Supplementation of Javanese Long Pepper Extracts into Sucrose-Free Hard Candy for Improving Antibacterial Activity against Streptococcus mutans

Abstract

Hard candy was made from the mixture of sucrose, glucose, and water. However, the excessive intake of sucrose can cause serious dental problems such as dental caries. Sucrose in hard candy formula is replaceable, using xylitol with the calory content of 40% lower than sucrose, while it also supresses the bacterial growth of Streptococcus mutans causing dental caries. Hard candy functionality is improved by addition of Javanese long pepper extracts containing various chemicals such as alkaloid, saponin, and piperin found up to 4-6%, and they exert antibacterial activity. This current work characterized the quality (i.e., color, pH, solubility time, sensory) of sucrose-free hard candy supplemented with Javanese long pepper extracts, and evaluated the antibacterial effect against Streptococcus mutans causing dental caries. The experiment followed a non-factorial completely randomized design consisting of different proportions of xylitol and glucose: 0:50, 30:80, 35:85, and 20:90, carried out at triplicates. As a result, the higher concentration of xylitol positively affected the characteristics of sucrose-free hard candy, including color, pH, and sensory properties. In addition, the concentration of xylitol showed positive impact to inhibition of Streptococcus mutans.