Characterization of Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis) and Its Long-Term Effect on Glucose and Lipid Metabolism in Rats Fed with a High-Fat Diet

Abstract

Breadfruit (BF) is a traditional staple crop in the tropics; however, changing diets from traditional to Western have increased the prevalence of obesity in the tropics. We aimed to identify new functional nutrients in BF flour and determine its metabolic effects in an animal experiment. BF flour contained 4 times more total dietary fiber and 2.5 times more polyphenols than wheat flour (WF). Sprague–Dawley rats were divided into a high-fat diet (Control), a high-fat diet with BF flour, and a high-fat diet with WF for 12 weeks. BF flour-fed rats suppressed the accumulation of white adipose tissue by promoting the excretion of fecal lipids and increasing short-chain fatty acids in the cecum and feces. Furthermore, the gut microbial composition in BF flour-fed rats had significantly decreased Firmicutes and increased Bacteroides. This suggests that consuming BF flour instead of WF may prevent obesity by improving host energy metabolism and changing the gut environment.