ABSTRACT
An improvement of insulin sensitivity has been reported in insulin-resistant middle-aged men [4] as well as in healthy adults [5] with moderate alcohol consumption. Abramson and Arky [6] have shown that plasma acetate derived from ethanol inhibits lipolysis and decreases plasma FFA. Since colonic fermentation of dietary …bers yields large amounts of acetate [7], our working hypothesis was that intake of acetogenic, indigestible, fermentable carbohydrates, or …bers would
1. Enhance the concentration and turnover of acetate in the systemic circulation
2. Reduce lipolysis and plasma FFA 3. Bene…cially improve insulin sensitivity
In a …rst-step study, we observed that acute lactulose (an acetogenic indigestible disaccharide) ingestion, when compared with saline, caused increased acetate concentrations and turnover in overweight insulin-resistant subjects [7,8], accompanied by a decline in lipolysis of −30%. Whether such a decline in lipolysis (decrease of plasma FFA and glycerol) following chronic acetogenic carbohydrate intake improves insulin sensitivity is unknown. ´e aim of the second step, detailed in the present study, was to investigate the hypothesis that the daily intake of acetogenic carbohydrates for 5 weeks is associated with an improvement of peripheral insulin sensitivity, endogenous glucose turnover, and plasma biomarkers of the metabolic syndrome, in metabolic syndrome patients.
