Review Finds Barley Beta-Glucan Beneficial for Several Measures of Heart Health

by | Jan 10, 2017 | 2016, Cardiovascular Health, Fiber

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. This 2016 review found that 4 weeks of daily supplementation with 6.7 grams of barley beta-glucan significantly reduced both LDL cholesterol and non-LDL cholesterol in participating subjects. Apolioprotein B was also reduced but not significantly.

Cardiovascular diseases, including heart disease and stroke, are the first and third leading causes of death for both men and women in the U.S. They account for 1 in 3 of all U.S. deaths and cost our healthcare system $473 billion in 2009 1. Fiber has shown to be a consistent benefit to heart health by helping maintain a healthy blood pressure as well as maintaining insulin sensitivity and healthy cholesterol levels 2,3. A 2013 review 4 found that every 7-gram increment of fiber intake per day decreased the risk of both cardiovascular disease and heart disease by 9%.

While most of the focus on maintaining heart health has focused on total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and HDL cholesterol, two other measurements may be an even better measure of heart health. The first is “non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol” (non-HDL-C), which comprises the cholesterol that is found deposited in the blood vessels of those with heart disease and characterizes “hardening of the arteries” 5. The second measure is a protein called apolipoprotein B that is present on fat particles found in the blood vessels of people with cardiovascular disease 6.

A 2016 review 7 suggests that barley beta-glucan, the active component in oats that has shown heart-healthy properties for over 50 years 8, may be a benefit to heart health. The researchers reviewed 14 studies (615 subjects) that analyzed the effect of barley beta-glucan on heart health. At an average dose of 6.7 grams per day for 4 weeks, researchers not only found this dose of barley beta-glucan to “significantly” reduce LDL cholesterol by an average of 9.67 milligrams/deciliter (p < 0.05), but non-HDL cholesterol levels decreased as well by 11.98 mg/dL (p < 0.05).

No significant reduction was seen with apolipoprotein B (p > 0.05). Unfortunately, absolute % decrease was not able to be calculated as the researchers did not provide before and after LDL and non-HDL cholesterol levels.

For the researchers, “barley beta-glucan has a lowering effect on LDL-C and non-HDL-C” and that “Inclusion of barley-containing foods may be a strategy for achieving targets in cardiovascular disease risk reduction.”

Source: Ho HTV et al 2016.  A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of the effect of barley β-glucan on LDL-C, non-HDL-C and apoB for cardiovascular disease risk reduction”The British Journal of Nutrition (2016), 116, 1369-1382. Doi: 10.1017/S000711451600341X. 

© by The Authors. 

Posted January 10, 2017.

Click here to read the full text study.

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY.  You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com.

References:

  1. Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention: Addressing the Nation’s Leading Killers 2007. 2007.
  2. Truswell A. Cereal grains and coronary heart disease. European journal of clinical nutrition. 2002;56(1):1-14.
  3. Van Horn L, McCoin M, Kris-Etherton PM, et al. The evidence for dietary prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. Journal of the American dietetic association. 2008;108(2):287-331.
  4. Threapleton DE, Greenwood DC, Evans CE, et al. Dietary fibre intake and risk of cardiovascular disease: systematic review and meta-analysis. Bmj. 2013;347:f6879.
  5. Expert Panel on Detection E. Executive summary of the Third Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) expert panel on detection, evaluation, and treatment of high blood cholesterol in adults (Adult Treatment Panel III). Jama. 2001;285(19):2486.
  6. Anderson OS, Sant KE, Dolinoy DC. Nutrition and epigenetics: an interplay of dietary methyl donors, one-carbonmetabolism and DNA methylation. The Journal of nutritional biochemistry. 2012.
  7. Ho H, Sievenpiper J, Zurbau A, et al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of the effect of barley β-glucan on LDL-C, non-HDL-C and apoB for cardiovascular disease risk reductioni-iv. European journal of clinical nutrition. 2016.
  8. De Groot A, Luyken R, Pikaar N. Cholesterol-lowering effect of rolled oats. The Lancet. 1963;282(7302):303-304.