[Blood glucose and insulin levels in healthy persons and diabetics after intake of coarse wholemeal preparations, especially fresh grain muesli].

In a study of seven type II diabetics the effects of the usual diabetic diet were compared with those of a cereal of whole-meal (both having the same energy content and nutrients proportions). The cereal gave a more even blood-glucose curve at a significantly lower level (maximal rise after the first breakfast with the cereal was 20 mg/100 ml, after the usual diabetic breakfast 75 mg/100 ml). In addition, in 12 metabolically healthy persons comparison was made of post-prandial blood-glucose and insulin levels after intake of raw and of heated wheat and corn whole-meal preparations. The raw wheat variant produced much flatter blood-glucose and insulin curves than the heated test meals (maximal rise of blood-glucose 6 vs 27-38 mg/100 ml; blood insulin 8 vs 35-50 microU/ml), while the raw corn (oat) variant achieved only a small flattening of the curve compared with that after the heat-treated preparation. Measurement of H2 exhalation provided no evidence for differential malabsorption between raw and heated test meals. Fresh-corn muesli with unheated wheat whole-meal is suitable in the diet of type II diabetics to counteract high postprandial levels of blood-glucose and thus improve the diabetic metabolic state.