Effect of Low-Sugar and High-Dietary Fiber Noodles Diet on Blood Glucose Levels in Spontaneously Diabetic Torii Fatty Rats

Background: Low-carbohydrate diets have been a popular nutrition therapy since the American Diabetes Association’s 2013 recommendation. Low-carbohydrate diets are effective at lowering blood glucose and hemoglobin A1c levels. Here, we suggested the new diets intake restriction methods using low-sugar, high-dietary fiber noodles for those consuming noodles regularly. This study aimed to investigate the effect of a 28 day low-sugar, high-dietary fiber noodles diet, containing okara and konjac, on blood glucose levels of Spontaneously Diabetic Torii fatty rats, a model for obese type 2 diabetes. Methods: Male, 7-week-old rats were divided into two groups. Group I was fed the AIN-93G as standard diet (n=6) as control group, and group II was fed the standard diet in which 50% dried low-sugar, high-dietary fiber noodles replaced cornstarch (n=6). Body weight, food intake, and blood glucose levels were measured once a week, and hemoglobin A1c and glycated albumin levels analyzed after 28 days administration. Following the 28 days, the rats were fasted, glucose (2,000 mg/kg body weight) was administrated for the oral glucose tolerance test. Results: The blood glucose, hemoglobin A1c, and glycated albumin levels of the low-sugar, high-dietary fiber noodles group were significantly lower than those of the control group, in which body weight gain was observed. Conclusion: This is the first report on the effectiveness of low-sugar, high-dietary fiber noodles on blood glucose levels in model rats. The low-sugar, high-dietary fiber noodles might be beneficial for diabetes or celiac disease patients who consume noodles.