JP2005348656A - Food and drink having relaxation effect - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a food and drink having further high relaxation effect while making the best use of the functionality of theobromine which chocolate and cocoa have. <P>SOLUTION: This food and drink having relaxation effect, especially with respect to chocolate or cocoa, contains as active ingredient γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). The food and drink contains 0.01 mass% or above of GABA and 0.01 mass% of theobromine. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

The present invention relates to foods and drinks containing GABA and having a relaxing effect, in particular chocolate or cocoa.

In modern societies that are sophisticated, complex and active 24 hours a day, people are exposed to various types of physical, chemical, psychological and social stress. Especially for modern people living in complex human relationships, there are many psychological factors that constitute stress.
Various studies have been conducted on psychological stress and various symptoms caused by it. For example, in Non-Patent Document 1 below, when psychological stress is detected in the cerebrum, noradrenaline is observed in a wide range of brain regions. Increased release has been reported to trigger psychiatric symptoms such as anxiety and tension.

  Accordingly, there has been a strong demand for the development of foods that have a relaxing effect by relieving such psychological stress.

  As an example of the development of food having such a relaxing effect, the following Patent Document 1 discloses “an anti-stress agent containing the amino acid L-theanine as an active ingredient”, and the following Patent Document 2 discloses: “Brain function improving agents, food and beverage additives” are disclosed.

On the other hand, chocolate and cocoa have long been said to heal fatigue, and theobromine contained in the raw cacao is said to have a mental stabilizing effect.
Masatoshi Tanaka: Metabolism, Vol. 26, 122-131, 1989 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-100442 JP-A-8-73350

  However, chocolate and cocoa contain excitable caffeine and the like, which is insufficient to provide a relaxing effect.

  The objective of this invention is providing the food / beverage products with a higher relaxation effect, making use of the functionality of theobromine which chocolate and cocoa have.

  As a result of intensive studies to solve the above problems, the present inventors have found that adding γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) to chocolate brings about a sufficient relaxing effect even in the presence of caffeine. The invention has been completed.

  That is, the food / beverage product which has a relaxation effect of this invention contains (gamma) -aminobutyric acid (GABA) as an active ingredient, and contains the raw material derived from cacao or cacao.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the food / beverage products which have the relaxation effect of this invention contain 0.01 mass% or more of (gamma) -aminobutyric acid (GABA).

  Furthermore, the food / beverage product having a relaxing effect of the present invention preferably contains 0.01% by mass or more of theobromine.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the food / beverage products which have the relaxation effect using the original functionality of cacao can be provided.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, food / beverage products with a higher relaxation effect can be provided, making use of the functionality of theobromine which cacao has.

  Although it does not specifically limit with chocolate or cocoa in this invention, Milk chocolate, cocoa powder, a cocoa drink, black chocolate, sweet chocolate, white chocolate, etc. are mentioned.

  Although the final product form of the chocolate of the present invention is not particularly limited, plate chocolate, grain chocolate, chocolate drink, chocolate syrup, and the like are conceivable.

  Although the kind of cacao used as the raw material of chocolate or cocoa in the present invention is not particularly limited, examples thereof include a cryolo species, a forastero species, and a trinitario species.

GABA, which is an active ingredient of foods and drinks having a relaxing effect of the present invention, refers to γ-aminobutyric acid, a kind of amino acid contained in trace amounts in tea, vegetables, cereals and the like as food components.

In the present invention, a fermentation method using lactic acid bacteria capable of obtaining GABA in a large amount and at a low cost is preferable as a method for producing GABA. For example, a culture solution of lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus brevis (IFO12005 strain), Lactobacillus hilgardi K-3 strain (FERM P-18422), etc.) is added to a culture solution containing glutamic acid soda, glucose, baker's yeast extract, etc. And it culture | cultivates at 20-30 degreeC for 1-3 days, and this culture solution is filtered after heat-sterilization, and a filtrate is obtained. In addition, when Lactobacillus hilgardy K-3 strain (FERM P-18422) is used as a lactic acid bacterium, the GABA content in the culture solution is about 5% by mass, and GABA accounts for about 70% when converted to solid content.

This filtrate can be used for the food / beverage product which has a relaxing effect of this invention as it is, after concentrating suitably, as it is or after drying further as a powder.

Although there is no restriction | limiting in particular in GABA content in the food / beverage products which have the relaxation effect of this invention, 0.01 mass% or more is preferable and 0.01-2 mass% is more preferable.

When the GABA content is less than 0.01% by mass, it is difficult to add an amount that can be expected to have a relaxing effect when added to a food or drink.

The content of theobromine in the food or drink having a relaxing effect of the present invention is not particularly limited, but is preferably 0.01% by mass or more. When the theobromine content is less than 0.01% by mass, it is difficult to add an amount that can be expected to have a relaxing effect when it is added to a food or drink.

The effective intake of the food and drink having a relaxing effect of the present invention varies depending on specific symptoms, age, etc., but usually 30 to 500 per person in terms of GABA.
mg / day is preferable, and 50 to 300 mg / day is more preferable. That is, in the case of chocolate to which 0.3% by mass of GABA is added, 17 g to 100 g / day is preferable.

  By using GABA and theobromine in combination, it is suggested that there is a relaxing effect that is more than the total of the effects when used alone due to a synergistic effect.

  Test Examples and Examples are shown below to describe the present invention in more detail, but the present invention is not limited to the contents.

(Preparation of Lactic Acid Bacteria Fermentation GABA) After sterilization by heating for 10 minutes at 90 ° C., 50 L of fermentation raw material (pH 5.0) containing each component at the ratio shown in Table 1, lactic acid bacteria derived from Kimchi (Lactobacillus hilgardi K-3 strain) (FERM P-18422)) 50 mL of the culture solution was inoculated and cultured at 30 ° C. for 3 days. In addition, the GABA content of the fermented liquid after completion | finish of fermentation was 51 g / L. This fermented liquid is sterilized by heating at 90 ° C. for 10 minutes, filtered with a filter aid, and the obtained filtrate is dried and powdered with a spray dryer to give a lactic acid bacteria fermented GABA composition (GABA content: 21% by mass). )

尚、本製造法は１例であり特に本特許を限定するものではない。

In addition, this manufacturing method is an example and does not specifically limit this patent.

(Preparation of GABA-containing chocolate) 20 parts of cocoa mass, 15 parts of cocoa butter, 10 parts of vegetable oil (ordinary cocoa butter type, melting point 33-34 ° C.), 40 parts of sugar, 15 parts of whole milk powder, Example 1 Chocolate was produced by a conventional method using 1.5 parts of GABA powder (GABA 20%, trade name: “Pharmaca 20-S” (manufactured by Pharma Foods Laboratories, Inc.), an appropriate amount of lecithin and an appropriate amount of flavor. On the other hand, chocolate prepared without GABA addition was used as control chocolate. In addition, this prescription is an example of food and does not specifically limit this patent.

(Measurement of GABA concentration) The GABA concentration was measured by the following method. That is, after each sample was appropriately diluted with 0.2N sodium citrate buffer (pH 2.2), the solid was removed by centrifugation or filtration to obtain a measurement sample.
The contents of GABA and glutamic acid were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography under the following conditions in accordance with a conventional method for measuring amino acid content. For example, the GABA content of the lactic acid bacteria fermentation GABA powder of Example 1 was 21% by mass.
Equipment used: High performance liquid chromatograph LC-9A manufactured by Shimadzu Corporation
Column for analysis: Strong acid cation exchange resin column Shin-pack Isc-07Na type moving bed buffer: Amino acid moving bed kit Na type manufactured by Shimadzu Corporation Moving bed flow rate: 0.3 ml / min Reaction layer 1: 0 0.04% sodium hypochlorite solution (0.2 ml of hypochlorous acid per 500 ml of boric acid-carbonate buffer at pH 10)
Reaction layer 2: Amino acid analysis kit OPA reagent manufactured by Shimadzu Corporation Reaction layer flow rate: 0.2 ml / min Detection: fluorescence detection Ex 348 nm, Em 450 nm

(Measurement of theobromine concentration) The chocolate sample is scraped into powder, accurately weighed into a centrifuge tube, 30 mL of petroleum ether is added and stirred well, then centrifuged, the supernatant is discarded, and 30 mL of petroleum ether is added again and centrifuged. . After discarding the supernatant, the centrifuge tube is volatilized with petroleum ether on a hot water bath. Transfer the degreased sample to a 250 mL Erlenmeyer flask, add 95 mL of water and heat in a 100 ° C. water bath for 25 minutes. Immediately after cooling, the contents are transferred to a 200 mL volumetric flask, water is added and the volume is adjusted to 200 mL. This solution is centrifuged at 13,000 rpm for 5 minutes, and the supernatant filtered through a 0.45 μm membrane filter is used as a test solution for the following high performance liquid chromatograph. For example, in the case of the GABA-containing chocolate obtained in Example 2, the theobromine content was 0.25% by mass.

Equipment used: High performance liquid chromatograph LC-9A manufactured by Shimadzu Corporation
Analytical column: Zorbax ODS 4.6mmID
X 250mm or equivalent.
Moving bed: water: acetonitrile (85:15)
Moving bed flow rate: 1.0 ml / min Detection: UV 273 nm

(Measurement of Relaxation Effect) As an index of relaxation, electroencephalogram, chromogranin A (CgA) and immunoglobulin A (IgA) in saliva were measured, and a subjective survey was also conducted. In addition, during the test, a stress load was applied by a calculation test (Kraepelin test).

The electroencephalogram was measured for 3 minutes under resting eye conditions with a digital versatile electroencephalograph EE2514 manufactured by NEC, with an electroencephalograph dish electrode attached to the left, right, front, and back of the subject. The analysis of the electroencephalogram was performed using the multi-purpose biological information analysis program BIMUTAS2 of Kissei Comtech Co., Ltd. For EEG, after selecting a stable waveform for 2 minutes, calculate each content of α wave (8Hz to less than 13Hz) and β wave (13Hz to less than 30Hz) and evaluate the ratio (α wave / β wave) did.

  Saliva was collected with “Salivet” (manufactured by SARESTDT), transported by refrigeration, collected by centrifugation, and stored frozen until measurement. For measurement of CgA, “YK070 human chromogranin A EIA kit” (manufactured by Yanaihara Laboratory) was used, and for measurement of IgA, “human IgA ELISA quantification kit” (manufactured by BETHYL Laboratories, Inc.) was used.

  The subjective survey was conducted at the STAI of the state / characteristic anxiety test STAI of Sankyobo Co., Ltd., and the aggregated value of the state anxiety score was evaluated as an index of relaxation.

  The mental arithmetic test was conducted by using the Uchida-Kraepelin test (standard type) of the Japan Institute of Psychiatric Technology Co., Ltd., adding for the first one minute and subtracting for the next one minute, and repeating this for 10 minutes.

The measurement was performed on 6 subjects. The test subject must first be in a room (25 ° C., 40 ° C.) that is blocked from the outside.
(Lux) measured brain waves, collected saliva and conducted a subjective survey. (0 hours before chocolate ingestion) Next, GABA-containing chocolate or control chocolate obtained in Example 2 was eaten, and 100 mL of water was ingested. After 15 minutes, a mental arithmetic test was performed for 10 minutes, and stress was applied. Thereafter, brain waves were measured and saliva was collected. (30 minutes after ingesting chocolate)

Similarly, a calculation test was performed 45 minutes after chocolate ingestion, and saliva was collected 60 minutes later. In addition, a subjective survey was performed again 90 minutes later.

  The result of the electroencephalogram is shown in FIG. In general, when the effect of relaxation is seen, the α wave rises, whereas the β wave changes little, so the α wave / β wave value rises. From FIG. 1, it can be seen that in the control chocolate, the α wave / β wave value hardly fluctuates, whereas in the GABA-containing chocolate, the α wave / β wave value increases, indicating a relaxing effect.

The result of the subjective survey is shown in FIG. FIG. 2 shows that the degree of state anxiety is reduced even when the control chocolate is ingested, and the chocolate alone shows a relaxing effect, but the GABA-containing chocolate shows a much larger reduction, so it is more relaxed. It turns out that the effect is shown.

The result of the fluctuation | variation of CgA (chromogranin A) in saliva is shown in FIG. In general, it is said that the value of CgA in saliva shows a high value due to stress. From FIG. 3, it can be seen that while the CgA value does not change much in the control, the CgA value is greatly reduced when GABA-containing chocolate is ingested, and the stress is reduced.

FIG. 4 shows changes in IgA (immunoglobulin A) in saliva. In general, it is said that the value of IgA in saliva shows a high value due to stress. From FIG. 4, it can be seen that the control chocolate shows an increase in IgA, whereas the GABA-containing chocolate shows little variation. That is, there is a relaxing effect that suppresses an increase in the index of stress.

From the above results, it can be seen that GABA-containing chocolate shows a relaxing effect in each stress and relaxation index.

  The food and drink having a relaxing effect of the present invention provides a food and drink with a higher relaxing effect by combining GABA contained in common foods such as germinated brown rice, vegetables and fruits, and familiar chocolate and cocoa. be able to. It can be used to reduce stress and promote relaxation in a stressed society.

It is a graph showing the fluctuation | variation of alpha wave / beta wave among brain waves. The control shows the case where the control chocolate of Example 2 is ingested, and the GABA shows the case where the GABA-containing chocolate of Example 2 is ingested. Hereinafter, “control” and “GABA” in FIGS. It is a chart showing the fluctuation | variation of the state anxiety degree by a subjective survey. It is a chart showing the change rate of CgA (chromogranin A). It is a graph showing the change rate of IgA (immunoglobulin A).

Claims (3)

A food or drink having a relaxing effect, comprising γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) as an active ingredient and containing cocoa or a cocoa-derived material. 2. The food or drink having a relaxing effect according to claim 1, which contains 0.01% by mass or more of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). The food / beverage product which has a relaxing effect as described in any one of Claim 1 or 2 which contains 0.01 mass% or more of theobromine.

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