Abstract

There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that high fat intake may specifically contribute to heart disease, overweight, and obesity. Dietary recommendations are to reduce the current fat intake to 20–35% of total calories. In response to consumer demands for low calorie or calorie-free fats, a wide array of fat replacers have been developed. Fat replacers are substances that contribute a similar mouthfeel, texture, or flavor to a food product as normal fat. There are three major fat-replacement ingredient categories: carbohydrate, protein, and fat based. Carbohydrate- and protein-based fat replacers provide 0–4 kcal/g. The major carbohydrate-based fat replacers include starches, maltodextrins, polydextrose, pectin, gums, and other dietary fibers. Examples of protein-based fat replacers are microparticulated protein, gelatin, and modified–denatured proteins. Some fat-based ingredients, eg, caprenin, salatrim, bohenin, and medium-chain triacylgycerols, are actually fats tailored to contribute fewer calories and less available fat to foods. Lipid analogues, eg, olestra, sorbestrin, and polyglycerol esters, are structurally modified to provide fewer or no calories. With successful marketing and improvements in process technology and quality, fat replacers will have a considerable impact upon most sectors in the food industry. The different types of fat replacers are reviewed with respect to their synthesis, chemical composition, caloric value, metabolism, and applications.