Effect of High β-glucan Barley on Postprandial Blood Glucose and Insulin Levels in Type 2 Diabetic Patients

Abstract

The aim of our study was to investigate whether high β-glucan-containing barley (7.2 g per 100 g) improves postprandial plasma glucose levels and suppresses postprandial insulin levels during a meal tolerance test in type 2 diabetic patients. A meal tolerance test (500 kcal) was conducted using two types of test meals: a test meal with white rice (WR) alone (WR diet) and a test meal with WR mixed with 50% barley (BR diet) as staple food. The side dish was the same in the both meals. The changes in plasma glucose and serum C-peptide immunoreactivity (CPR) levels for 180 minutes after ingestion of the test meals were compared. Ten patients with type 2 diabetes (age 52.5 ± 15.1 years, and 7 males and 3 females) were included in this study. The mean HbA1c level and body mass index were 8.8 ± 1.4%, and 29.7 ± 4.5 kg/m 2 , respectively. Plasma glucose levels after ingestion of the WR diet or BR diet peaked at 60 minutes, which showed no significant differences between the two types of test meals. However, the incremental area under the curve (IAUC) of plasma glucose levels after ingestion of BR diet was significantly lower than that of WR diet. The serum CPR levels at 180 min and their IAUC over 180 minutes after ingestion of BR diet were significantly lower than those of WR diet. Conclusion: Increase in postprandial plasma glucose and insulin levels was suppressed by mixing high-β-glucan barley with WR in type 2 diabetic patients.

Consumption of barley ameliorates the diabetic steatohepatitis and reduces the high transforming growth factor β expression in mice grown in α-minimum essential medium in vitro as embryos

“…In the present study, we have revealed for the first time that barley consumption ameliorates the hepatic fibrosis and steatosis of a mouse model of T2DM. Barley has previous been reported to reduce postprandial hyperglycemia, an effect that is due to its substantial β-glucan content [ 37 ]. A previous study also demonstrated that a barley sprout extract reduces lipid accumulation in the liver of mice, thereby alleviating severe alcoholic steatohepatitis [ 38 ].…”

Effect of Hulless Barley Flours on Dough Rheological Properties, Baking Quality, and Starch Digestibility of Wheat Bread

“…The morphological characteristics and features of hulless barley are similar to those of wheat, while it contains more healthy nutrients than wheat does, such as dietary fiber (11.70–12.96%), β-glucan (4.4–5.5%), polyphenol (2.71–4.37 mg·g −1 ), and flavonoids (0.56–2.86 mg·g −1 ) ( 5 , 6 ). A recent study showed that white rice supplemented with 50% high β-glucan (7.2%) barley can inhibit postprandial blood glucose and insulin levels in patients with type 2 diabetes ( 7 ). Intraperitoneal injection of β-glucan (400 and 800 mg/kg/day) could substantially reduce the mortality of X-ray whole-body irradiated mice and the tumor growth of tumor-bearing mice ( 8 ).…”

The relationship between different C-peptide level and insulin dose of insulin pump

“…Thus, due to precise and flexible dosage adjustment, the insulin pump can quickly control the blood glucose, reduce insulin dosage, and reduce the occurrence of hypoglycemia, which is an important means of intensive insulin therapy 4 . The impact of the diet on glycemic control but also on complications is really important 5 .…”

“…Therefore, proinsulin can be decomposed into one molecule of insulin and one molecule of C-peptide. Thus, the molar weight of C-peptide is the same as that of a patient’s self-secreted insulin 5 . Furthermore, it is not easy for C-peptide to be degraded by the liver.…”