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KONJAC POWDER

Glucomannan is a dietary fiber, deriving from the tuber of a plant that belongs to the family of the Araceae and originally from South East Asia, called konjac or JU RUO (pronounced in Chinese) by the Chinese people, and called by the Japanese KONNYAKU in accordance with the Chinese pronunciation for JU RUO.

Origin

Konjac is grown in mountain or hilly areas in subtropical regions at yearly average temperature of +16℃ and at height of 800 m above sea level, i.e. the regions from Indonesia southward with rainforest climate around the equator to the monsoon regions in the southwestern part of China, thirty-six degrees north latitude, including Japan eastward. In Indonesia and Thailand only a few konjac planting areas are located, and no konjac-processing industry has been formed yet. In Burma the plant Amorphophallus konjac can be found wild growing.
In China, uses of konjac as food and medicine have been of such long time as over 2,000 years, and uses as food in Japan more than 1,500 years. Nowadays, konjac processing and planting in China and Japan has formed a industry with high technology, and konjac products have found many applications in natural food, food additive, medicine, chemicals, petroleum, and lightindustry etc.

Chemistry Characteristic

The Amorphophallus konjac tubers contain a significant quantity of on-absorb polysaccharide with special properties ( dietary fiber, gelatinizing, intestine cleaning agent, cholesterol and blood sugar reducing ) called konjacmannan or more correctly, glucomannan, which is separated into glucose and mannose by hydrolysis ( molecular ratio 1:1.6 ). The fresh konjac contains an average of 13.3% dry matter ( 7.5:1 ). 64% of the dry matter is glucomannan: 30.6% is starch.
In China and Japan now, the traditional processing method, in accordance with the characteristics of konjac, has been substituted by an advanced non-deterioration technological process so that the

highly pure glucomannan has been obtained. The non-detercaration technological process is to grind physically and chemical purify by ethanol.
The original characteristics of the KGM are not influenced by subsequent chemical purification: partly refined Glucomannan PPKM and strongly refined Glucomannan HPKM have the same basic characteristics of the KGM. And it seems that they are only connected to the high molecular weight and the viscosity of the "gel" obtained.
On the other hand, the nutrition and dietary characteristics of Glucomannan (above all with regard to the lowering of the cholesterol level and cleansing the harmful substances from intestines) refer to the type of Amorphophallus konjac and depend on the origin, method of preparation of the tubers and all other factors that could affect molecular weight or form and dimension of the polysaccharide molecule.

Function

1.The mechanism of action of konjac powder is related to the ability of dietary fiber to increase the viscosity of the gastrointestinal contents, to promote bowel action, but to slow the emptying of stomach.
2.The solution of konjac powder forms a layer around food materials which prevents the digestive enzymes from acting on them. It contributes no calories to the metabolism.
3.Konjac powder quickly satisfies the appetite, because of its expansion when it absorbs liquid.
4.By restraining the absorption of liquids and other substances with high calories in the small intestine, konjac powder functions as an effective dietary supplement that acts naturally and easily, without forced restriction of food intake. In clinical trials, too, for instance in case of diabetes mellitus, it has produced excellent results.
5.By its absorption of cholesterol, bile acids, heavy metals and edible coloring matter, konjac powder prevents their absorption by the intestinal wall and facilitates their elimination from the body. As a result, the serum cholesterol and serum triglyceride levels may be reduced.
6.Konjac powder dilutes the intestinal contents any noxious substances they may contain by a factor of 2 or 3.
7.Konjac powder increases both the intestinal control and the production of foods by factor of between 3 and 5, accelerating the passage of digestion materials through the gut. It is thus extremely effective as a remedy for constipation and in the elimination of harmful substances.

Properties

1.One particle of konjac powder consists of extremely long thread-like macro molecules tangled together. When it comes in contact with water, water molecules enter and are absorbed into the chain, gradually causing the particle to swell to about 200 times as its original volume, and turning the konjac powder into viscous liquid.
2.Konjac powder has the highest molecular weight and viscosity among any dietary fiber known to science, and has extremely high density.
3.The viscosity of a 1% diluted solution of konjac powder at 25℃will generally reach at least 10,000mpa.s. Within the first hour after dissolving, konjac powder does not become very viscous, and

魔芋的块茎
Konjac Tuber

so it can be drunk easily. However, one or two hours later--that is, before much of the food has entered the small intestine-it begins to show a very high degree of viscosity. The highest viscosity is reached five or six hours after konjac powder is placed in water, and it will maintain this viscosity for around 3 hours.
4.Konjac powder's high level of activity is due to its purities.
5.Since konjac powder contains virtually no impurities, it has special odor and white colour.
6.Because of its linked b-1-4 structure of glucose and mannose, konjac powder is not affected by human digestive enzymes in the small intestine and contributes no calories.
7.The alcohol-purification process has removed all harmful impurities and konjac powder has not been found to cause any side-effects at all. This has been verified in man by hematological tests over a two year administration period, and in animal experiments on five successive generations of rats and mice.

Medical

studies Recent studies showed that glucomannan and other dietary fibers can be used successfully for the reduction of the insulin dosage and similar preparations for the treatment of diabetics. These fibers increase the viscosity of stomach content and slow down the evacuation of the stomach. Simultaneously, they form a barrier around the taken food which prevents or at least slows down their assimilation.
With the already mentioned mechanism, the viscosity seems to be the most important factor to reduce the increased blood sugar level after a meal and for its general stabilisation.
Guar Gum or Galactomannan (deriving from the seeds of the legume "Cyanopsis tetragomaloba" and consisting of galactose and mannan is the molecular ratio 1:2) was, until recently, considered to be a dietary fiber with the highest viscosity and as being most effective in reducing blood sugar is directly mixed with the standard test solution. level. This difference is even bigger if glucomannan Although only small quantities of Glucomannan were used, the results were excellent. With diabetics(adults were given Glucomannan,3.2-7.2 g for 90 days, in addition to their usual food. After 20 days, the cholesterol level lowered by 11.2% and the glycemia with an empty stomach by 29%. Afterwards, 2.6 g Glucomannan were given to 5 healthy persons. A glucose tolorance test showed a lowering of the glycemia by 7.3% and of the serum insulin concentration by 13%.
The ability to absorb high-calories substances in the stomach and small intestine is much higher with Glucomannan than with other dietary fibers: the cholesterol content in the blood serum and in the liver was significantly reduced if Glucomannan of the type KGM as well as WRP were added to a high-cholesterol diet.
The mechanism of the lowering of the cholesterol level seems to be directly connected with a reduced absorption of cholesterol from the food because glucomannan has the ability to inhibit solubilizing of the cholesterol itself.
The typical characteristics of the lowering of cholesterol and blood sugar can only be found with Glucomannan which has a molecular weight of min. 9×105 (up to 12×105 ) and a radius of rotation RG（measured with "light scattering" methods）of min. 1,000 angstrom (up to 1,400); i.e. with those types which exhibit a high viscosity in aqueous solution.
An indirect test of the effects of Glucomannan from different origins can be made by determination of the viscosity of the solution of glucomannan in water: The higher the viscosity, the higher the effect.

Registration

Konjac is not only used as traditional foods in China, Japan, South-east Asia; it is also registered for food usage in EU nowadays. See the official EU gazette dated Nov.4,1999 : No.--L295127, E-425, and Maximum dosage--10g/kg.