Feline Dietary Resistant Starch - Effects of Extrusion Shear Force
Food extrusion processes mixed ingredients to cook food through application of mechanical shear force and heat. This degrades higher-order starch structure to improve carbohydrate digestibility in the upper gastrointestinal tract. However, evidence indicates the role that digestion resistant starch plays in promoting health through activity of the gut microbiome. We examined the impact of reducing temperature and shear force in extrusion-based processing of feline foods to impact gut microbiome metabolites (postbiotics) related to cat gastrointestinal health.