nir-vana innovation network

The glycemic index (GI) is a widely used tool to classify carbohydrate foods according to their ability to increase blood glucose concentration after consumption. The GI of a specific food or meal is determined primarily by the nature of the carbohydrate consumed and by other dietary factors that affect nutrient digestibility or insulin secretion. Results vary significantly due to factors such as particle size, degree of cooking and processing of foods, composition (e.g., fat, protein, dietary fiber), and starch structure. The starch hydrolysis index (GI in vitro) has been considered a good predictor of starch digestibility and, therefore, of the glycemic response in the body, without the need to carry out in vivo studies, which, despite being the most reliable results, entail great difficulty in their analysis, due to the limitations in terms of products to be tested, the population necessary to carry out the analyses, as well as the lack of sensitivity to detect subtle changes due to the inter-individual and intra-individual variations of the analysts. With the use of these methods, all possible fractions in which starch can be presented are included. The first method provides information on free glucose and resistant starches, while the second offers us the evolution curve of starch over time. There are very few laboratories in Spain that develop this technology, given the complexity of its development and obtaining reliable results. The volume of samples is in always the same, and a total of 4 samples can be analyzed in triplicate per day. The last measurement of the Goñi test is carried out the next day (after 16 hours), so the test time is slightly prolonged. Although at the beginning of the development of the test the deviations in the results obtained were significant, small modifications made in the methodologies as well as greater skill achieved by the analysts have managed to reduce these deviations to a minimum (indicate that they will depend on the product analyzed, so there are no reference values). Commercial agreements and research and development cooperation agreements are welcome.