Waxy wheat as a functional food for human consumption

Waxy wheat (Triticum aestivum L), a type of wheat that was first developed in Japan, produces grain amylopectin. I carried out three researches. Firstly, using Japanese adults, we carried out sensory evaluation of three types of mochi (a dumpling-like cake made of steamed and pounded grains) prepared from waxy wheat, normal wheat and waxy rice, and demonstrated that waxy wheat mochi had low adhesiveness and had the greatest ease of swallowing among the samples tested. Secondly, using the members of the JSDR (the Japanese Society of Dysphagia Rehabilitation) who attended the annual meeting, we performed another texture evaluations between waxy wheat and waxy rice mochi. The respondents reported waxy wheat mochi was less sticky and thus easier to chew and swallow than waxy rice mochi. Thirdly, to explain the relative ease of swallowing waxy wheat mochi, we investigated the mechanical behavior of mochi samples using videoendoscopy. The results suggested waxy wheat mochi was broken down into particles through mastication, transported to the epiglottic vallecula, and then propelled into the esophagus in a manner similar to that generally observed with other foods. On the other hand, waxy rice mochi was poorly disintegrated into particles, and the highly glutinous food mass was directly passed down to the esophagus, leading to lower ease of swallowing. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.