Short-term digestive tolerance of chocolate formulated with maltitol in children.

Introduction: Polyols are molecules of interest for food industries because of their technological and nutritional properties. Maltitol is known for its non-acidogenic and low-energetic properties. Our primary objective was to evaluate the digestive tolerance of maltitol in children. The secondary objective was to compare the organoleptic properties of maltitol and sucrose in chocolate.

Method: Healthy children were included in a double-blind, randomized parallel study versus placebo. The subjects received one dose of either maltitol or sucrose chocolate per week. Increasing doses were tested from 5 to 15 g maltitol in chocolate. Abdominal pain, rumbling, bloating and flatulence scores were evaluated using visual analog scales.

Results: Some statistical differences on intestinal parameters were observed in the maltitol group compared with placebo, mainly concerning flatulence scores. Nevertheless, these scores remained low and could be considered minor.

Conclusion: Our results suggest that maltitol was well tolerated in children at 15 g in one intake.