# Investigating the effects of mycoprotein and guar gum on postprandial glucose in type 2 diabetes: a double-blind randomised controlled trial

## TL;DR

This study shows that mycoprotein and guar gum can lower blood sugar after meals in people with type 2 diabetes, with some differences between white Europeans and south Asians.

## Contribution

The study is the first to investigate the independent and interactive effects of mycoprotein and guar gum on postprandial glucose in both white Europeans and south Asians with T2D.

## Key findings

- Mycoprotein significantly reduced postprandial glucose compared to chicken.
- Guar gum significantly reduced postprandial glucose regardless of protein source.
- South Asians had higher postprandial glucose than white Europeans, but guar gum reduced insulin responses more in south Asians.

## Abstract

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is highly prevalent, particularly among south Asian populations, and diet is the first-line strategy to manage postprandial glucose (PG) response. Mycoprotein and guar gum reduce PG in normo-glycaemic people. This study investigates the independent and interactive effects of mycoprotein and guar gum on PG, insulin and appetite responses in white Europeans and south Asians with T2D.

In this double-blind, crossover, acute, randomised controlled trial, 18 subjects with T2D (10 white European, 8 south Asian) completed six separate visits consuming soy, chicken, and mycoprotein with and without guar gum. Incremental area under the curve (iAUC0-180 min) for PG, insulin, and appetite scores, and total AUC0-180 min glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), peptide tyrosine-tyrosine (PYY), as well as ad libitum energy intake and 48h-post-visit energy intake were measured and analysed by linear mixed models with protein, guar gum and ethnicity as fixed effects.

We found independent effects of mycoprotein, guar gum and ethnicity on PG iAUC0-180 min (mmol/L·min), where mycoprotein reduced PG vs. chicken (–129.84 [95% CI –203.16, –56.51]; p = 0.002), guar gum reduced PG vs. no guar gum (–197.35 [95% CI –254.30, –140.40; p < 0.001], and south Asian had increased PG vs. white Europeans (195.75 [95% CI 66.14, 325.35]; p = 0.005). An interaction between guar gum and ethnicity (p < 0.015) was found for insulin iAUC0-180 min (µUI/mL·min), with guar gum lowering insulin responses in south Asian participants (–1909.69 [95% CI –2834.83, –984.511]; p < 0.001). No independent or interactive effects were observed for appetite-related outcomes.

Mycoprotein and guar gum promote significant independent effects in lowering PG in both white European and south Asians with T2D.