Muesli with 4 g oat beta-glucans lowers glucose and insulin responses after a bread meal in healthy subjects.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the impact of an extruded muesli product based on beta-glucan-rich oat bran on postprandial glycaemia and insulinaemia.
The study is divided in two series. Blood glucose and serum insulin responses were studied after subjects consuming test meals including a serving of muesli with 3 g (series 1) and 4 g (series 2) of beta-glucans, respectively. The muesli was a component in a single serving packet with muesli and yoghurt. This was served together with white wheat bread in the morning after an overnight fast. The compositions were standardized to contain 50 g available carbohydrates. As a reference meal a serving packet without beta-glucans was included. The study was performed at Applied Nutrition and Food Chemistry, Lund University, Sweden. Nineteen and thirteen healthy volunteers with normal body mass index were recruited for series 1 and 2, respectively.


RESULTS
Muesli with 3 g of beta-glucans, included in a mixed bread meal, gave no significant differences in glycaemic response compared to a reference meal without muesli and beta-glucans. In contrast, muesli with 4 g of beta-glucans significantly (P<0.05) lowered the glucose and insulin responses compared to the reference meal.


CONCLUSIONS
Muesli enriched with 4 g of beta-glucans reduces postprandial glucose and insulin levels to a breakfast based on high glycaemic index products. A total of 4 g of beta-glucans from oats seems to be a critical level for a significant decrease in glucose and insulin responses in healthy people.
Granfeldt
Y
Y
Applied Nutrition and Food Chemistry, Department of Food Technology, Engineering and Nutrition, Lund University, Lund, Sweden. Yvonne.Granfeldt@inl.lth.se
Nyberg
L
L
Björck
I
I
D000328:Adult; D019540:Area Under Curve; D018554:Avena / Q000737:chemistry*; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D001939:Bread; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D002523:Edible Grain; D005215:Fasting; D005260:Female; D038321:Glycemic Index; D006801:Humans; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D019518:Postprandial Period; D014783:Viscosity; D047071:beta-Glucans / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*
D001786:Blood Glucose; D007328:Insulin; D047071:beta-Glucans