Barley Grain
Because previous research had shown that reducing LDL cholesterol is significant in lowering coronary disease risks, the researchers said their findings could be clinically significant.
[adsense]“Health practitioners should feel comfortable recommending barley to their patients to help reduce total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol concentrations,” they said.
Barley contains ß-glucan, an insoluble fibre which has already been shown to lower cholesterol in people who eat oats. But the effects indicated by eating barley have not received as much attention, the researchers said.
The researchers analyzed eight randomized controlled trials totalling 391 participants and evaluated the lipid-lowering effects of barley. Each study consisted of relatively few people (median 30), and had a short time duration (median four weeks).
The meta-analysis indicated that the participants who consumed barley regularly had significantly greater reductions in total cholesterol (-13 mg/dL), LDL cholesterol (-10 mg/dL), and triglycerides (-12 mg/dL) than the controls who did not eat any barley.
They found that the reduction in total and LDL cholesterol wass in line with the findings for oat-derived ß-glucan, which was expected – as both grains have similar concentrations of the fiber, at 3.5% to 5.9% of total dry matter.
However, there was no observed effect for HDL cholesterol — only a nonsignificant increase of 1 mg/dL.
The researchers could not establish a dose-response as only six of the eight studies reported the ß-glucan dose, meaning there wasn’t enough statistical data to draw any conclusions.
However, the few studies that did report doses had a range of 3 g to 10 g of ß-glucan per day.
The cholesterol-lowering effects of barley observed in this study are in line with the FDA recommendations of 3 g or more of soluble fiber daily to reduce the risk of heart disease, the researchers said.
[relatedposts]They said the findings are also important as reductions were seen regardless of whether participants made substitutions in their diet. For example, if they replaced eggs with barley, it would be difficult to tell whether improvements in cholesterol resulted from a healthier diet or from barley.
“That significant reductions in total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol were seen regardless of whether diet modifications were mandated equally in both study groups helps guard against the issue of dietary substitution and strengthens the effects of barley use,” the researchers said.
The findings “support the routine use of soluble fibers in the diets of adult patients with and without hypercholesterolemia.”
Rice and wheat do not contain ß-glucan, but oats, psyllium, pectin, and guar gum do contain the soluble fiber.
The researchers said future studies should include larger trials to assess the dose-response relationship of barley ß-glucan.
