Impact of salivary enzyme activity on the oral perception of starch containing foods

It has long been held that product developers should not rely solely on instrumental measures of texture. This study examined the widely accepted effects of salivary a amylase on mouth thinning during oral processing. To understand this phenomenon, 13 descriptive panelists were trained to manipulate starch thickened semisolid foods and note when changes in the perceived thickness occurred. The panelists were subsequently grouped based on their reports of how quickly these foods broke down in their oral cavity. The accepted effect of salivary a amylase was then analyzed and found to be consistent across the starch thickened foods examined but different among the panelists. Thus it became clear that starch containing foods with long residence times in the mouth can be perceived differently among people based on their amylase activity, making descriptive profiling difficult to calibrate. This study suggests that classic sensory techniques could also have limitations when considering the oral processing of starchy foods, especially those with long residence times in the oral cavity. Panelists' individual salivary amylase activity was not measured in this study. Practical applications Food texture is an important sensory attribute that affects consumers' acceptance of products. Semisolid foods such as puddings and yogurts are expected to thin as the food is manipulated in the mouth. By the same token, starch systems in chewy candies can also be impacted over long periods of mastication. Understanding the impact of salivary amylase on how quickly these foods breakdown is important to developing foods that will be acceptable to consumers. Developers with an understanding of the effects salivary amylase has on various starches can lead them to design products that perform more consistently across individuals with different activity levels of salivary a amylase.