An extruded breakfast cereal made from a high amylose barley cultivar has a low glycemic index and lower plasma insulin response than one made from a standard barley

Abstract

Himalaya 292 is a novel hull-less barley cultivar with lower total starch content, a higher proportion of amylose and a substantially higher content of soluble and insoluble fibre. The high fibre content suggests that the grain may have potential as an ingredient in health promoting foods. In this study, 29 healthy volunteers consumed extruded whole grain breakfast cereal made from Himalaya 292 (123 g) or a commercial hull-less barley (cv Torrens) (76 g) each supplying 50 g carbohydrate. Glycemic indices were 77 ± 13 (SEM) and 50 ± 9 for Torrens and Himalaya 292 breakfast cereals respectively (P = 0.004). On this basis, the Himalaya 292 cereal is a low glycemic index food. The glycemic load (the product of glycemic index and the available carbohydrate content of a 60 g serve divided by 100) of the new cultivar was 10.1 ± 1.8 compared to 25.3 ± 4.3 for the Torrens breakfast cereal (P < 0.001). The plasma insulin response to the test meal was 26% lower for Himalaya 292 than for Torrens (P = 0.023). The data confirm that Himalaya 292 may be of value in foods designed to assist in the prevention and management of diabetes.