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Placebo‐controlled Trial of the Effects of Guar Gum and Metformin on Fasting Blood Glucose and Serum Lipids in Obese, Type 2 Diabetic Patients
Author(s) -
Lalor B.C.,
Bhatnagar D.,
Winocour P.H.,
Ishola M.,
Arrol S.,
Brading M.,
Durrington P.N.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
diabetic medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.474
H-Index - 145
eISSN - 1464-5491
pISSN - 0742-3071
DOI - 10.1111/j.1464-5491.1990.tb01378.x
Subject(s) - metformin , medicine , endocrinology , guar gum , placebo , diabetes mellitus , blood lipids , type 2 diabetes , very low density lipoprotein , cholesterol , lipoprotein , alternative medicine , pathology
Nineteen obese patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus were treated for periods of 3 months with placebo, guar gum (5 g three times daily) and metformin (500 mg three times daily) in a randomized double‐blind, double‐placebo, cross‐over study. Both active agents decreased fasting blood glucose from 11.4 ± 3.7 mmol l −1 (mean ± SD) to 8.6 ± 2.8 mmol l −1 on metformin ( p <0.001) and to 9.5 ± 3.9 mmol l −1 on guar gum ( p <0.01). Metformin significantly reduced the very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) cholesterol concentration from 0.62 (+ 0.73, − 0.34) mmol l −1 (geometric mean (+ SD, ‐ SD)) to 0.43 (+ 0.58, − 0.25) mmol l −1 , ( p <0.02), but unless hyperlipidaemia was present there were no changes in other serum lipid or lipoprotein levels. In patients with serum cholesterol > 6.5 mmol l −1 decreases in serum triglycerides from 3.29 (+ 3.27, − 1.64) to 2.46 (+ 2.55, − 1.25) mmol l −1 ( p <0.02) occurred with metformin. In these patients guar gum produced a reduction in serum cholesterol (from 7.70 ± 0.90 to 6.41 ± 1.11 mmol l −1 , p <0.01) due to an effect on low density lipoproteins. These differential effects may be important in planning therapy when hyperlipidaemia accompanies Type 2 diabetes.