Emulsion Gels for Dysphagia-Oriented Foods: Structural Engineering Strategies for Swallowing Performance and Targeted Gastrointestinal Delivery

Dysphagia presents a major challenge in food design, requiring products that simultaneously achieve swallowing safety, sensory acceptance, and adequate nutritional delivery. Emulsion gels have emerged as promising structured food systems because their tunable interfaces and three-dimensional networks enable precise control of texture, rheological behavior, and gastrointestinal functionality. This review summarizes recent advances in emulsion gel design for dysphagia-oriented foods, focusing on interfacial engineering, network construction, and processing strategies. The roles of protein-based, polysaccharide-based, and hybrid networks in regulating mechanical properties, bolus formation, lubrication behavior, and digestive stability are discussed. Furthermore, emerging strategies involving responsive structures, bioactive compound co-delivery, and microbiome-related functionality are highlighted. Current challenges, including the balance between structural stability and swallowability, the limitations of in vitro evaluation models, and the need for clinical validation, are critically examined. Future perspectives emphasize the integration of physiological models, digital design approaches, and personalized formulation strategies to accelerate the development of next-generation dysphagia-oriented foods.