Nutritionally balanced composite meal for infants and small children and a method of producing said meal

Abstract

The present invention relates to a nutritionally balanced composite meal for infants/small children, comprising at least one carbohydrate containing meal component and at least one protein containing meal component, and a method of producing said meal.

1 . A nutritionally balanced composite meal for infants, said composite meal comprising:
 at least one carbohydrate containing meal component and at least one protein containing meal component;   said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component being disintegrated, homogenized or minced, and said carbohydrate containing meal component being packaged separately from said protein containing meal component,   wherein starch in said carbohydrate containing meal component is gelatinized and any enzyme inhibitors in said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component are inactivated, and   the Insulinaemic Index (II) (white wheat bread reference determined) of said composite meal is not more than 100% above the Glycaemic Index (GI) (white wheat bread reference determined) of said composite meal.   
     
     
         2 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component have been heat treated. 
     
     
         3 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 2 , wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component have been boiled, oven-baked, steam injected or steam cooked, infra-red-or microwave treated, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         4 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component are freeze-dried and packaged in airtight and light protected packages; or wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component frozen and packaged in air-tight and light protected packages. 
     
     
         5 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component are separately divided and frozen into suitable portions adjusted for the age of the infant. 
     
     
         6 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein starch in said carbohydrate containing meal component is fully gelatinized. 
     
     
         7 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein carboxymethyl-lysine (CML) levels for the composite meal are lower than 72 mg/kg protein as measured using ELISA methodology. 
     
     
         8 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein the composite meal has a value, obtained by multiplying the Glycaemic Index (GI) (white wheat bread reference determined) and the Insulinaemic Index (II) (white wheat bread reference determined) of said composite meal (GI×II), that does not exceed 10,000. 
     
     
         9 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein:
 starch in said carbohydrate containing meal component is fully gelatinized;   carboxymethyl-lysine (CML) levels in said composite meal are kept lower than 72 mg/kg protein as measured using ELISA methodology;   the composite meal has a value, obtained by multiplying the Glycaemic Index (GI) (white wheat bread reference determined) and the Insulinaemic Index (II) (white wheat bread reference determined) of said composite meal (GI×II), that does not exceed 10,000; and   the Insulinaemic Index (II) (white wheat bread reference determined) of said composite meal is not more than 100% above the Glycaemic Index (GI) (white wheat bread reference determined) of said composite meal.   
     
     
         10 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein the carbohydrate containing meal component is selected from the group consisting of cereals, pseudo-cereals, tubers, legumes and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         11 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein the protein containing meal component is selected from the group consisting of meat, fish, poultry, egg, milk, protein rich vegetable sources from the group consisting of soy, quinoa, cereals, myco-protein and combinations thereof 
     
     
         12 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component or said protein containing meal component further comprises at least one probiotic bacteria. 
     
     
         13 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 12 , wherein the probiotic bacteria is selected from the group consisting of  Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Roseburia, Akkermancia, Prevotella  and a combination thereof. 
     
     
         14 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component further comprises at least one prebiotic carbohydrate. 
     
     
         15 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 14 , wherein the prebiotic carbohydrate is selected from the group consisting of inulins, fructans, arabinoxylans, arabinogalactans, galacto-oligosaccharides, beta-glucans, resistant starch, lactulose, raffinose, melibiose and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         16 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 1 , wherein said carbohydrate containing meal component and said protein containing meal component are separately packaged into strands consisting of separable units made of e.g. plastic, paper, aluminium. 
     
     
         17 . The nutritionally balanced composite meal according to  claim 16 , wherein the units are differently colored to identify the nutritional characteristic and facilitate the choice of units to create a balanced composite meal, and wherein the protein containing component have one color and the carbohydrate containing component has another color.