African americans may have to consume more than 12 grams a day of resistant starch to lower their risk for type 2 diabetes.

African Americans have a high prevalence rate of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). High-maize 260 (National Starch and Chemical Co., Bridgewater, NJ, USA) resistant starch (RS) is a promising food ingredient to reduce risk factors for type 2 DM. A 14-week, double-blind, crossover design study was conducted with African American male (n = 8) and female (n = 7) subjects at risk for type 2 DM. All subjects consumed bread containing 12 g of added RS or control bread (no added RS) for 6 weeks, separated by a 2-week washout period. There were no significant differences in the subjects' fasting plasma glucose levels due to the consumption of the RS bread versus the control bread. Fructosamine levels were significantly lower after consumption of both RS and control bread than at baseline. However, we found no significant difference in fructosamine levels due to treatment effects, i.e., RS bread intake versus the control bread. There were no significant differences in insulin or C-reactive protein levels due to treatment, gender, or sequence effects. Mean homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance decreased to normal values (>2.5) at the end of the 14-week study, although there were no significant treatment effects. The results of this study suggest that African Americans may need to consume more than 12 g/day of RS to lower their risk for type 2 DM.