Acute effects of consuming sorghum-based breakfast meals on objective and subjective measures of satiety

Abstract

Regular consumption of wholegrain cereals is associated with protective health effects and may play a role in the regulation of glucose, appetite and body weight. Sorghum is a cereal grain with slow digestibility demonstrated in vitro and high polyphenolic content, both of which may attenuate blood glucose and insulin responses, and potentially increase satiety. We completed a randomised, crossover, double-blind trial testing the effects of different sorghum-based breakfast meals on objective and subjective measures of acute satiety, appetite and prospective food intake. Forty healthy subjects (20 men and 20 women), aged 20-50 years attended the University of Wollongong, Australia, on 4 occasions after a 12-hour overnight fast. At baseline on each visit, they consumed 50-55 grams of one of 3 treatment meals that were derived from different cultivars of sorghum (varying in digestibility rates and polyphenolic content) or a wheat-based control. Satiety was assessed at baseline and 7 other time-points during the 240 minute testing period. Measures include: subjective hunger and satiety ratings using visual analogue scales (VAS), and objective measures of plasma glucose, insulin, and the appetite-related hormones GIP, GLP-1, PYY and ghrelin. Results from the study demonstrated that sorghum-based breakfast meals have variable effects on acute satiety measures. This adds to the quality scientific evidence for sorghum’s potential as an important ingredient in foods for appetite control. In turn, this may have much broader applicability in reducing the risk of chronic disease related to excessive energy consumption.