3D Printing of Cincau Perdu (Premna oblongifolia) Hydrogel for Dysphagia Patient’s Food Application

TL;DR

Researchers explored using cincau perdu hydrogel for 3D printing dysphagia-friendly foods, finding it suitable and culturally relevant.

Contribution

The study introduces cincau perdu as a sustainable, single-ingredient hydrogel for 3D food printing tailored to dysphagia patients.

Findings

CP hydrogels can be rapidly prepared and adjusted for texture and syneresis.

3D constructs with desired geometry can be printed using 10 w/v% CP hydrogels.

CP hydrogels meet IDDSI level 5 criteria for dysphagia diets.

Abstract

This study investigates the feasibility of using cincau perdu (Premna oblongifolia) as a single-ingredient hydrogel ink for extrusion-based 3D food printing targeted for dysphagia-friendly applications. Cincau perdu (CP), also known as grass jelly, is a traditional jelly-like dessert popular in Southeast Asia. CP hydrogels could be rapidly prepared by microwave-assisted heating, followed by cooling to room temperature. The rheological properties, stiffness, and syneresis of the hydrogels could be adjusted by changing the hydrogels’ concentration. 3D constructs faithful to the blueprint could be fabricated using inks composed of 10 w/v% CP hydrogels. The textural properties were tunable by altering the geometry (grid type and height) of the printed construct. The CP hydrogels were categorized as level 5 (minced and moist) criteria based on the International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative (IDDSI), making them suitable for diets of patients with dysphagia. Taken together, these findings demonstrate the potential of CP hydrogels as a sustainable, naturally gelling, and culturally relevant material for 3D-printed diets for patients with dysphagia.

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