Low glycemic index foods suppress glycemic response, appetite and food intake in young Kuwaiti Females

Obesity and Type 2 diabetes are worldwide concerns, and the incidence of both is alarmingly high in Kuwait. Carbohydrate-containing foods variably elevate blood glucose, hence the Glycemic index (GI) of carbohydrate foods varies. Refined carbohydrate foods are the main source of energy in Kuwait. The present study was designed to investigate 1) glucose intolerance to carbohydrate foods in the Arab population, and 2) whether low GI foods would suppress hunger and food intake in healthy young females. Mashed potatoes, oats and chickpeas were compared to white bread. Twelve normal-weight female volunteers consumed the test foods containing 50g available carbohydrate after an overnight fast, once a week, in a random order. Both finger prick blood glucose and visual analogue questionnaires to measure appetite were taken at 0,15, 30,45, 60, 90 and 120 min. An ad-libitum pizza meal was consumed at 120 min to assess food intake. Blood glucose peaked at 30 min and dropped back to baseline within 2 hours after each food was tested, indicative of normal glucose tolerance. GIs calculated were 46 for oats, 50 for chickpeas and 80 for mashed potatoes. Both blood glucose and appetite responses were lower after oats and chickpeas when compared to mashed potatoes or white bread (p 0.001). Food intake (mean calories ± SD) was lower after chickpeas (533 ±112) and oats (607 ± 128) than after mashed potatoes (745 ± 35) and white bread (742 ± 176) (p 0.0001). Food intake had a positive (p 0.0001) correlation with appetite, yet no correlation (p = 0.9) with glycemic response. We conclude that low glycemic index foods 1) blunt the glycemic response spike; 2) suppress both appetite and food intake at a subsequent meal; and 3) there was no glucose intolerance found in a healthy young Kuwaiti female population.