Data from the Ministry of Health’s Basic Health Research (Riskesdas) reported in 2018 that 21.8% of Indonesians were obese. This number continues to increase every year. Four UGM students developed an anti-obesity snack bar rich in dietary fiber to support government programs in reducing obesity.
“This anti-obesity snack bar product is made from rice crust, cornflakes, and dried longan as a flavor enhancer,” said Dina Clarissa Kurniawan, team leader of UGM Student Creativity Program (PKM), on Friday (17/9). This research was funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture, Research and Technology. Apart from Dina, the team includes Felicia Irawan (TPHP 2018), Secundina Frida Hoki Harlanda (TPHP 2018), and Veronika Dewi Pratanjani Prasasta (Health Nutrition 2018) under the supervision of Dr. Arima Diah Setiowati.
According to Dina, snack bars have good potential to be developed and produced as a functional food with anti-obesity activity. Its efficient and acceptable form to Indonesians is the main reason for choosing a snack bar to delay hunger during activities. Although classified as simple food, said Dina, rice crust was chosen as the basic ingredient for making snack bars. In general, rice crust is made by frying using oil, but in this project, it is modified into functional food by other processing methods, specifically repeated heating and cooling without oil. “Of course, it is expected to increase the nutritional benefits and economic value,” she said.
In addition, the use of other ingredients such as cornflakes and dried longan is intended to add flavor to the snack bar. “The sweet taste of dried longan, as well as the crunchy texture of rice crust and cornflakes, make this snack bar potentially become a popular alternative to snacking culture,” she said.
The development of this anti-obesity snack bar has gone through the testing stage, specifically the levels of type 3 resistant starch in modified rice crust of the hormone leptin to suppress hunger and prevent leptin resistance in obese patients. Type 3 resistant starch will then be fermented by the gut microbiota to produce short chain fatty acids. It plays a role in activating certain receptors for regulating the secretion of the hormone leptin, which can suppress appetite and hunger. Through the regulation of the leptin hormone, this rice crust snack bar can contribute to supporting the reduction in the prevalence of obesity by suppressing hunger and preventing leptin resistance in obese patients,” she concluded.
