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Methods for Analysis of Dietary Fibre

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Book cover Plant Fibers

Part of the book series: Molecular Methods of Plant Analysis ((MOLMETHPLANT,volume 10))

Abstract

Dietary fibre (DF) was defined by Trowell et al. in 1976 as all the polysaccharides and lignin in the diet that are not digested by the endogenous secretions of the human digestive tract. This definition embraces the polysaccharides and lignin of plant cell walls (CW) and also the small amount of polysaccharide food additives that makes up less than 2% of fibre in our diet. These may be present as plant gums, algal polysaccharides, pectins, modified celluloses and modified starches. Plant CW are the major source of DF and thus for analytical purposes DF refers mainly to the non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) and lignin in the diet (Southgate 1976). The food additives are, however, commercially available and have similar structural features to CW polysaccharides: for these reasons they have been used as model compounds to study the action of DF.

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Authors
  1. R. R. Selvendran
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  2. A. V. F. V. Verne
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  3. R. M. Faulks
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Goldberglein 7, D-8520, Erlangen, Germany

    Hans-Ferdinand Linskens

  2. Department of Biochemistry, Waite Agricultural Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Glen Osmond, S.A., 5064, Australia

    John F. Jackson

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Selvendran, R.R., Verne, A.V.F.V., Faulks, R.M. (1989). Methods for Analysis of Dietary Fibre. In: Linskens, HF., Jackson, J.F. (eds) Plant Fibers. Molecular Methods of Plant Analysis, vol 10. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-83349-6_13

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-83349-6_13

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