Scholars from Japan recently innovated a set of mediums that could enhance the salty taste of food for people who need to cut off their sodium intake. The low-sodium solution was developed in the firm of a chopstick device and a stimulation system based on electrical waveforms.
The study was carried out by experts from the prestigious Meiji University, along with eh collaboration from the Kirin Holdings Company Limited.
Electric Chopsticks for Eating Low-Salt Foods
Study using electrical stimulation waveforms
According to the research, experts were able to construct a device that can improve the taste of high-sodium patients by 1.5 times. The results gathered from the innovation, and the supporting clinical trials were the first to utilize electrical stimulation to improve salty taste in humans.
Meiji's School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences expert Homei Miyashita led the sodium solution development.
To prove the efficacy of the chopstick's saltiness enhancement, an observation was conducted using a set of foods made with 30 percent less saltiness than their flavors were supposed to be. Most of the sample foods presented were part of Japan's staple cuisines.
According to a report by Entrepreneur, Japan holds the record for the biggest sodium consumer in the world. The country's sodium intake surpasses the recommended rates recommended by the World Health Organization, only five grams per day.
Both genders in Japan showed an excessive intake of salty foods. Among the population, men were found to consume 10.9 grams of sodium per day, while women averaged around 9.3 grams.
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Adjusting Salty Taste High-Sodium Patients
Intense eating of foods that have high salt content might disrupt a person's health. High-sodium intake commonly leads to an increase in the risk of hypertension, kidney disease, high blood pressure, and even stroke.
The study provides a promising way of eating foods for patients who need to lessen the salt in their foods.
Through Meiji University and Kirin Holdings' innovative chopsticks, users can conveniently eat non-salty food but get the same taste they want through small electrical shocks to the tongue, activating the regions of the organ's tissues responsible for processing salty taste.
The salty taste-improving chopsticks were tested in over 30 individuals from the age group of 40 to 65. Each of them has a condition that requires only low-sodium food choices for meals.
The authors explained in Meiji University's press release that the perceived salty taste of the participants was raised by a factor of 1.5 when they utilized the specialized electronic chopsticks on eating sample foods with low-sodium content compared to using the conventional utensils without the waveforms.
Sample foods given to the subjects had similar rates of sodium content to the real foods they were based on. The experts concluded that the electrical chopstick could enhance foods with 30 percent less salt for the patients to experience and taste comparable to a normal meal.
The study will be presented at the 26th Information Processing Society of Japan Symposium, titled "Investigation of the effect of salty taste enhancement by electric taste sensation for people living with reduced salt intake."
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