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Carbohydrates, glycemic index and diabetes mellitus

Short-term low carbohydrate/high-fat diet intake increases postprandial plasma glucose and glucagon-like peptide-1 levels during an oral glucose tolerance test in healthy men

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 66, pages 926–931 (2012)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

Postprandial hyperglycemia increases the risks of development of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a 3-day low-carbohydrate/high-fat diet (LC/HFD) alters postprandial plasma glucose and incretin levels during oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) in healthy men.

Subjects/Methods:

Nine healthy young men (age (mean±s.e.), 27±1 years; body mass index, 22±1 kg/m2) consumed either a normal diet (ND: energy from ∼22% fat) or a LC/HFD (energy from ∼69% fat) for 3 days each. The total energy intake from each diet was similar. An OGTT was performed after each 3-day dietary intervention. Postprandial plasma glucose, insulin, free fatty acid and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) levels were determined at rest and during the OGTT.

Results:

Plasma glucose levels and incremental area under the curve during the OGTT were significantly higher in the LC/HFD trial than in the ND trial (P=0.024). In addition, increase in GLP-1 levels was significantly higher in the LC/HFD trial than in the ND trial (P=0.025). The first-phase insulin secretion indexes were significantly lower in the LC/HFD trial than in the ND trial (P<0.041).

Conclusions:

These results demonstrate that even short-term LC/HFD increased postprandial plasma glucose and GLP-1 levels in healthy young men. A decrease in first-phase insulin secretion may partially contribute to the short-term LC/HFD-induced increase in postprandial plasma glucose levels.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for the Young Scientists (B) (22700703) and for the Global COE program ‘Sport Sciences for the promotion of Active Life’ (2010–2011) awarded by Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports Science and Technology of Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health and Sports Sciences, Kyoto Pharmaceutical University, Kyoto, Japan

    S Numao

  2. Waseda Institute for Sport Sciences, Saitama, Japan

    S Numao, Y Yamada & M Konishi

  3. Faculty of Sport Sciences, Waseda University, Saitama, Japan

    H Kawano & S Sakamoto

  4. Graduate school of Sport Sciences, Waseda University, Saitama, Japan

    N Endo & M Takahashi

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  1. S Numao
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  2. H Kawano
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Correspondence to S Numao.

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Numao, S., Kawano, H., Endo, N. et al. Short-term low carbohydrate/high-fat diet intake increases postprandial plasma glucose and glucagon-like peptide-1 levels during an oral glucose tolerance test in healthy men. Eur J Clin Nutr 66, 926–931 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2012.58

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