Snack bars with high soy protein and isoflavone content for use in diets to control dyslipidaemia

Abstract

The objective was to develop a cereal bar product rich in isoflavones and soy protein to be used in diets for controlling dyslipidaemia. A soy snack bar with 39.88 g/100 g dietary fibre, 34.25 g/100 g protein, 100.39 mg/100 g isoflavones and 245.47 kcal/100 g was produced. The shelf life of the product was tested over a period of 6 months. The hardness, water activity and darkness of the snack bars increased with storage time. Clinical trial was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of the soy snack bar on the lipid profiles of 22 dyslipidaemic subjects for a period of 45 days. There was a decrease in levels of triglycerides (TGs) ( − 20%) and an increase in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) (+8%) comparing with baseline values. Therefore, relatively high intakes of soy protein and isoflavones in moderately hypercholesterolaemic subjects (>200 mg/dl) may have a moderately beneficial effect on plasma lipid profiles, as TG and HDL-c levels, without additional diet restrictions.

Keywords::

• functional food
• cereal bars
• soy
• hypercholesterolaemia

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the support provided by Tia Sônia Alimentos Naturais Industry (Vitória da Conquista, BA, Brazil) in producing the cereal bars. We would also like to acknowledge the scholarship to LPL from CNPq and the technical assistance from the Heart Diseases Centre Cardiology Clinic (Londrina, PR, Brazil).

Declarations of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.