Efficacy and Safety of Fermented Barley on Decrement of Body Fat in Obese Subjects

The Effect of Barley Beta-glucan on Serum Lipids and Body Weight

Barley, like oats, is a rich source of the soluble fibre β-glucan, which has been shown to significantly lower LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C). However, barley foods have been less widely studied.

This study investigated whether the supplementation of barley β-glucan is reduce the visceral fat as well as the serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and total cholesterol (TC) in mildly hypercholesterolemic subjects. In a 12 week double-blind, controlled study, subjects were randomized to one of treatment group(3.0g/day as β-glucan) or placebo group.

Inclusion Criteria:

• an age from 19 to 70 years,
• a BMI(Body Mass Index) >23 kg/m^2,
• an LDL-C(Low Density Lipoprotein-cholesterol) concentration between 110 and 250 mg/dL

Exclusion Criteria:

• they had heart disease, liver or kidney disease, food allergies, daily exercise habits, a body weight increase or decrease >10 kg in the previous 3 months, irregular lifestyle habits
• they took medication and functional foods known to affect lipid metabolism.