Abstract
Glutamine is a potent stimulus for the release of glucagon-like peptide-1, which increases postprandial insulin and slows gastric emptying (GE). We determined the effects of glutamine on GE of, and glycaemic responses to, low- and high-nutrient drinks in eight healthy males (mean age 21.6 ± 0.7 years and BMI 22.9 ± 0.7 kg/m2). Participants were studied on four occasions on which they consumed either a low-nutrient (beef soup; 18 kcal) or high-nutrient (75 g dextrose; 255 kcal) drink, each with or without 30 g of glutamine (120 kcal), in a randomised, crossover design. GE (2D ultrasound), blood glucose and plasma insulin concentrations were measured concurrently. Glutamine slowed GE (half emptying time (T50)) of both low- (45 ± 3 min vs. 26 ± 2 min, p < 0.001), and high-nutrient, (100 ± 5 min vs. 77 ± 5 min, p = 0.03) drinks, however, there was no effect on GE of the high nutrient drinks when expressed as kcal/min (3.39 ± 0.21 kcal/min vs. 3.81 ± 0.20 kcal/min, p = 0.25). There was no change in blood glucose after the low-nutrient drinks with or without glutamine, despite a slight increase in plasma insulin with glutamine (p = 0.007). The rise in blood glucose following the high-nutrient drink (p = 0.0001) was attenuated during the first 60 min by glutamine (p = 0.007). We conclude that in healthy subjects, glutamine slows GE of both low- and high-nutrient drinks comparably and attenuates the rise in blood glucose after the high-nutrient glucose drink.
Highlights
Postprandial hyperglycaemia is a major determinant of overall glycaemic control as assessed by glycated haemoglobin in type 2 diabetes (T2DM)
We have reported that oral glutamine in a dose of 30 g increases glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and insulin levels in lean, obese and T2DM patients [16], this study was performed in the absence of a nutrient load
This study has demonstrated in healthy subjects that glutamine in a dose of 30 g: (a) slows gastric emptying of low- and high-nutrient drinks comparably and (b) attenuates the glycaemic response to a high-nutrient drink, attributable to slowing of gastric emptying
Summary
Postprandial hyperglycaemia is a major determinant of overall glycaemic control as assessed by glycated haemoglobin in type 2 diabetes (T2DM). It is appreciated that the rate of gastric emptying, which exhibits a substantial inter-, but relatively low intra-, individual variation in healthy subjects and people with diabetes [4], is an important determinant of postprandial hyperglycaemia, accounting for 30–40% of the variance of the initial rise in blood glucose in both healthy subjects [5] and T2DM [6]. This recognition has stimulated the development of dietary [7,8] and pharmacological [9] strategies to improve glycaemic control in
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