Health-Conscious Eaters

Health-conscious individuals seek resources that help them stay in good physical shape. In order to continuously meet this goal, it is particularly important to maintain a balanced carbohydrate energy supply and low insulin levels. Isomaltulose helps support an ongoing healthy lifestyle by offering a more steady and balanced supply of energy. With low insulin levels and a higher fat burning rate, this slow-release carb has a positive influence on body composition and weight.

A large part of the US population actively takes care of their body weight and health. As a weight management strategy, most people prioritize healthy food options and physical activity.

Figure: Higher fat burning effect with isomaltulose. ®BENEO-Institute

Physical activity is an important component of a healthy lifestyle. Along with increasing energy expenditure, it also improves fat metabolism and offers other physiological benefits. On the other side of the spectrum, nutrition and food intake are critical sources of relevant nutrients and energy. The balance between energy intake and energy expenditure serves a stable body weight regimen.

Often overlooked, carbohydrates represent the body’s main source of fuel. Choosing carbohydrates with slow release properties like isomaltulose can further support body weight management goals.

As carbohydrates can have varying effects on blood glucose and insulin, the type of carbohydrate is an important factor. A modern diet leads to high blood glucose levels over the day, as most carbohydrate-based foods are medium to high-glycemic. Carbohydrates with a high-glycemic index release high levels of insulin, which serves as a storage hormone and inhibits the fat burning process. In contrast, slow-release carbohydrates like isomaltulose release lower levels of insulin, helping steer the metabolism towards fat-burning. There is also probable evidence that diets low in GI can reduce total body fat mass and support body weight management (Augustin et al, 2015.) Therefore, replacing high GI carbs with low GI carbs can support the fat-burning process and overall energy metabolism. Again, taking a closer look at the type of carbohydrate is critical.

With its low effect on blood glucose levels and insulin release, isomaltulose allows for an improved metabolic profile with less suppression of fat burning and thus higher fat utilization at the expense of carbohydrate use in energy metabolism. In other words, isomaltulose promotes fat burning. There is a significant number of human intervention studies (see Figure below) confirming a higher fat-burning effect of isomaltulose in various population groups and conditions with relevance to weight management (e.g. König et al 2012, can Can et al 2009, 2012, Arai et al 2007) or physical activity and sports. The ability to promote fat burning is a unique value of isomaltulose, since most traditional sugars and carbohydrates are either readily available leading to high blood glucose and insulin responses or they induce a pronounced switch to carbohydrate utilization for other reasons, such in the case of fructose.

The low-glycemic properties of isomaltulose are well-established. Additionally, Henry et al (2017) has shown with the simultaneous use of 24h continuous glucose monitoring and whole body calorimetry in healthy men that isomaltulose can help to bring a carbohydrate-based low glycemic diet into practice. Following a diet with isomaltulose-containing foods instead of sucrose-foods lowered the blood sugar profile throughout the day, as a result of the lower blood glucose responses to the individual meals. Blood sugar levels were overall more stable, with less pronounced fluctuations, and the metabolism was steered towards higher fat burning.

Keeping insulin levels low and steering the metabolism towards fat burning with a wise choice of carbohydrate foods can complement a healthy lifestyle and support attempts to stay lean and in shape.

References:

Arai H, Mizuno A, Sakuma M, Fukaya M, Matsuo K, Muto K, Sasaki H, Matsuura M, Okumura H, Yamamoto H, Taketani Y, Doi T, Takeda E (2007) Effects of a palatinose-based liquid diet (Inslow) on glycemic control and the second-meal effect in healthy men. Metabolism 56(1):115–121. (Note: this study also shows a second meal effect). http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17161233

Augustin LS, Kendall CW, Jenkins DJ et al. (2015) Glycemic Index, Glycemic Load and Glycemic Re-sponse: An International Scientific Consensus Summit from the International Carbohydrate Quality Consortium (ICQC). Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis 25(9): 795–815. http://www.nm cd-journal.com/article/S0939-4753(15)00127-1/pdf.

Henry CJ, Kaur B, Quek RYC, Camps SG (2017) A Low Glycaemic Index Diet Incorporating Isomaltulose Is Associated with Lower Glycaemic Response and Variability, and Promotes Fat Oxidation in Asians. Nutrients 9(5). http://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/9/5/473/htm

König D, Theis S, Kozianowski G, Berg A (2012) Postprandial substrate use in overweight subjects with the metabolic syndrome after isomaltulose (Palatinose™) ingestion. Nutrition 28(6):651–656. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22264450

Maresch CC, Petry SF, Theis S, Bosy-Westphal A, Linn T (2017) Low Glycemic Index Prototype Isomaltulose-Update of Clinical Trials. Nutrients 9(4). http://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/9/4/381

van Can, Judith G P, Ijzerman TH, van Loon, Luc J C, Brouns F, Blaak EE (2009) Reduced glycaemic and insulinaemic responses following isomaltulose ingestion: implications for postprandial substrate use. Br J Nutr 102(10):1408–1413. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19671200

van Can JG, van Loon LJ, Brouns F, Blaak EE (2012) Reduced glycaemic and insulinaemic responses following trehalose and isomaltulose ingestion: implications for postprandial substrate use in impaired glucose-tolerant subjects. Br J Nutr 108(7):1210–1217. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22172468