THE BIOCHEMISTRY OF OLIGOFRUCTOSE, A NONDIGESTIBLE FIBER - AN APPROACH TO CALCULATE ITS CALORIC VALUE

Oligofructose, a natural food ingredient, is the product of partial en zymatic hydrolysis of inulin. This nondigestible oligosaccharide is fe rmented by colonic bacteria to produce mainly short-chain fatty acids, L-lactate, and CO2 and the energy necessary for bacterial growth. It also increases fecal mass. Based on biochemical balance charts for car bon atoms, metabolic pathways, and energy yield to the host, the calor ic value of a fructosyl unit of oligofructose is calculated to be 25-3 5% that of a digested molecule of hexose. The caloric value of oligofr uctose is thus likely to be close to 1 kcal/g.