Abstract
Objective. The objective was to compare the postprandial glycemic and insulinemic responses to nutrition bars containing either cross-linked RS type 4 (RS4XL) or standard wheat starch in normoglycemic adults (n = 13; age = 27 ± 5 years; BMI = 25 ± 3 kg/m2). Methods. Volunteers completed three trials during which they consumed a glucose beverage (GLU), a puffed wheat control bar (PWB), and a bar containing cross-linked RS4 (RS4XL) matched for available carbohydrate content. Serial blood samples were collected over two hours and glucose and insulin concentrations were determined and the incremental area under the curve (iAUC) was calculated. Results. The RS4XL peak glucose and insulin concentrations were lower than the GLU and PWB (P < .05). The iAUC for glucose and insulin were lower following ingestion of RS4 compared with the GLU and PWB trials. Conclusions. These data illustrate, for the first time, that directly substituting standard starch with RS4XL, while matched for available carbohydrates, attenuated postprandial glucose and insulin levels in humans. It remains to be determined whether this response was due to the dietary fiber and/or resistant starch aspects of the RS4XL bar.
Highlights
Consumption of whole grains has been recommended to improve insulin sensitivity and lower serum glucose and insulin concentrations
Onefifth of the total dietary fiber in the RS4XL bar was from gum arabic (∼4.4 g) with the remainder (∼15.6 g) being from RS4XL
The percent increase from baseline to peak was not different (P = .068) from glucose beverage (GLU) for glucose, while it was for insulin. These data, for the first time, indicate that eating RS4XL from wheat in place of standard wheat starch significantly decreased postprandial insulin and glucose responses. These results are in line with others investigating the insulin and/or glucose lowering effects when resistant starches (RSs) is added to foods or incorporated in the diet [6, 16, 18, 26, 27], while a few reported no effect of RS2 or RS3 on glycemia [7, 9]
Summary
Consumption of whole grains has been recommended to improve insulin sensitivity and lower serum glucose and insulin concentrations. Whole grain consumption of three servings or more per day was among changes that were included in the 2005 dietary guidelines to reduce the risk of acquiring chronic diseases [1]. Whole grains are major sources of dietary fiber (DF), yet typical DF consumption patterns do not meet the recommended 25–35 g per day. Initial clinical studies demonstrated that RS has properties similar to soluble fiber, shows promising physiological benefits in humans, and may prevent disease. Several potential physiological benefits ascribed to RS include attenuation of blood glucose and insulin levels in both healthy and diabetic individuals, positive effects on large bowel health and prevention of colonic cancer, increased absorption of minerals, serving as a prebiotic, and increased fat oxidation [3,4,5,6,7,8,9]. Type 4 (RS4) is chemically modified starch typically through esterification, crosslinking (RS4XL), or transglycosylation
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