Journal of Nutrition & Food Sciences
Open Access

Abstract

Different Glycemic Responses to Sucrose and Glucose in Old and Young Male Adults

Takao T, Ogawa M, Ishii Y, Shimizu F and Takada A

Background: GI (glycemic index) is used to show the potency of foods to increase blood glucose. No research has been carried out about age differences of GI of foods of distinct structures such as glucose and sucrose. We wanted to know if there is a big difference in GI depending upon ages of people to take foods.
Methods: GI is measured by the area under the blood glucose curve two hours after consuming 50 g of test carbohydrates in relation to 50 g of glucose or white bread. Although GI is influenced by the source and the amounts of foods, it is not known whether GI is affected by age. We gave 50 gram of either glucose or sucrose in a cross over study to two groups of healthy men, older (n=44, mean age=62.4 ± 9.6) and younger (n=36, mean age=20.6 ± 1.6). Results: GI in response to sucrose was 82.8% compared to that of glucose in the younger men and 73.6% in the older men (p<0.05). Sucrose administration produced a rise in plasma insulin that was 76.2% of that observed with glucose in the younger men compared with 34.2% in the older men (p<0.05). When the amounts of blood glucose and insulin after the administration of glucose or sucrose were measured, glucose increased more in spite of increase in insulin in old men. In young men, nearly same amounts of insulin caused smaller increase in blood glucose levels.
Conclusion: These results may indicate that GI is very much different between old and young men even if the same foods with distinct structures are given, and insulin release to increase in glucose in young men is more sensitive than old men.