Summary
Guar gum from four industrial sources was investigated. The viscosity of two preparations of hydrated guar gum in the form of powdered flour and one granulate flour was measured at 22° and 32 °C and pH 1.0 and pH 4.0. Viscosity measurements on wax-coated guar granules proved impossible but visual assessment indicated an extremely low viscosity in all conditions. These findings were compared with the ability of the equivalent of 5 g guar gum of the various preparations to modify the absorption of a 50 g liquid glucose load. The mean post-prandial blood glucose curve was not significantly different from the control situation after the incorporation of each preparation. Despite the granulate flour attaining a considerably lower viscosity than the powdered flour they were equally effective in significantly reducing the mean post-prandial insulin curve (area under the curve (0–180 min) reduced by 46 and 50% respectively). The wax-coated granules which achieved minimal viscosity caused significantly less reduction of post-prandial insulin levels (area under the curve reduced by 37%). The viscosity of guar gum upon hydration is of importance in assessing the efficacy of a preparation in clinical use.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Jenkins DJA, Goff DV, Leeds AR, Alberti KGMM, Wolever TMS, Gassull MA, Hockaday TDR (1976) Unabsorbable carbohydrates and diabetes: decreased post-prandial hypoglycaemia. Lancet 2: 172–174
Morgan LM, Goulder TJ, Tsiolakis D, Marks V, Alberti KGMM (1979) The effect of unabsorbable carbohydrates on gut hormones. Diabetologia 17: 85–89
Holt S, Heading RC, Carter DC, Prescott LF, Tothill P (1979) Effect of gel fibre on gastric emptying and absorption of glucose and paracetamol. Lancet 1: 636–639
Jenkin DJA, Leeds AR, Gassull MA (1977) Viscosity and the action of unavailable carbohydrate in reducing post-prandial glucose and insulin levels. Proc Nutr Soc 36: 44A
Wolever TMS, Taylor R, Goff DV (1978) Guar: viscosity and efficacy. Lancet 2: 1381
Williams DRR, James WPT (1979) Fibre and diabetes. Lancet 1: 271–272
Jenkins DJA, Nineham R, Craddock C, Craig-McFeely P, Donaldson K, Leigh T, Snook J (1979) Fibre and diabetes. Lancet 1: 434–435
Wolever TMS, Taylor R, Goff DV, Aherne J (1979) Fibre and diabetes. Lancet 1: 435
Goulder TJ (1979) Guar and diabetes. Lancet 1: 612
Williams DRR, James WPT (1979) Guar and diabetes. Lancet 1: 612
Dewar J, Garcia-Webb P, Shenfield GM (1979) Guar and diabetes. Lancet 1: 612–613
Morley G, Dawson A, Marks V (1968) Manual and autoanalyser methods for measuring blood glucose using guaicum and glucose oxidase. Ann Clin Biochem 5: 42–45
Samols E, Bilkus DA (1964) A comparison of insulin radioimmunoassays. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 115: 79–84
Wolever TMS, Jenkins DJA, Nineham R, Alberti KGMM (1979) Guar gum and reduction of post-prandial glycaemia: effect of incorporation into solid food, liquid food and both. Br J Nutr 41: 505–510
Jenkins DJA, Wolever TMS, Nineham R, Goff DV, Haisman P, Charnock P, Taylor RH, Hockaday TDR (1979) Dietary fibre and ketone bodies: reduced urinary 3-hydroxybutyrate excretion in diabetics on guar. Br Med J 2: 1555
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
O'Connor, N., Tredger, J. & Morgan, L. Viscosity differences between various guar gums. Diabetologia 20, 612–615 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00257429
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00257429