This naturally occurring anti-bittering compound reduces the bitter taste of certain foods and pharmaceuticals, improving their palatability and consumption. Bitterness is one of the five basic taste modalities. People have strong aversions to bitterness, particularly those in certain foods and medications, due to unpleasant taste and an impulsive response to stay away from toxic substances. Many healthy bioactive compounds found in natural products and medications are bitter, leading to avoidance of foods, such as fruits and vegetables, necessary for a healthy diet and reduced compliance with medications.
Chemical debittering, such as hydrolyzation of naringin in citrus fruits and coffee and tea decaffeination using organic solvents, is a widespread strategy for reducing the bitter taste in natural products and medications. However, undesired chemical byproducts often remain in the final products. For this reason, bitter masking using natural products constitutes a more beneficial tactic. Thus far, there are a limited number of natural products with bitter masking properties reported, and they are either not potent enough or constitute undesirable sweet or salty compounds associated with a higher risk of developing metabolic diseases or hypertension.
Researchers at the University of Florida have identified a naturally occurring compound in Allspice with effective bitter masking properties. When added to medications and nutraceuticals, this compound perceptibly reduces their intense bitter taste, even at moderate concentrations, making them more palatable and easier to consume.
Bitter taste masking natural compound properties for reducing bitter taste and improving the palatability of medications and nutraceuticals
This natural compound, derived from Allspice, possesses strong bitter inhibition properties. It binds to TAS2R14, an essential human bitter receptor belonging to the G protein-coupled receptors superfamily, to exert its function. The compound is sufficiently potent to perceptibly reduce the intensely bitter taste of compounds such as quinine, even at moderate concentrations (<100 ppm). When combined with some medications and nutraceuticals, the highly efficient bitter-masking ability enables improvement of their palatability, making them easier to consume. Additionally, in combination with other flavor-improving compositions, such as menthol, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, or sweet enhancers improve the composition's flavor.