Development of a marmalade for patients with type 2 diabetes: Sensory characteristics and acceptability.

Type 2 diabetes is one of the most common noncommunicable diseases worldwide. The quality of life of people with this metabolic disorder is highly related to nutrition, given that products for glycemic control are of great importance for them. In this study, we have developed marmalades for glycemic control with the aims to investigate the most important sensory characteristics, to study the impact of the sensory properties on the acceptability of these marmalades, and to evaluate a difference in the acceptability of the marmalade samples between healthy people and people with type 2 diabetes. The main objects of the investigation were agar-, gelatin-, and pectin-based marmalades with maltitol, dried fruits, and berries for glycemic control. By means of descriptive sensory analysis, we have shown that major factors of the sensory differentiation of marmalade samples are the type of gelling agent and presence of nonsoluble components such as apple puree, which influencing the perception of "off-flavor," "gumminess," and "springiness" sensory attributes. Results of this research show that even with significant differences in sensory attributes it is possible to develop marmalade for glycemic control that will have no differences in the total liking score for the perception of both healthy people and patients with type 2 diabetes.