Physiological Responses of Men and Women to Barley and Oat Extracts (Nu-trimX). II. Comparison of Glucose and Insulin Responses

This study was designed to compare the glucose, insulin, and glucagon responses to consumption of high-soluble beta-glucan compounds from oats and barley. After an initial medical evaluation that included blood and urine testing, 11 men and 11 women, nondiabetics, 35-57 years, were selected. Subjects consumed a controlled diet for three days. On the third day of five successive periods, subjects consumed 1 g/kg of body weight of carbohydrate as glucose or 0.66 g/kg of body weight pudding (predominantly sucrose) and 0.33 g/kg of body weight as oat bran, barley flour, oat or barley extract (Nu-trimX) in a Latin square design. Order of treatment was randomly assigned. Glycemic responses were calculated using the trapezoid method. Data were analyzed using mixed procedure analysis of variance program. Glucose responses to oats, barley, and both extracts, and areas under the curve were significantly lower than responses to the glucose solution (P < 0.0001). Insulin responses for the barley extract were lowest and were significantly lower than for glucose solution. Oat and barley extracts retain the beneficial effects of the grains from which they are extracted. High-soluble fiber barley is more effective than standard oats. Oat and barley carbohydrate-based fat substitutes can provide a useful addition to menus to control plasma glucose responses.