Edible Arabic rubber |Ocu

Arabic rubber is obtained from a variety of acacias that exudate this kind of resin of cracks that open in their trunks, serving as a tree protection since they seal wounds and avoid the entry of germs.It is a natural polysaccharide that is approved and used as an additive by the food industry under the number E-414.

Uses in the food industry

Arabic rubber is used as a thickener, conferring elasticity, and as an emulsifier, being completely soluble in water.It is widely used in the elaboration of jelly beans, gum or candies, although it is also used to give greater elasticity to fine pastries, such as mazapanes due to their properties, since it retards the crystallization of sugar and emulsifies the fatty ingredients.

In refreshing drinks it is useful to give texture and increase their effervescent power and, in the wine sector, it serves to clarify the broths giving it once bottled.We can also find it in dietary products used as a fiber source.

Do you have undesirable effects?

Cases of flatulence have been notified in some people when high doses of Arabian rubber are consumed, but beyond this, to date no adverse effects associated with their consumption have been reported.That is why the European Food Security Authority (EFSA) considers that there is no security problem in the use of Arabic rubber as a food additive.

Other natural thickeners

Within the group of thickeners and gellifiers we also have the xantano rubber, the garrofín rubber, the guar rubber, the agar -agar, the pectins, the Carrogenans and the starches, among others.Some of them are in commercial sauces, in prepared foods, ice cream, in the meat sector and in general, in endless food since they are substances that, when added to a mixture, increase their viscosity without substantially modifying their other properties such asflavor.

Many foods include additives in their composition.Sometimes they are useful, sometimes unnecessary and in some cases they have negative health effects.Learn to identify them in:

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