Plasma glucose and insulin responses to bananas of varying ripeness in persons with noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Abstract

With progressive ripeness there is a decrease in starch and an increase in free sugar content of bananas. The starch also is considered to be poorly digestible. Therefore, we decided to study plasma glucose, serum insulin, C-peptide, and plasma glucagon responses to bananas with increasing degrees of ripeness. Seven male subjects with untreated noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus ingested 50 g carbohydrate as bananas of stage 4 (more yellow than green), 5 (yellow with green tip), 6 (all yellow), and 7 (yellow flecked with brown) ripeness. They also received 50 glucose on two occasions for comparative purposes. On a separate occasion water only was given as a control. The area responses were quantified by determining incremental areas using the water control as baseline. The mean glucose area following the 50 g glucose meals was 15.1 +/- 1.9 mM.h. After the ingestion of bananas of 4, 5, 6 and 7 ripeness the glucose area response was 42, 41, 51 and 48% of that after glucose ingestion, respectively. The insulin area response following glucose meals was 888 pM.h. Responses to 4, 5, 6 and 7 bananas were 85, 70, 61, 85%, respectively, of that following glucose ingestion. C-peptide data were similar to the insulin data. The glucagon area response was negative after glucose ingestion but was positive following banana ingestion. In summary, the glucose, insulin, C-peptide, and glucagon area responses varied little with ripeness of the bananas.

Blood glucose responses of diabetes mellitus type II patients to some local fruits

“…The effect of ripeness or maturity on the digestion and absorption of carbohydrate in fruits had been shown by studies of Wolever et al , 7 Hermansen et al , 8 Ercan et al , 9 and Lintas et al 10 Using bananas, their studies on ripeness had shown that digestibility increased as the fruits ripened, since their starch content decreased dramatically and was converted into free sugars. The actual sugar composition of fruits may not only be affected by maturity but also by cultivar, the soil, climatic conditions, time of harvest, the length and method of storage.…”

A Study of Blood Glucose Response Following Ingestion of Ripe Banana in Healthy and Diabetic Nigerian Adults

“…Wolever et al [28] found a higher glycaemic response to ripe banana compared to unripe ones. However, a study by Ercan et al, [29] found little variation in the glycaemic response to varying degree of ripeness of banana.…”

Postprandial glucose response to selected tropical fruits in normal glucose-tolerant Nigerians

“…[12] found that ripe banana produced a higher glycemic response than unripe banana; Ercan et al. [13] however, found little variations in glucose responses to bananas of varying ripeness thus suggesting that other factors may be contributory to the differences in glucose responses to fruits. There was no reliable method of ensuring the same degree of ripeness of all the fruits consumed in our study.…”