bacteria, it can be divided into homo-fermentation or hetero-fermentation, but it also contains lactic acid bacteria products such as extracellular polysaccharides and, in some cases, carbon dioxide, lactic acid and acetic acid. The type of lactic acid bacteria is not limited by the difference in fermentation method or metabolite.

  In the present invention, lactic acid fermentation that assimilates galactose is performed, but not only the purpose of reducing galactose absorbed by humans as nutrients, but also extracellular polysaccharides and lactic acid produced by lactic acid bacteria assimilating galactose and We are also paying attention to the intestinal and cosmetic action of lactic acid bacteria. Therefore, even if a high concentration of lactic acid bacteria is added without fermentation, the method of the present invention is more effective in terms of effectiveness.

  In addition, general lactic acid bacteria are substances that are particularly beneficial for humans because lactic acid bacteria are fermented by adding lactic acid other than partially hydrolyzed agar, except when special sugar sources are added. It is difficult to think that it will generate and the growth will be significantly promoted. Moreover, by adding other sugar sources, there is a possibility that monosaccharides derived from agar will remain by the amount of the added sugar source. Therefore, in the present invention, from the viewpoint of highly utilizing agar, it is preferable to carry out lactic acid fermentation without adding a sugar source other than partially hydrolyzed agar. However, the addition does not limit the present invention. When the agar is hydrolyzed and subjected to lactic acid fermentation, other saccharides may be added to the beverage composition as long as the functionality of the agar is not impaired. Also good. Examples of the saccharide include starch, monosaccharide, disaccharide, oligosaccharide, sugar alcohol, and dextrin including those reduced. In addition, when the lactic acid bacteria in a drink composition are live bacteria, what is necessary is just to select these saccharides which cannot utilize this lactic acid bacteria. Moreover, when the said lactic acid bacteria are dead bacteria, saccharides are not specifically limited.

  Moreover, completion | finish of the said lactic acid fermentation can be confirmed with the conditions of microbial cell concentration, pH, and the amount of galactose. After confirming the end of lactic acid fermentation, it is preferable to stop the fermentation by heat-treating the obtained fermentation composition at 60 ° C. or higher.

Further, the amount of the partially hydrolyzed agar blended in the fermentation composition is preferably 0.001 to 10% by weight, more preferably 0.1 to 1% by weight. In addition, the intake amount of lactic acid bacteria is preferably 1 × 10 ^{6 to} 1 × 10 ¹² cells / mL in the fermentation composition.

  The beverage composition of the present invention can be prepared using the fermentation composition. In the beverage composition of the present invention, the lactic acid bacteria may be live bacteria, but may be dead bacteria. This is because, as mentioned earlier, dead lactic acid bacteria cells have the function of adsorbing and excreting harmful substances present in the intestine, that is, the same as dietary fiber cleaning the intestinal tract. This is because an effect can be expected.

  In addition, the beverage composition of the present invention may use the fermentation composition as it is, and if necessary, may contain sugars, fragrances, sweeteners, fruit juice, carbonic acid, and functional substances, There is no particular limitation.

  Moreover, since the beverage composition of the present invention is almost tasteless and odorless, a desired flavor can be imparted by adding a fragrance. Also, depending on the fragrance, not only to improve the flavor, but also to create a parasympathetic dominant state and induce a relaxed state, it promotes the secretion of gastric juice and saliva, the blood vessels dilate and the hands and feet are warm Therefore, we think that the effects of bowel regulation and beauty are further promoted. Therefore, the addition of such a special fragrance into the beverage composition is also included in the present invention.

  The presence or amount of the saccharide, flavor, sweetener, fruit juice, functional substance, carbonic acid, and functional substance is not particularly limited as long as it does not impair the functionality of the beverage composition of the present invention.

  The intake of the beverage composition of the present invention obtained as described above varies depending on, for example, symptoms, height, weight, age, etc., but the intake per adult is 5 to 500 mg / kg · day, preferably It is good to take in 1 to several times so that it is 100 to 400 mg / kg · day. Moreover, since the drink composition of this invention is effective for intestinal adjustment and beauty, it is preferable to ingest continuously.

  The agar, lactic acid bacteria, enzymes used for partial hydrolysis of agar, and the like used in the present invention are all used in food production in Japan, so there is no problem regarding safety.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to examples.

Example 1
In advance, a hydrochloric acid solution (0.5% hydrogen chloride) was kept constant in the temperature range from 85 ° C to 95 ° C. While stirring, powder agar (Ina Agar Co., Ltd .; S-7) is added to the hydrochloric acid solution to make a 3% solution. After all was added, the mixture was allowed to stand at constant temperature for 1 hour with stirring. After 1 hour, after confirming that the agar aqueous solution was liquefied, the temperature was lowered to 50 ° C. Further, sodium citrate was added to neutralize to pH 7.0. Then, lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus acidophilus was added so that it might become a density | concentration of 1x10 ⁸ piece / ml, and it statically cultured at constant temperature for 8 hours. After completion of the culture, the enzyme reaction was stopped by heating at 85 ° C. for 15 minutes. Finally, the density of lactic acid bacteria became 5 × ^{10 8} to 5 × ^{10 10} cells / ml. Hereinafter, the composition thus obtained is referred to as fermentation composition 1.

  Subsequently, according to the composition shown in Table 1, each component was mixed and sterilized at 85 ° C. for 15 minutes to obtain a beverage composition of the present invention.

Test example 1
The effect of improving bowel movement expected by the beverage composition of the present invention was clarified. That is, let the six constipation subjects whose defecation frequency per week is 4 times or less take 100ml of the beverage composition obtained in Example 1 per day, before and after taking the "defecation frequency", "stool firmness" ”,“ Stool shape ”, and“ exhilaration after defecation ”were evaluated for each defecation. The results are shown in Table 2.

The values in the table are obtained by averaging the scores based on the following evaluation criteria by six constipation subjects as absolute values. Scores are given for 5 days before and 5 days before ingestion of the beverage composition.
〔Evaluation criteria〕
Number of defecations: Hardness of stool / day: Very hard "-2", Hard "-1", Normal "0", Soft "1", Very soft "2"
Stool shape: tick "-2", heart-shaped "-1", banana-like "0", semi-kneaded "1", mud "2", water-like "3"
Refreshing feeling after defecation: "-1" not refreshing, "0" normal, "1" refreshing
Of the above evaluations, the scores for “stiffness of stool”, “shape of stool”, and “exhilaration after stool” are improved as the score approaches “0”.

From the results in Table 2, the “frequency of defecation”, “hardness of stool”, “shape of stool”, and “exhilaration after stool” in the subjects were greatly improved by ingesting the beverage composition of the present invention. . Therefore, it can be seen that the beverage composition of the present invention is remarkably easy for a person who ingests to feel that his or her intestinal state has improved.
Further, the results of this experimental example suggested that a drastic improvement effect was observed for constipation subjects by drinking 100 ml of the beverage composition of the present invention at least for about 5 days.

Example 2
In the same manner as in Example 1, all the predetermined agar powder was added to the aqueous hydrochloric acid solution, and the mixture was allowed to stand with stirring at a constant temperature for 1 hour. After 1 hour, after confirming that the agar was liquefied, the temperature was lowered to 50 ° C. After adding sodium citrate to raise the pH to 5.0, the crude enzyme derived from Aspergillus niger hemicellulase “Amano” 90 (manufactured by Amano Enzyme) and cellulase T “Amano” 4 should be 0.005% each. In addition, it was maintained at a constant temperature for 2 hours. Then, after raised to pH7.0 by addition of sodium citrate, lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus gasseri added 1x10 ⁸ cells / ml lactic acid bacteria Pediococcus pentosaceus to a concentration of 1x10 ⁸ cells / ml, 6 hours at 38 ° C. thermostatic The culture was stationary. After completion of the incubation, the enzyme reaction is stopped by heating at 85 ° C. for 15 minutes. Finally, the density of lactic acid bacteria became 5 × ^{10 8} to 5 × ^{10 10} cells / ml. Hereinafter, this composition is referred to as fermentation composition 2.

  According to the composition shown in Table 3 above, each component was mixed and sterilized at 85 ° C. for 15 minutes to obtain a beverage composition of the present invention.

Test example 2
In the formulation of Example 2, the effect of relaxing was investigated in the case where no chamomile flavor was added and in the case where the chamomile flavor was added as in the formulation of Example 2. When comparing the relaxation effects of 30 women in their 20s and 30s, 26 responded that they had an effect on relaxation. Moreover, the same results as in Test Example 1 were obtained with respect to the effectiveness of the agar beverage, and there was no difference in the effectiveness of the agar depending on the presence or absence of flavor. Therefore, it was revealed that the relaxation effect can be made to function independently of the effectiveness of agar by adding a relaxing flavor such as chamomile to the beverage composition.

Example 3
In the same manner as in Example 2, all of the predetermined agar powder was added to the aqueous hydrochloric acid solution, and then allowed to stand for 1 hour with stirring at a constant temperature. After 1 hour, after confirming that the agar was liquefied, the temperature was lowered to 38 ° C. Further, sodium citrate or sodium bicarbonate was added to raise the pH to 7.0. Then, lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus acidophilus (manufactured by Amano Enzyme Inc.) was added 1x10 ⁸ cells / ml lactic acid bacteria Pediococcus pentosaceus (manufactured by Bio Tech Japan Co.) to a concentration of 1x10 ⁸ cells / ml, 6 hours static at 38 ° C. thermostatic Incubate. After completion of the culture, fermentation was stopped by heating at 85 ° C. for 15 minutes. Finally, the density of lactic acid bacteria became 5 × ^{10 8} to 5 × ^{10 10} cells / ml. Hereinafter, this composition is referred to as fermentation composition 3.

  According to the composition shown in Table 4 above, each component was mixed and sterilized at 85 ° C. for 15 minutes to obtain a beverage composition of the present invention.

Test example 3
A beverage to which the fermentation composition 3 was added based on the composition of Table 4 was prepared for a beauty test. As a comparative control, a beverage composition in which fermentation composition 3 was not added (water was used as an alternative composition) and a beverage composition containing decomposition agar without lactic acid fermentation were also prepared, and 100 ml each for 5 subjects. Ingested daily. On the day before the start of the test, the texture of the skin on the cheek (center) of the subject's face was examined. Using a skin analyzer (Nozawa Sangyo Co., Ltd.), the measurement method was checked in 11 stages (-5 to +5), with zero being the optimal value and positive being “excessive” and negative being “insufficient”. That is, the closer the skin analyzer value is to zero, the better the skin quality. The skin quality was checked with a skin analyzer one week after drinking. The skin quality improvement in one week was evaluated by the following formula. That is, the larger the value, the higher the skin quality improving effect. The results are shown in Table 5.

Formula: [(A ₀ -A ₇ ) + (B ₀ -B ₇ ) + (C ₀ -C ₇ ) + (D ₀ -D ₇ ) + (E ₀ -E ₇ )] ÷ 5
Alphabets A to E represent 5 subjects each.
A0: Absolute value of the evaluation item value before A ingests the beverage composition (the same applies to B, C, D, and E)
A7: Absolute value of the evaluation item value on the seventh day after A ingests the beverage composition (B, C, D, E are also the same)

  Table 5 shows the effect of improving the skin quality depending on the presence or absence of fermentation agar. As a result of ingesting a beverage composition containing fermented agar, a beverage composition that does not contain agar (“No agar” in the table) or a beverage composition that does not lactically ferment the agar (“No fermented agar” in the table) In comparison, the average value of skin quality evaluation was significantly improved in all three items. Therefore, ingesting fermented agar indicates that it is effective for improving skin quality.

  Since the beverage composition of the present invention has a marked improvement effect on the bowel movement / beauty effect, it is possible to provide various flavored beverages using fermented agar by ingesting the beverage composition of the present invention. It was suggested that it is possible to incorporate not only the functionality of fermentation agar but also the effectiveness of lactic acid bacteria themselves and / or substances secreted from lactic acid bacteria.

  In addition, the beverage composition of the present invention has at least a functionality equivalent to or higher than the knowledge of agar beverages obtained so far, in particular, “freshness after defecation” in the effect of improving bowel movement and “skin moisture in the effect of improving beautiful skin” ”,“ Fat ”, and“ flexibility ”, the results are excellent, and users will notice a significant improvement in their health and beauty compared to conventional agar beverages. I think it can be done. Moreover, a new functionality will be added by mix | blending another active ingredient with the drink composition of this invention, and development of a novel drink composition is also possible.

  In addition, considering the importance of ingesting lactic acid bacteria or fermented foods, galactose derived from agar, which is almost unrelated to the improvement of bowel movement and beautiful skin as in the present invention, is caused by lactic acid bacteria. Since it has been converted into various substances, it can be expected to be effective in other health factors.

Claims (1)

The agar is swollen and liquefied in an aqueous acid and / or enzyme solution having a partial hydrolyzing action, and then the resulting partially hydrolyzed agar can assimilate galactose without adding a sugar source other than the agar, And the manufacturing method of the drink composition characterized by carrying out lactic acid fermentation by the lactic acid bacteria which cannot substantially assimilate agarooligosaccharide or agar.