Acceptability of Carbohydrate Gels During a 5-Day U.S. Marine Corps Basic Officer Course Field Exercise

摘要

Warfighters typically undereat relative to their energy expenditure during field training and deployments. Carbohydrate supplements in liquid and solid form provide a means of enhancing carbohydrate and total caloric intake when soldiers are likely to consume insufficient rations. Liquid and solid carbohydrate ration supplements have been developed for use by the U.S. military. Commercial carbohydrate gels, used by the sporting community but not by the military, were assessed for acceptability with regard to taste, texture, and how likely soldiers or Marines would use them during a 5-day field exercise. Fifty Marines were provided 2 packets per day of commercial carbohydrate gels (Power Gel, Power Par, Inc., Berkeley, CA, and GU, Sports Street Marketing, Berkeley, CA) and completed a questionnaire on the acceptability of carbohydrate gels they either consumed or sampled at the end of their training exercise. This was not a controlled study, but rather a market assessment of the potential use of gels while training or deployed. Not all Marines consumed all flavors, and the order of consumption was not controlled or monitored. The Marines rated the carbohydrate gels as moderately acceptable, and 84% of Marines thought they were 'very likely' or 'extremely likely' to use them in the field, particularly when relying on Meals, Ready-to-Eat (MREs) as the primary source of food. Carbohydrate gels were not rated as highly as ERGO Drink, a carbohydrate beverage powder. The ERGO Drink ratings were from a previous study with Marines undergoing similar training. The commercial tear-top packages present problems for use by the military because of (1) disposal problems, (2) all the gel would have to be consumed immediately after opening because the package cannot be resealed, and (3) the potential leakage of the product if package is torn. In conclusion, commercial carbohydrate gels were moderately acceptable but do no compare favorably with ERGO Drink.