Rosalee Brown

Inulin is one of the many functional foods said to have some health benefits. It is typically found in the roots or rhizomes of plants such as wild yam, Jerusalem artichokes and chicory. Onions, garlic and mushrooms are also sources of inulin.

It is also now commercially added to foods to increase fibre content, prebiotics content and add non-calorie sweetness it has been reported that inulin has caused allergic reactions and added flatulence in sensitive persons.

Inulin has no relationship to insulin which is the hormone produced by the pancreas to assist in the regulation of blood sugar. Inulin is a type of carbohydrate of plant source; its structure has several simple sugars or monosaccharides linked together to create oligosaccharides. Inulin is mainly made up of fructose units and is indigestible by most of the human enzymes of starch digestion, such as ptyalin and amylase, and therefore passes through most of the digestive tract undigested. This form of soluble fibre is metabolised in the colon by bacteria and can, therefore, create large amounts of gas.

Sweetness

Inulin is not broken down into monosaccharides so it will not cause an increase in blood sugar levels and can contribute to the prevention of high spikes in blood sugar levels which occurs when most carbohydrate-rich foods are eaten. Inulin has a range of sweetness ? from subtle to mild and from one-third to a quarter less than the sweetness of sugars such as sucrose. It, therefore, contributes to the sweet taste of some products without the added calories.

Prebiotics

Inulin or oligofructose is added to commercial products also for their function as prebiotics. Prebiotics are those non-digestible substances that help the good bacteria in the gut to grow. Another popular prebiotics is fructanoligosaccharides (FOS), which is almost the same as inulin except for minor differences in structure.

To benefit from the fibre in foods and the inulin content, consume whole foods from plant sources daily, including those foods which are a normal part of a healthy diet. It's always important to benefit from the synergistic effect of the foods we consume rather than to rely on the magic of any one food or group of foods.