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Could This Fiber Be the Natural Ozempic? 🌾 Discover the Weight Loss Wonders of Beta-Glucan

Could This Fiber Be the Natural Ozempic? 🌾 Discover the Weight Loss Wonders of Beta-Glucan

In recent years, research on the gut microbiome has sparked a revolution in nutritional science. Dietary fiber has become the "new protein," added to foods in abundance to feed our gut and boost our health. However, a recent study on mice suggests that not all fiber supplements are equally beneficial.

A type of fiber found in oats and barley, known as beta-glucan, has shown remarkable results in controlling blood sugar and assisting in weight loss among mice fed a high-fat diet. Researchers at the University of Arizona (UA) and the University of Vienna discovered that beta-glucan was the only fiber supplement tested that decreased a mouse's fat content and body weight within 18 weeks. Other fibers, including wheat dextrin, pectin, resistant starch, and cellulose, did not have the same effect, despite significantly altering the mouse microbiome compared to mice not fed fiber supplements.

"We know that fiber is important and beneficial; the problem is that there are so many different types of fiber," explains Frank Duca, a biomedical scientist from UA. "We wanted to know what kind of fiber would be most beneficial for weight loss and improvements in glucose homeostasis so that we can inform the community, the consumer, and then also inform the agricultural industry."

Dietary fibers serve as the main source of energy for bacteria living in our guts. However, less than 5 percent of people in the US consume the recommended 25–30 grams (0.9–1 ounce) of fiber a day. To address this, fiber supplements and 'invisible fiber'-infused foods are gaining popularity. But with the diversity of fibers available, the question arises: which one should we choose?

Fibers like oat beta-glucans and wheat dextrin are water-soluble, meaning they are easily fermented by gut bacteria. Others, such as cellulose and resistant starch, are less soluble or insoluble, meaning they bind to other materials to form stool.

Until now, no study had investigated the role of various fibers within one cohort. To fill this gap, the current study tested several forms of fiber in one cohort of mice. Only beta-glucan was found to increase the number of Ileibacterium in the mouse intestine, a bacterium previously linked to weight loss in other studies on mice.

Long before the 10-week mark, mice fed beta-glucan showed reduced body weight and body fat content compared to those fed other forms of fiber. These findings align with another recent study by Duca, where barley flour rich in beta-glucan was fed to rodents. Despite continuing to eat their high-fat diet, the rats' energy expenditure increased, leading to weight loss.

A similar outcome was observed in the new study, where mice fed beta-glucan exhibited increased concentrations of butyrate in their guts. Butyrate, a metabolite produced when microbes break down fiber, induces the release of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). Synthetic drugs like Ozempic mimic GLP-1 to stimulate insulin release.

"Part of the benefits of consuming dietary fiber is through the release of GLP-1 and other gut peptides that regulate appetite and body weight," explains Duca. "However, we don't think that's all of the effect. We think that there are other beneficial things that butyrate could be doing that are not gut peptide related, such as improving gut barrier health and targeting peripheral organs like the liver."

Although further research is needed to extend these results to humans, the findings suggest that some fibers may be better suited for weight loss and insulin control than others.

The study was published in the Journal of Nutrition.