Editing Inulin (section)

===Processed foods===
Inulin received no-objection status as [[generally recognized as safe]] (GRAS) from the U.S. [[Food and Drug Administration]] (FDA),<ref>{{cite web |title=Agency Response Letter GRAS Notice No. GRN 000118 |url=https://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/GRAS/NoticeInventory/ucm153932.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150822003350/http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/GRAS/NoticeInventory/ucm153932.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 22, 2015 |publisher=US Food and Drug Administration |author=Rulis, Alan M. |date=5 May 2003}}</ref> including long-chain inulin as GRAS.<ref>{{cite web |title=Agency Response Letter GRAS Notice No. GRN 000576 |url=https://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/GRAS/NoticeInventory/ucm489503.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160505004605/http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/GRAS/NoticeInventory/ucm489503.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 5, 2016 |publisher=US Food and Drug Administration |date=9 December 2015 |author=Keefe, Dennis M.}}</ref> In the early 21st century, the use of inulin in processed foods was due in part to its adaptable characteristics for manufacturing.<ref name="slavin">{{Cite journal |last=Slavin |first=Joanne |date=2013-04-22 |title=Fiber and Prebiotics: Mechanisms and Health Benefits |journal=Nutrients |volume=5 |issue=4 |pages=1417–1435 |doi=10.3390/nu5041417 |issn=2072-6643 |pmc=3705355 |pmid=23609775|doi-access=free }}</ref> It is approved by the FDA as an ingredient to enhance the dietary fiber value of manufactured foods.<ref name=fda/> Its flavor ranges from bland to subtly sweet (about 10% of the sweetness of sugar/sucrose). It can be used to replace sugar, fat, and flour. This is advantageous because inulin contains 25–35% of the [[food energy]] of carbohydrates (starch, sugar).<ref>{{cite journal | pmid = 10395615 | volume=129 | issue=7 Suppl | title=Caloric value of inulin and oligofructose | journal=J. Nutr. | pages=1436S–7S | last1 = Roberfroid | first1 = M. B. | year=1999| doi=10.1093/jn/129.7.1436S | doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>[http://jn.nutrition.org/content/129/7/1436.full.pdf "Caloric Value of Inulin and Oligofructose"]{{Dead link|date=January 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}.</ref> In addition to being a versatile ingredient, inulin provides nutritional advantages by increasing [[calcium]] absorption<ref>{{cite journal |author=Abrams S. |author2=Griffin I. |author3=Hawthorne K. |author4=Liang L. |author5=Gunn S. |author6=Darlington G. |author7=Ellis K. | title = A combination of prebiotic short- and long-chain inulin-type fructans enhances calcium absorption and bone mineralization in young adolescents | journal = Am. J. Clin. Nutr. | volume = 82 | issue = 2 | pages = 471–476 | year = 2005 | pmid = 16087995 | doi=10.1093/ajcn.82.2.471| doi-access = free }}</ref> and possibly [[magnesium]] absorption,<ref>{{cite journal |author=Coudray C. |author2=Demigné C. |author3=Rayssiguier Y. | title = Effects of dietary fibers on magnesium absorption in animals and humans | journal = J. Nutr. | volume = 133 | issue = 1 | pages = 1–4 | year = 2003 | pmid = 12514257| doi = 10.1093/jn/133.1.1 | doi-access = free }}</ref> while promoting the growth of intestinal [[bacteria]].<ref name=slavin/> Chicory inulin is reported to increase absorption of calcium in young women with lower calcium absorption<ref>{{cite journal |last=Griffin |first=I. J. |author2=P. M. Hicks |author3=R. P. Heaney |author4=S. A. Abrams |title=Enriched chicory inulin increases calcium absorption mainly in girls with lower calcium absorption |journal=Nutr. Res. |year=2003 |volume=23 |issue=7 |pages=901–909 |doi=10.1016/s0271-5317(03)00085-x}}</ref> and in young men.<ref name="Roberfroid 2003 13–26">{{cite journal |last=Roberfroid |first=M. B. |title=Introducing inulin-type fructans |journal=Br. J. Nutr. |year=2003 |volume=93 |pages=13–26 |doi=10.1079/bjn20041350 |pmid=15877886 |doi-access=free}}</ref> In terms of nutrition, it is considered a form of [[Dietary fiber|soluble fiber]] and is sometimes categorized as a prebiotic. It is also considered a [[FODMAP]], a class of carbohydrates which are rapidly fermented in the [[large intestine|colon]] producing gas.<ref name=slavin/> Although FODMAPs may cause certain digestive discomfort in some people, they produce potentially favorable alterations in the [[intestinal flora]] that contribute to maintaining health of the colon.<ref name="MakhariaCatassi2015">{{cite journal |author=Makharia A. |author2=Catassi C. |author3=Makharia G. K. |title=The Overlap between Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity: A Clinical Dilemma |journal=Nutrients |year= 2015 |volume= 7 |issue=12 |pages=10417–26 |pmid=26690475 |doi=10.3390/nu7125541 |pmc=4690093 |type=Review |doi-access=free }} </ref><ref name="GreerOKeefe2015">{{cite journal |author=Greer J. B. |author2=O'Keefe S. J. |title=Microbial induction of immunity, inflammation, and cancer |journal=Front Physiol |year=2011 |volume=1 |page=168 |pmid=21423403 |doi=10.3389/fphys.2010.00168 |pmc=3059938 |type=Review |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name="AndohTsujikawa2003">{{cite journal |author=Andoh A. |author2=Tsujikawa T. |author3=Fujiyama Y. |title=Role of dietary fiber and short-chain fatty acids in the colon |journal=Curr. Pharm. Des. |year=2003 |volume=9 |issue=4 |pages=347–58 |pmid=12570825 |type=Review |doi=10.2174/1381612033391973 }} </ref>

Due to the body's limited ability to process fructans, inulin has minimal increasing impact on [[blood sugar]], and may potentially have use in managing blood sugar-related illnesses, such as [[metabolic syndrome]].<ref name="liu">{{cite journal |pmid=27623982 |year=2017 |last1=Liu |first1=F. |title=Effect of inulin-type fructans on blood lipid profile and glucose level: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials |journal=European Journal of Clinical Nutrition |volume=71 |issue=1 |pages=9–20 |last2=Prabhakar |first2=M. |last3=Ju |first3=J. |last4=Long |first4=H. |last5=Zhou |first5=H. W. |doi=10.1038/ejcn.2016.156|s2cid=13767136 }}</ref>