Impact of cooked rice products developed for persons with diabetes on the postprandial blood glucose response in healthy adults.

Background/objectives: An adequate postprandial glycemic response (PPGR) is crucial for glycemic control in diabetes. However, predicting glycemic responses to mixed meals is challenging, as they are influenced by various nutritional factors. Moreover, despite the increasing demand for convenience foods, the validation of their impact on the PPGR remains insufficient. Therefore, we investigated the impact of consuming cooked rice, a ready meal developed for persons with diabetes, on the PPGR.

Subjects/methods: Twenty-seven healthy adults participated in this study, and they consumed 6 test products over a 10-h fasting or non-fasting state. The test products included one type of regular cooked rice (OTOKI Cooked Rice & Curry Sauce [Curry-R]) and 5 types of cooked rice developed for persons with diabetes (Cooked Rice & Curry Sauce [Curry-D], Spicy Sauce with Pork [Spicy pork-D], Bulgogi [Bulgogi-D], Soybean Paste Sauce [Soybean-D], and Jjajang Sauce [Jjajang-D]). Blood glucose levels were measured for 2 h after test-product consumption using a continuous glucose monitoring device. Incremental area under the curve (iAUC), Peak_max, total AUC (tAUC), and glycemic load (GL) values were calculated to determine the PPGR.

Results: In the fasting state, Spicy pork-D, Bulgogi-D, and Soybean-D significantly reduced the iAUC and GL, with Spicy pork-D and Soybean-D also lowering Peak_max compared with Curry-R. In the non-fasting state, Spicy pork-D, Bulgogi-D, Soybean-D, and Jjajang-D yielded significantly lower tAUC and Peak_max values.

Conclusion: Cooked rice products developed for persons with diabetes potentially reduce the PPGR in healthy individuals under both fasting and non-fasting states. Nutritional adjustments, such as modifications of protein, fat, dietary fiber, and sugar content in convenience foods, can moderate the PPGR.