Table 3.

Summary of carbohydrate fractions, ingredient sources, and physiological properties of nonstarch polysaccharides in foods and feed ingredients (adapted from [94]).

Characteristic	Nonstarch Polysaccharides
	Cellulose	Hemicelluloses	β-glucans	Pectins	Gums and Mucilages	Fructans
Fractions	-	Arabinogalactans Glucans Arabinoxylans Glucuronoxylans Xyloglucans Galactomannans Pectin substances	Oat β-glucan, Barley β-glucan	-	Galactomannans Guar (PHGG) Locust bean gum (carob) Carob galactomannan Tara galactomannan	Gum (acacia) Gum (karaya) Gum (tragacanth)	Alginates Agar Carrageenan	Xanthan Gellan	Psyllium	Inulin Oligofructose
Ingredient sources	Brans Legumes Nuts Peas Cereals Functional fibers	Brans Cereal grains Legumes Nuts Vegetables Fruit Functional fibers	Oats Barley Rye	Fruits Vegetables Legumes Potato Sugar beets	Legumes Seed extracts (endosperm)	Tree extracts	Seaweed extracts (algal polysaccharides)	Microbial gums	Outer layer of seeds of plantain family	Chicory root Onion Artichoke Agave Wheat
Physicochemical properties a,b,c,d	Insoluble, Poorly to moderately fermentable	Insoluble, Poorly to moderately fermentable	Soluble, Viscous, Readily fermentable	Soluble, Readily fermentable	Soluble, Viscous (some), Readily fermentable	Soluble, Viscous (some gums), Readily fermentable	Soluble, Viscous (some), Readily fermentable	Soluble, Viscous (some), Readily fermentable	Soluble, Highly viscous, Not fermentable	Soluble, Nonviscous, Fermentable

^a Soluble fiber has the ability to dissolve in water. ^b Insoluble fiber does not dissolve in water and remains as discrete particles. ^c Viscosity is the ability of some polysaccharides to thicken and form a gel when hydrated. ^d Fermentability is the extent of fiber that resisted digestion in the small intestine be degraded by microbiota in the cecum and colon to produce short-chain fatty acids and gas.