(P09-036-24) Locally Formulated Cereal-Legume Mix Foods With Low Glycemic Index as a Panacea for Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Developing Countries

Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine the glycemic index (GI) of three different combinations of cereal-legume mix beverage; maize-rice-groundnut (MRG), maize-rice-soyabean (MRS), and maize-rice-soyabean-groundnut (MRSG) used throughout Ghana.

Methods: The proximate content of the foods was calculated through standard method of the Association of Official Analytic Chemists. We measured fats, protein, ash and crude fibre through oven drying, Soxhlet, Kjeldahl and dry ashing methods. Carbohydrate content was determined by difference and the GI was determined by standard procedure. Eleven participants were conveniently sampled from a population of non-diabetic persons at University of Cape Coast Hospital. They were then given 50g of glucose preparation and subsequently, 50g of the three test foods (maize-rice-groundnut (MRG), maize-rice-soyabean (MRS), and maize-rice-soyabean-groundnut (MRSG). Capillary blood glucose level was checked before the consumption of each meal and at times t = 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, and 120 minutes at the first bite/sip of each meal. The GI was computed by dividing the incremental area under the curve (IAUC) of the test food by the IAUC of glucose, and then multiplied by 100.

Results: Results indicated that groundnut record the highest dry matter, soya flour had the highest protein and rice flour had the highest composition of carbohydrate. The mean IAUC for the test foods, MRG had the highest mean IAUC value, 94.1, followed by MRS 88.7, then MRG 76.4. MRG had the highest GI of 43.3 followed by MRS, 41.3. MRSG had the lowest GI, 36.4. However, these differences were not statistically significant (P >.0.05)

Conclusions: With reference to current literature, all the test foods had low ( < 55) GI. These cereal-legume mixes could be used in the dietary management of type 2 diabetes. The low GI is a testament of the quality of the carbohydrates in the foods.

Funding Sources: Self-funded. Authors declare no conflict of interest.