Acacia Gum Is Well Tolerated While Increasing Satiety and Lowering Peak Blood Glucose Response in Healthy Human Subjects

Abstract

Acacia gum (AG) is a non-viscous soluble fiber that is easily incorporated into beverages and foods. To determine its physiological effects in healthy human subjects, we fed 0, 20, and 40 g of acacia gum in orange juice along with a bagel and cream cheese after a 12 h fast and compared satiety, glycemic response, gastrointestinal tolerance, and food intake among treatments. Subjects (n = 48) reported less hunger and greater fullness at 15 min (p = 0.019 and 0.003, respectively) and 240 min (p = 0.036 and 0.05, respectively) after breakfast with the 40 g fiber treatment. They also reported being more satisfied at 15 min (p = 0.011) and less hungry with the 40 g fiber treatment at 30 min (p = 0.012). Subjects reported more bloating, flatulence, and GI rumbling on the 40 g fiber treatment compared to control, although values for GI tolerance were all low with AG treatment. No significant differences were found in area under the curve (AUC) or change from baseline for blood glucose response, although actual blood glucose with 20 g fiber at 30 min was significantly less than control. Individuals varied greatly in their postprandial glucose response to all treatments. AG improves satiety response and may lower peak glucose response at certain timepoints, and it is well tolerated in healthy human subjects. AG can be added to beverages and foods in doses that can help meet fiber recommendations.

Effects of Dietary Fiber on the Risk of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus in Advanced Maternal Age Women: Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Maternal dietary patterns during pregnancy are associated with gestational weight gain, and increased dietary fiber consumption may help to reduce the occurrence of excessive weight gain. [ 26 ] Previous research has demonstrated that diets high in fiber can enhance satiety and inhibit appetite, which may result in decreased energy intake and weight loss. [ 27 ] The possible mechanism is that dietary fiber can be fermented by gut bacteria to produce short‐chain fatty acids (SCFAs), which increases the production of satiety to control weight by regulating the production of gut hormones such as peptide YY (PYY) and glucagon‐like peptide ‐1 (GLP‐1).…”