Effects of Dietary Fiber on the Glucose Tolerance in Spontaneously Diabetic Rats

Comparison among Barley, Rice, and Corn Starch

Abstract

Objectives: In this study, the effects of a barley diet containing high dietary fiber on the onset and development of diabetes mellitus in spontaneously diabetic rats was investigated by comparing with a rice diet containing low dietary fiber and an α-corn starch diet containing very low dietary fiber.
Methods: 30 male Goto-Kakizaki (GK) strain rats (8 weeks of age) were randomly assigned to 3 groups; high barley (HB) group on a barley diet (dietary fiber intake, 1.79g/day/rat), rice (R) group on a rice diet (dietary fiber intake, 0.46g/day/rat), and α-corn starch (CS) group on an α-corn starch diet (dietary fiber intake, 0.24g/day/rat). The carbohydrate (70%), fat (10%), and protein (20%) contents of these 3 diets were equal, and the rats were pair-fed each diet for 3 months.
Results: Feeding for 3 months showed that fasting plasma glucose level in the HB group was significantly lower than in the R and CS groups; the glucose tolerance in the HB group was markedly improved. Moreover, the plasma cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the HB group were significantly lower than those of the R and CS groups.
Conclusions: Our findings demonstrated that barley enabled glycemic control and improved glucose tolerance compared with rice or α-corn starch.