Industry Trends

In the realm of dietary supplements, a new rockstar has emerged – IMO powder, the inulin-based, gut-friendly, and sugar-reducing sensation. This versatile powder has health enthusiasts and food aficionados alike singing its praises. As we delve into the fascinating world of IMO, buckle up for a delightful journey of discovery, debunking myths, and, of course, indulging in the creamy, sweet, and healthy life.

Xylitol (C5H12O5) is a five-carbon sugar alcohol and an intermediate product of xylose metabolism. It appears as white powdery crystals and is easily soluble in water. It is widely found in fruits, vegetables, cereals, fungi and other foods and It is a natural and healthy sweetener found in wood, straw, corncob and other plants.

Dietary fiber is composed of non-starch polysaccharides, lignin, resistant oligosaccharides and resistant starch. It mainly refers to polysaccharides that cannot be digested by digestive enzymes in the human intestine and cannot be absorbed and utilized by the body (i.e. non-starch polysaccharides etc.), they mainly come from plant cell walls and include lignin in plant cells.

Oligosaccharides mainly include: lactose oligosaccharides, galacto-oligosaccharides, fructose oligosaccharides, isomaltooligosaccharides, palatinose, gentio-oligosaccharides, soybean oligosaccharides, raffinose, wild sesame tetrasaccharides, etc.

Maltodextrin is also called water-soluble dextrin or enzymatic dextrin. It is made from various types of starch, which are hydrolyzed, converted, purified and dried by enzyme technology at a low degree.

Resistant dextrin (also called indigestible dextrin) is a white slightly yellow powder with a slight sweet taste. It is easily soluble in cold water and insoluble in ethanol.

Nowadays, whole grains have become synonymous with healthy diet. The main component of whole grains is resistant starch. What is Resistant Starch? As the name suggests, it is a type of starch that is difficult to digest and is found in many foods such as green bananas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, corn, beans, and whole grains.

Inulin is a fructose polymer extracted from plants. If we think of these polymers as molecules with different lengths, then we can pick out small molecules with a length between 2 and 10, which we can call fructo-oligosaccharides (or short chain inulin). Macromolecules with a length of >10-60 can be called polyfructose (or long-chain inulin).