Objectives: Kale (Brassica oleracea species) is considered a functional food whose macronutrient and phytochemical contents are considered beneficial and as such widely considered as a superfood. In the present 6-week cross-over trial with a 2-week washout period we compared the beneficial effects of freeze-dried kale over peas among Arab women with obesity.
Methods: A total of 124 Saudi women with obesity were allocated to receive either freeze-dried kale (n=62) or freeze-dried peas (n=62) given in the form of 3-gram sachets thrice daily for two weeks followed by a 2-week washout period and a cross-over of 4 weeks. Anthropometric measurements, glucose, lipids and markers of gut barrier function were assessed at baseline and post-intervention. Participants who took kale supplementation first resulted in significant weight reduction (p=0.02) which was not observed among those who took peas first.
Results: Participants receiving pea supplementation first experienced a significant decline in Hba1c (p=0.005) and CD14 (p=0.03), but C-peptide increased (p=0.05). Crossover analysis revealed significant carryover effects in most variables with non-significant combined treatment effects. Among the variables with no carryover effect with significant combined treatment effect include HbA1c which was in favor of the pea group (p=0.005) and C-peptide modestly in favor of the kale group (p=0.05).
Conclusions: While both freeze dried kale and pea supplementation appear beneficial, supplementation of freeze-dried pea appears to be more effective in terms of acute glycemic control than kale. The study demonstrates that common by less-hyped vegetables such as pea maybe equally, if not more beneficial than those categorized as superfoods such as kale.
Funding Sources: The present study was funded by the National Plan for Science, Technology and Innovation (MAARIFAH), King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (Award No: 2-17-03-001-0031).
