A comparative study of taste preferences for Thai custard dessert made with innovative rare natural sugar and common market sugar: An experimental approach to promote sugar reduction among the public

Rujee Rattanasathien; Kanlaya Chunjai; Takeshi Yoda; Rujirat Pudwan; Bumnet Saengrut; Benjamas Suksatit; Masahiro Ogawa; Surat Tanprawate; Masaaki Tokuda

Authors

Rujee Rattanasathien Chiang Mai University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University
Kanlaya Chunjai Chiang Mai University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University
Takeshi Yoda Department of Public Health, Department of Health and Sports Science, Kawasaki University of Medical Welfare, Okayama, Japan
Rujirat Pudwan Chiang Mai University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University
Bumnet Saengrut Chiang Mai University Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University
Benjamas Suksatit Faculty of Nursing, Chiang Mai University
Masahiro Ogawa Department of Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Kagawa University, Kagawa, Japan
Surat Tanprawate Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University
Masaaki Tokuda Department of Pharmaco-Bioinformatics, Faculty of Medicine, Kagawa University, Kagawa, Japan

Keywords:

preference analysis, Thai custard, D-allulose, rare sugar, non-communicable diseases

Abstract

The World Health Organization has made a suggestion to reduce daily sugar intake from 10% to less than five percent of total energy intake. However, sugar consumption of Thai people is four times the recommended amount from the World Health Organization and gradually increasing. Sugar consumption increases the risk of weight gain and Noncommunicable Diseases. “Khanom mor gaeng” is a traditional Thai custard. It can be thought of as a representative Thai dessert. It is made from eggs, coconut milk, flour, and sugars. Rare Sugar Syrup is an innovative functional sweetener which consists of 70% D-glucose/Dfructose and 12-13% of rare sugars including D-allulose, an epimer of D-fructose possessing anti-diabetic and anti-obesity functions. Rare Sugar Syrup can be claimed to have reduced calories with lower glycemic index compared to corn syrup and regular sugar.

This study aimed to evaluate Thai consumers’ preferences for Thai custard in which sugar was partially replaced by Rare Sugar Syrup. We cooked a modified prototype Thai custard in which 50% of the palm sugar and regular sugar were replaced by Rare Sugar Syrup. We surveyed 313 participants for their opinion and compared between the low calorie rare sugar Thai custard and the normal Thai custard with paired t-test. The results indicated no significant differences between the two Thai custards regarding color, texture, sweetness, and overall preference, with the exception of egg smell and tastiness. Our results confirmed Rare Sugar Syrup can be a healthy substitute for regular sugar without reducing Thai people’s preference. The wide usage of Rare Sugar Syrup in various desserts and beverages and thus nurses play a crucial role in motivation behavioral changes in dietary consumption, fostering self-care motivation, supporting self-management, and enabling individuals to maintain their
health, thereby may contributing to the prevention of non-communicable diseases in the Thai population.

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