JP4759289B2 - Calcium absorption promoting composition and use thereof - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a calcium absorption promoting composition containing difructose anhydride III (DFA III) and a typical application technique thereof, and in particular, can exhibit a higher calcium absorption promoting action. In addition, the present invention relates to a calcium absorption promoting composition capable of further reducing the volume of DFA III, and the use of foods and drinks and pharmaceuticals using the same.

  Among the minerals that are one of the five major nutrients, calcium is widely known to cause serious diseases such as osteoporosis, hypertension, and colon cancer when the intake is insufficient. Among these diseases, in particular, osteoporosis is known to develop with aging, and easily causes fractures. Therefore, depending on the fracture site, it tends to be a so-called “bedridden” state. According to one theory, the number of patients with osteoporosis is said to reach millions, and it is clear that the future of the aging society will progress further, so the increase in the number of patients with osteoporosis is a major social problem. It is considered to be.

  Here, in various bone diseases represented by osteoporosis, the main causes include insufficient intake of calcium, decreased calcium absorption ability, postmenopausal hormone imbalance, and the like. In order to prevent osteoporosis, it is extremely important to acquire as much bone mass as possible and increase the maximum bone mass from childhood to adolescence. It is important to consume more.

  However, the intake of calcium is still insufficient in the East Asian region including Japan. In particular, although the eating habits have improved in the current situation in Japan, the average eating habits of Japanese people are not sufficient. It is difficult to take a large amount of calcium. In this way, it is difficult at least in Japan to get enough calcium from the diet. In addition, sufficient intake of calcium is very difficult for those who cannot secure a sufficient amount of food, such as infants, elderly people, patients who are ill or prognostic. Furthermore, for women, calcium is generally a mineral that is easily deficient.

  Originally, the absorption rate of calcium is low, and if a sufficient amount cannot be taken from a daily meal, the risk of developing a disease due to calcium deficiency such as osteoporosis increases. Therefore, if the calcium absorption rate is improved without increasing the amount of calcium in the diet, it will be possible to effectively use the ingested calcium in the body and solve the problem of calcium deficiency. It is done.

  From such an idea, various studies on materials that promote calcium absorption have been conducted. Typical examples are (1) a composition combining calcium with amino acids and proteins, or a hydrolyzate of protein, (2) polysaccharides such as chitin, chitosan, chondroitin sulfate, (3) soymilk, natto, yeast. (4) Essence ingredients extracted from plants, shellfish, etc., (5) Active ingredients extracted from foods and raw materials used in (3) and (4) above , Etc. However, since many of these are easily decomposed in the digestive tract, it is often difficult to sufficiently ensure the calcium absorption promoting effect.

By the way, the present inventors have found that difructose anhydride III (hereinafter, abbreviated as DFA III as appropriate), which is an indigestible disaccharide, has an action of promoting absorption of calcium. A calcium absorption enhancing composition that can be used in foods and drinks has been proposed (see Patent Document 1). If this calcium absorption enhancing composition is taken orally, it is possible to efficiently absorb the little calcium taken.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-43438 (published on February 16, 1999)

  The calcium absorption enhancing composition containing the DFA III is an excellent one capable of effectively promoting calcium absorption. However, the following problems are encountered in improving the practicality of calcium absorption promotion applications.

  That is, for DFA III, an effective industrial production technique has not been known before, but recently, by making inulin II act on inulin, high-purity DFA III can be efficiently produced. Became possible.

  However, although industrial production has become possible, DFA III is currently expensive and costs more than several thousand yen per kg. Therefore, it is practically important to reduce the dose as much as possible, although it has become possible to use a higher dose than before. As described in Patent Document 1, it has been clarified that there is no problem with the safety of DFA III. However, in general, as a problem common to indigestible oligosaccharides, oral intake is If it increases, diarrhea is likely to occur. If DFA III is used in a calcium absorption promoting application, there is basically no need to consider such problems, but it is theoretically preferable to reduce the dose of DFA III in this respect as well. .

  As described above, in order to improve the practicality of DFA III in the calcium absorption promoting application, it is required that calcium can be effectively absorbed at a low dose, but such a technique has not been developed yet.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to further enhance the absorption promotion action of high calcium at a lower dose than before by enhancing the calcium absorption promotion action of DFA III. It is to provide a technology that can.

  As a result of intensive studies in view of the above problems, the present inventors can enhance the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III by using a combination of medium chain fatty acid known as so-called “health oil” and DFA III. As a result, the present invention has been completed.

  That is, the calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention contains difructose anhydride III (DFA III) and a medium chain fatty acid and / or a salt thereof or an ester thereof in order to solve the above problems. It is a feature.

  In the calcium absorption promoting composition, at least one of caprylic acid and capric acid, a sodium salt thereof, or an ester thereof can be used as the medium chain fatty acid and / or a salt thereof or an ester thereof. Moreover, you may contain other components, such as an oligosaccharide. Further, the medium chain fatty acid and / or salt thereof or ester thereof is preferably blended within a range of 1/6 to 3 times by weight with respect to the DFA III.

  The present invention includes a pharmaceutical composition containing the calcium absorption promoting composition. Examples of the pharmaceutical composition include foods and drinks, pharmaceuticals, and materials thereof. In particular, the foods and drinks can preferably include nutritional supplements.

  More specific examples of the pharmaceutical composition include, for example, calcium in addition to the DFA III and medium chain fatty acid (including salts and esters thereof), and are used at least for calcium supplementation. Mention may be made of compositions, i.e. compositions for calcium supplementation. The specific composition of the calcium supplement composition is not particularly limited, but as a more preferred example, the weight ratio of DFA III, medium chain fatty acid (including salts and esters thereof), and calcium, The composition which exists in the range of 1-3: 0.5-3: 0.2-3 can be mentioned.

  As described above, in the present invention, medium chain fatty acids (including salts and esters) are combined with DFA III, which is already known to have a calcium absorption promoting action. Thereby, since the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III can be further enhanced, calcium absorption can be effectively promoted with a small dose of DFA III. Therefore, it is possible to further improve the practicality as a calcium absorption promoting composition.

  An embodiment of the present invention will be described as follows, but the present invention is not limited to this.

  The calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention comprises difructose anhydride III (DiFructose Anhydride III, DFA III) and medium chain fatty acids and / or salts or esters thereof. In the following description, for convenience of explanation, the calcium absorption promoting composition may be simply abbreviated as “accelerating composition”.

[Essential ingredients]
DFA III is a disaccharide (di-D-fructofuranose-1,2 ': 2,3 dianhydride) in which two molecules of fructose are linked at 1, 2' and 2, 3 'and is indigestible. . The sweetness is about 1/2 that of sucrose, has high solubility in water, and has a bifidobacteria growth effect. Further, the present inventors have also found that it has a calcium absorption promoting action (Patent Document 1).

  The medium chain fatty acid is not particularly limited as long as it is a fatty acid having 6 to 12 carbon atoms. Specifically, caproic acid (hexanoic acid, carbon number 6), enanthic acid (heptanoic acid, carbon number 7), caprylic acid (octanoic acid, carbon number 8), pelargonic acid (nonanoic acid, carbon number 9), caprin Examples thereof include saturated fatty acids such as acids (decanoic acid, carbon number 10), hedecanoic acid (undecanoic acid, carbon number 11), and lauric acid (dodecanoic acid, carbon number 12). Alternatively, unsaturated fatty acids or the like within the range of these carbon numbers can also be suitably used. These fatty acids may have a straight chain structure, or may have a side chain or a branched chain. Of course, salts and esters of these medium chain fatty acids can be used in the present invention. Examples of the salt include sodium salts, and examples of the ester include lower alcohol esters of the above-mentioned medium chain fatty acids and triglycerides (that is, fats and oils).

  Only one kind of the medium chain fatty acid and / or salt or ester thereof may be used, or two or more kinds may be used in appropriate combination. For example, in the examples to be described later, caprylic acid (C8), capric acid (C10), and lauric acid (C12) are each used alone, but of course not limited thereto, the medium chain fatty acids described above, Medium chain fatty acid salts or medium chain fatty acid esters can be used in appropriate combinations, medium chain fatty acids and medium chain fatty acid esters can be combined, medium chain fatty acid salts and medium chain fatty acid esters can be combined, medium chain A combination of a fatty acid and a medium chain fatty acid salt can also be used.

  In general, among fatty acids, those having 2 to 6 carbon atoms are sometimes referred to as short chain fatty acids, those having 8 to 10 carbon atoms are referred to as medium chain fatty acids, and those having 12 or more carbon atoms are sometimes referred to as long chain fatty acids. These fatty acid categories are not absolute. In the present invention, any combination of DFA III and DFA III may be used as long as it can further enhance the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III. Therefore, as described above, a fatty acid having at least 6 to 12 carbon atoms or a salt thereof, or a salt thereof, Any ester can be used. Since the fatty acid contained in a general vegetable oil has about 18 carbon atoms, if combined with DFA III can enhance the calcium absorption promoting action, the fatty acid (or out of the above 6-12 range) (or Even salts thereof and esters thereof can be used in the present invention.

[Other ingredients]
The calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention may contain components other than the DFA III and the medium chain fatty acid and / or salt or ester thereof. Specific examples include various oligosaccharides. More specifically, in addition to fructo-oligosaccharides and raffinose, malto-oligosaccharides such as maltotriose, maltotetraose, maltopentaose and maltohexaose; isomalt-oligosaccharides; soybean oligosaccharides; fructooligosaccharides; galacto-oligosaccharides; Examples include, but are not limited to, maltulose, isolaffinose, palatinose, lactulose, trehalose, xylooligosaccharide, and the like. Among these, it is particularly preferable to use an oligosaccharide having a calcium absorption promoting action in combination.

  Furthermore, it is also possible to use in combination with other known substances and materials showing calcium absorption promoting action. For example, (1) a composition comprising a combination of calcium, amino acid, protein, or protein hydrolyzate, (2) polysaccharides such as chitin, chitosan, chondroitin sulfate, (3) soymilk, natto, yeast, etc. (4) Essence ingredients extracted from plants, shellfish, etc., (5) Active ingredients extracted from foods and ingredients used in (3) and (4) above, etc. By combining, it can be expected that a further excellent absorption effect of calcium is obtained.

  In addition, the calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention can contain calcium in addition to the DFA III and other components such as medium chain fatty acid (and / or salt or ester thereof) and oligosaccharide. Needless to say. However, one of the uses of the present invention is not to simply increase the intake of calcium but to improve the absorption efficiency of calcium contained in the meal (that is, not to increase the intake of calcium) Is assumed. For this reason, the accelerating composition according to the present invention can be used in combination with a normal meal or added to a normal meal and taken as it is. Therefore, the calcium content is not essential.

  Moreover, minerals other than calcium may also be included. Since DFA III is known to promote absorption of not only calcium but also magnesium and iron, these minerals can be contained in addition to calcium. However, as will be described later, the absorption promoting action by using a medium chain fatty acid and / or a salt thereof or an ester thereof together is effective only for calcium.

[Composition of accelerating composition]
Although the specific composition of the calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention is not particularly limited, it is possible to improve the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III by combining medium chain fatty acid with DFA III. It is possible to reduce the content of DFA III than before.

  Specifically, conventionally, for example, when calcium is contained in the accelerating composition, the content of DFA III is preferably 1 to 3 times or more by weight with respect to calcium, and 5 times or more. (Of course, it may be out of this range depending on the application and composition). Even in the present invention, DFA III can be contained so as to achieve such an amount, but the combined use of medium chain fatty acids can improve the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III by about 2 to 3 times. (For example, about twice in the examples described later). Therefore, if the calcium absorption promotion effect should be obtained to the same extent as in the case of DFA III alone, the content of DFA III in the promotion composition is 30 to 60% of that in the case of DFA III alone. It is possible to reduce to within the range.

  In addition, when it does not contain calcium, based on the amount of calcium in the meal to be ingested, the preferable range of the content of DFA III is set so that the composition according to the present invention can be ingested within the above preferable range. You only have to set it.

  The content of the medium chain fatty acid and / or salt or ester thereof is not particularly limited, but may be blended within a range of 1/6 to 3 times by weight with respect to the DFA III. preferable. By blending medium chain fatty acids and / or salts or esters thereof so as to be at least within this range, it is possible to exert an effect of reliably improving the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III. Therefore, when an example of the composition of the calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention is given, the weight ratio of DFA III is within the range of 1 to 3% and the medium chain fatty acid is within the range of 0.5 to 3%. Examples that fall within the range can be given, but the invention is of course not limited thereto.

  Moreover, what is necessary is just to set an appropriate quantity according to the use of the composition concerning this invention about content of other components (minerals, such as oligosaccharide and calcium), and it does not specifically limit.

  The method for producing the calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention is not particularly limited, and depending on the type and state of the promoting composition, each of the above components may be blended so as to have a desired composition by a known method. That's fine. In addition, since the specific use of this invention is mentioned later, the content described in the use is also included in the scope of the right of this invention regarding manufacture.

[Improved mineral absorption promotion effect of DFA III]
As shown in Examples described later, medium-chain fatty acids (particularly caprylic acid and capric acid) act jointly with DFA III, and strengthen the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III. In addition, in the case of using only medium chain fatty acids, no effect was observed on mineral absorption, and in combination with DFA III, only calcium absorption amount was further increased.

  It has been clarified that the DFA III promotes absorption of calcium, magnesium, and iron among minerals and increases the amount of iron in the liver and spleen (Reference 1: T. Suzuki, H. Hara , T. Kasai, F. Tomita: Effects of difructose anhydride III on calcium absorption in small and large intestines of rats. Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry, 62 (5), 837-841 (1998), Reference 2: Kaosar Afsana Kazuki Shiga, Satoshi Ishizuka, Hiroshi Hara: Ingestion of an indigestible saccharide, difructose anhydride III, restores tannic acid-induced suppression of iron absorption in rats. J. Nutr. 133 (11): 3553-3560 (2003)). Of these, calcium has been shown to promote absorption via Tight Junction (TJ) in the small intestine (Reference 3: H. Mineo, H. Hara, N. Shigematsu, Y. Okuhara, F. Tomita: Melibiose, difructose anhydride III and difructose anhydride IV enhance net calcium absorption in rat small and large intestinal epithelium by increasing the passage of tight junctions in vitro. The Journal of Nutrition, 132 (11): 3394-3399 (2002)). Here, medium chain fatty acids also have TJ opening action (Reference 4: Hitoshi Mineo, Hiroshi Hara, Norihiro Shigematsu, Fusao Tomita: Indigestible disaccharides open tight-junctions and enhance net calcium, magnesium and zinc absorption in isolated. rat small and large intestinal epithelium. Digestive Diseases and Sciences 49 (1): 122-132 (2004)). As shown in Examples described later, when the accelerating composition according to the present invention was used, no absorption action in the large intestine was observed.

  From this point, in the present invention, it can be seen that medium chain fatty acids (or salts and esters thereof) enhance the action occurring in the small intestine among the calcium absorption promoting actions of DFA III. As a result, calcium can be efficiently absorbed from the intestine.

  The above findings have been discovered by the present inventors through original intensive studies. Until now, various types of food materials having a calcium absorption promoting action are known, and it is also known to combine a plurality of types of food materials. Here, in the present invention, DFA III is a combination of medium-chain fatty acids and / or salts or esters thereof, for which special action / effect has not been known so far for promoting absorption of calcium. .

  In addition, phospholipids (for example, dipalmitoylphosphatidylethanolamine) are known as lipids that are known to have an effect on calcium absorption promotion (see JP-A-9-20676, publication date). : January 21, 1997). However, such an effect has not been known so far for medium-chain fatty acids, salts thereof or esters thereof, and as shown in the examples described later, calcium alone can be obtained by administration of medium-chain fatty acids alone. The absorption promotion effect is not seen. However, as a result of intensive studies by the present inventors, it has been clarified that the combination of the medium chain fatty acid, also known as health oil, and DFA III enhances the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III.

  As described above, the present invention has a great feature in using a medium chain fatty acid (or a salt or ester thereof) that has not been conventionally known in the technical field of calcium absorption promotion, as a nutritional component. The present invention can exhibit excellent effects and advantages more than simply combining known medium chain fatty acids with DFA III.

[Use of the present invention]
Although the utilization method of the calcium absorption promotion composition concerning this invention is not specifically limited, For example, it can use suitably as a nutrition composition for promoting absorption of calcium. The organism to be used for the nutritional composition is not particularly limited and may be any organism, but is typically a human, and other than that, domestic animals, laboratory animals, etc. are listed. be able to. The nutritional composition can be taken in any form, but the method of oral intake is most preferred. Therefore, the present invention also includes foods and drinks containing the above-mentioned accelerating composition.

  Since the food-drinks concerning this invention should just contain the said acceleration | stimulation composition, the kind is not specifically limited. Specifically, for example, biscuits, cookies, cakes, candy, chocolate, chewing gum, various Japanese confectionery, various Western confectionery, various frozen confectionery, etc .; bread, noodles, rice, cereal food, tofu or processed products thereof Processed foods such as sake, medicinal liquor, etc .; seasonings such as mirin, vinegar, soy sauce, miso, dressing, mayonnaise; livestock farm products such as ham, bacon, sausage; Processed foods; fruit juice drinks, soft drinks, sports drinks, alcoholic drinks, tea, soy milk, etc .; soups such as potage soups; dairy products such as milk, yogurt, cheese, milk drinks; However, it is not particularly limited. In addition, these foods may be in the form of prepared foods, lunch boxes, long-term preserved foods (canned foods, frozen foods, retort foods, etc.). The method of adding the accelerating composition to these general foods is not particularly limited, and any known appropriate method can be adopted depending on the type of the general food.

  In addition, the food and drink, for example, under the control of a dietitian based on a doctor's meal, add the calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention to any food when cooking in a hospital meal, It can also be given to patients in the form of food and drink prepared on site. Therefore, the calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention may be liquid or solid such as powder or granule. Alternatively, it may be an easily soluble preparation added to alcoholic beverages or mineral water at the time of use. Furthermore, the said food / beverage products can also be made into processing forms, such as a natural liquid food, a semi-digested-type nutrition food, a component nutrition food, or a drink.

  Moreover, the food / beverage products concerning this invention can mention the functional food used for the specific use which is not general foods, such as health food and nutritional food. Specific examples include dietary supplements such as various supplements and foods for specified health use. In the case of a supplement or the like, the above-mentioned accelerating composition can be used as it is by simply processing it into an appropriate shape, and a third component can be added and used as necessary.

  The calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention can be suitably used as a pharmaceutical product for promoting calcium absorption. Any route of administration of the pharmaceutical may be used, but oral administration is most preferable in view of the features and objects (problems) of the present invention.

  The pharmaceutical dosage form according to the present invention may be any dosage form that can be conveniently administered orally. Specific examples include liquid preparations such as suspensions, emulsions, and syrups; solid preparations such as powders, granules, tablets, capsules, intestinal solvents, and troches. These dosage forms can be used alone or in combination.

  In the said pharmaceutical, the well-known additive which can be normally used in a formulation technical field can be added according to the objective. Examples of such additives include excipients, binders, disintegrants, lubricants, corrigents, stabilizers, and the like, but are not particularly limited. More specifically, in the case of a solid preparation, for example, excipients such as lactose, glucose, sucrose and mannitol; disintegrants such as starch and sodium alginate; lubricants such as magnesium stearate and talc; Additives such as binders such as polyvinyl alcohol, hydroxypropyl cellulose, gelatin; surfactants such as fatty acid esters; plasticizers such as glycerin can be included in the preparation.

  In the case of a liquid preparation, for example, saccharides such as water, sucrose, sorbit, and fructose; glycols such as polyethylene glycol and propylene glycol; oils such as sesame oil, olive oil, and soybean oil; p-hydroxybenzoic acid ester Additives such as preservatives can be included in the formulation.

  In addition, as demonstrated in the said food-drinks, this invention can be used with forms, such as a supplement, However, Such a supplement can also be used similarly to the form of the said pharmaceutical formulation.

  In addition, the said food-drinks and a pharmaceutical can be used together with another vitamin agent, a hormone agent, another nutrient, or a trace element or an iron compound. For example, when the food or drink is a drink, other physiologically active ingredients, minerals, hormones, nutritional ingredients, flavoring agents, and the like can be mixed as necessary. Thereby, since it can give a taste like a favorite drink, it is preferable.

  The calcium absorption promoting composition according to the present invention can be suitably used as a food or drink, a pharmaceutical product, or a material thereof as described above. Therefore, the present invention encompasses a composition containing a component other than the basic components (DFA III, medium chain fatty acid and / or salt / ester, other components) of the calcium absorption promoting composition, Shall be called.

  Examples of the main use of the present invention include a use for promoting calcium absorption in a normal meal or for efficiently supplementing calcium in combination with a food or preparation containing calcium. Therefore, among the above pharmaceutical compositions, preferred use forms of the present invention include nutritional supplements. Examples of the form of the dietary supplement include the above supplements and drinks. Furthermore, the pharmaceutical composition according to the present invention can be effectively used as a drug for preventing osteoporosis.

  When the pharmaceutical composition is used as a dietary supplement or a pharmaceutical product, it is preferable to further contain calcium in addition to the DFA III and medium chain fatty acid (including salts and esters thereof). Thereby, the pharmaceutical composition according to the present invention can be suitably used as a calcium supplement composition. The specific composition of the calcium supplement composition is not particularly limited. For example, it is preferably used as the calcium supplement composition as long as it is within the range disclosed in [Composition of Accelerating Composition] described above. be able to.

  An example of a specific composition of the calcium supplement composition is DFA III: medium chain fatty acid (including salts and esters thereof): calcium = 1-3: 0.5-3: 0.2 by weight ratio. The composition which exists in the range of -3 can be mentioned.

  The present invention is not limited to the configurations described above, and various modifications can be made within the scope shown in the claims, and the technical disclosure disclosed in each of the above-described embodiments and examples to be described later is possible. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining means are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  Although this invention is demonstrated more concretely based on an Example and a comparative example and FIGS. 1-3, this invention is not limited to this. Those skilled in the art can make various changes, modifications, and alterations without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  In this example, 10-week-old male rats of the Sprague-Dawley strain (SD strain) were used, and the test breeding was carried out for 14 days in 8 groups shown in Table 1 below. The rats used in the experiment were preliminarily raised with a basic diet for 7 days before the experiment. The basic feed was prepared based on the AIN 93G standard feed.

  During the test breeding period, eight types of feed corresponding to the above groups were given by pair feeding. The 10th to 14th day was set as the balance test period, and the whole amount of feces for 4 days was collected.

  After the completion of the test breeding, the blood was sacrificed under pentobarbital anesthesia. The cecum was intentionally ligated at both ends, snap-frozen in liquid nitrogen, and stored in a −40 ° C. freezer. The contents were diluted to 5 times volume with distilled water and homogenized, then 1.5 ml of the contents were ashed, and the amount of calcium was measured by atomic absorption method.

  The collected feces were homogenized using a mortar after freeze-dried after adding distilled water to swell overnight. About 1.5 g was incinerated and the calcium content was measured. The results are shown in FIG.

  The addition of only each medium chain fatty acid to the feed did not change the calcium absorption. In contrast, the amount of calcium absorbed was increased by adding DFA III to the basic feed. Furthermore, the amount of calcium absorbed was further increased by adding caprylic acid or lauric acid to the feed containing DFA III.

  Here, it is known that the calcium absorption action of DFA III occurs in the small and large intestines. Of these, the action in the large intestine is known to depend on colonic fermentation by enteric bacteria. Therefore, the cecum, which is the site of fermentation of large intestine in rats, was analyzed.

  FIG. 2 shows the pH of the cecal contents, and FIG. 3 shows the amount of calcium solubilized in the cecal contents. As shown in FIG. 2, it can be seen that when DFA III is added to the feed, the pH of the cecal contents is lowered. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 3, the calcium solubilized in the cecum also increases. However, these values did not increase due to the addition of medium chain fatty acids when compared with the case where DFA III and medium chain fatty acids were not added to the basic feed (see FIG. 3). Therefore, the addition of medium-chain fatty acids enhances the calcium absorption promoting action by DFA III, indicating that the action occurs in the small intestine.

  As described above, in the present invention, the calcium absorption promoting action of DFA III can be further improved. Therefore, it becomes possible to promote calcium absorption at a low dose. Therefore, the present invention can be used not only effectively in the fields of various functional foods and health foods but also as prophylactic or therapeutic agents for bone-related diseases such as osteoporosis.

In an Example, it is a graph which shows the calcium content in the feces of the rat which received the feed containing the calcium absorption promotion composition concerning this invention. In an Example, it is a graph which shows pH of the cecum contents in the rat which received the feed containing the calcium absorption promotion composition concerning this invention. In an Example, it is a graph which shows the quantity of the solubilized calcium of the cecum contents in the rat which received the feed containing the calcium absorption promotion composition concerning this invention.

Claims (9)

A calcium absorption promoting composition comprising difructose anhydride III (DFA III) and a salt of caprylic acid and / or a salt of capric acid . The calcium absorption promoting composition according to claim 1, wherein a sodium salt of caprylic acid and / or a sodium salt of capric acid is used as the salt of caprylic acid and / or capric acid .   Furthermore, the oligosaccharide is contained, The calcium absorption promotion composition of Claim 1 or 2 characterized by the above-mentioned. 4. The caprylic acid salt and / or capric acid salt is blended within a range of 1/6 to 3 times the weight ratio of the DFA III. 2. The calcium absorption promoting composition according to item 1.   A pharmaceutical composition comprising the calcium absorption promoting composition according to any one of claims 1 to 4.   The pharmaceutical composition according to claim 5, wherein the pharmaceutical composition is used as a food or drink, a medicine, or a raw material thereof.   The pharmaceutical composition according to claim 6, wherein the food or drink is a dietary supplement.   The pharmaceutical composition according to any one of claims 5 to 7, which further contains calcium and is used at least for calcium supplementation. The weight ratio of DFA III, caprylic acid salt and / or capric acid salt , and calcium is in the range of 1-3: 0.5-3: 0.2-3, respectively. Item 9. A pharmaceutical composition according to Item 8.

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