Objective: Incorporation of seeds into food products may attenuate postprandial glycemia. Whether these should be consumed as whole or in ground form is not known.
Subjects/methods: Using an acute, randomized controlled crossover design, the glycemic response of 13 healthy participants (6M:7F; 25.4±2.6 kg/m(2)) was studied on nine separate occasions. Test meals consisted of 7, 15 or 24 g of whole or ground Salba baked into white bread, and three control breads matched for energy, and macronutrient profile. Capillary blood samples were collected at fasting and over 2 h post consumption.
Results: A significant effect of dose (P=0.04), but no effect of form (P=0.74) or dose-form interaction (P=0.98) was found. No adverse events were reported.
Conclusion: This study demonstrates that both ground and whole Salba are equally effective in attenuating blood glucose levels in a dose-dependent manner when incorporated into bread. Flexibility in the use of either the ground or whole seed may increase the ease of incorporation and acceptability as a dietary supplement.