Glycaemic response to maize, bajra and barley

The postprandial glycaemic response to maize (Zea mays), bajra (Pennisetum typhoideum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare) was studied in a pool of 18 healthy volunteers and 14 patients having non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). In response to maize, none of the variables examined was significantly different as compared to white bread. The glycaemic response to bajra was significantly lower than that to white bread in healthy subjects, but the two responses were indistinguishable in NIDDM subjects. The insulinaemic responses to bajra and white break were not significantly different in either group of subjects. The glycaemic response to barley was significantly lower than that to white bread in both groups of subjects. But the insulinaemic response to barley was significantly lower than that to white bread only in healthy subjects. In NIDDM subjects, there was a tendency for the response to barley to be higher than that to white bread 0.5 h after ingestion. Barley, with a low glycaemic index (68.7 in healthy and 53.4 in NIDDM subjects) and a high insulinaemic index (105.2) in NIDDM subjects seems to mobilize insulin in NIDDM. This makes it a specially suitable cereal for diabetes mellitus.