Investigating release kinetics of phenolics from defatted wheat germ incorporated chewing gums

Abstract BACKGROUND Wheat germ (WG) is a valuable by‐product of the commercial milling industry and is used as a functional ingredient in various foods. Therefore, in this study, it is aimed to utilize defatted wheat germ (DWG) (1%, 3%, 5%, 10%) in chewing gum formulation, which is a different food matrix besides the conventional structures, and investigate the release kinetics of phenolics from DWG incorporated chewing gums with a new centrifugation method. RESULTS According to the results, it was observed that DWG was a good source of total phenolics (2254.15 mg GAE kg −1 ). Based on the results obtained from texture profile and sensory analyses, DWG addition did not cause any reverse effect on the chewing gum texture. Centrifugation method was used to indirectly simulate the physical effects of the chewing process. In particular, after 5 min of chewing and centrifugation, phenolic release levels were 59.07% and 59.41%, respectively. The model used in the previous studies showed a better correlation than Korsmeyer–Peppas model for ABTS (2,2′‐azino‐bis‐(3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulphonic acid), CUPRAC (cupric ion reducing antioxidant capacity), and DPPH (2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl) assay results. CONCLUSION The results showed that phenolics release from gum base polymer matrix might be dominated by erosion of matrix due to chewing action. Similar phenolic release kinetics were obtained by centrifugation and chewing methods. Therefore, centrifuge equipment can be used to simulate the chewing forces acting on the gum when optimization is performed. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry