Consumption of foods with low glycemic index (G.I.) by diabetic patients helps maintain their blood sugar at acceptable levels. Ordinary jam has a high G.I. The purpose of the present investigation was to prepare a dietetic jam using nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners. The investigation was carried out in four steps. First, glycyrrhizin was extracted from licorice extract powder, its ammonium form was prepared, and its purity was assay by HPLC. Secondly, based on a completely randomized design various types of jam were prepared using different combinations of sorbitol, fructose and ammonium glycyrrhizin. Thirdly, the prepared jams and their reference controls were evaluated for color, flavor, texture and overall acceptability by a selected taste-panel and were also subjected to physical analysis using Hunter Lab colorimeter and Bostwick consistometer. Two jam preparations were finally selected on the basis of their overall acceptability. Finally, glycemic indices of the selected jams were determined using NIDDM volunteers. The results showed that ammonium-glycyrrhizin enhances the overall acceptability of the selected product (P<0.05). As G.I. values for the selected jams were low (23.5 and 23.9), their consumption by diabetic patients and their production on a commercial scale are recommended.

Keywords: Dietetic jam, Diabetes, Quality control, Sweetener combination, Clinical evaluation.

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