Development of Functional Beverage from Barley

Abstract

The research project was carried out to explore the health benefits of barley β-glucan in beverage. Beverages were prepared with different levels of β-glucan and then analyzed for various quality attributes during storage. The L*, a* and b value for color of beverages increased significantly by increasing the level of β-glucan. The highest viscosity (21.75 mPa-s) and total soluble solids (10.42�brix) were found in T6beverage containing 1% β-glucan.The pH decreased significantly in all beverages throughout the storage period. Total acidity and ascorbic acid varied significantly as a function of storage. The reducing sugars increased from 3.72 to 4.31 from 0 to 90 days of storage, respectively. The total plate count of beverages decreased from 1.29 � 104 to 1.17 � 104 at the end of the storage. The scores assigned to all the sensory parameters of beverages affected significantly with the variation in the levels of β-glucan and decreased significantly during storage intervals. The treatments T2, T3 and T4 got containing 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6% β-glucan got highest scores for sensory evaluation. Total cholesterol, glucose, LDL-C and triglyceride contents in serum of adult humans fed on beverages decreased significantly whereas concentration of HDL improved due to incorporation of β-glucan in beverages. The beverage with 0.6% β-glucan contributed to reduce the serum glucose of human subjects by 10.18 %, cholesterol by 8.26%, triglycerides by 10.99% and LDL by 10.82%. The present study suggests that β-glucan is a functional ingredient and can be used to prevent cardiovascular diseases and also to control diabetes.