METABOLIC EFFECTS OF INSOLUBLE OAT FIBER ON LEAN MEN WITH TYPE-II DIABETES

Oat products rich-in water-soluble fiber improve glucose metabolism and lower serum cholesterol. To examine the safety, tolerance, and metabolic effects of a water-insoluble oat-hull fiber, eight lean men with non-insulin-dependent (type II) diabetes consumed a traditional diabetes diet for one week, followed by a control diet plus 30 g/day of insoluble oat fiber for two weeks in a hospital metabolic ward. On discharge, the subjects resumed their normal diet plus 30 g/day of insoluble oat fiber for an additional 10 weeks. The oat fiber was well accepted and produced no serious side effects. The hospital oat-fiber diet decreased fasting serum glucose levels by 13% (P < 0.05), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol by 8.9% (P < 0.05), and apolipoprotein B-100 by 17% (P < 0.01). Other serum lipid levels did not change significantly, and values returned to pretreatment levels during the ambulatory phase. Insoluble oat fiber may have beneficial metabolic effects in persons with type II diabetes, but further research is required to clarify these effects.