Changes in plasma lipids and faecal Bifidobacterium spp. in humans after consumption of fermented oat-based products for 5 weeks

Abstract

In order to obtain milk like products from oats, an industrial process to manufacture a palatable, liquefied oat base has been developed (Lindahl et al 1994). This oat base per se has shown to be appreciated as a non-dairy milk alternative in the health market (Anon, 1999). It has also been shown that it is possible to obtain fermented oat milk with texture properties resembling that of traditional yoghurt (Mårtensson et al 2001). In this study we have investigated the effects of fermented oat-based products containing both native and microbial -glucans, on plasma lipids and on faecal total bacterial count and Bifidobacterium ssp. Sixty-two volunteers (free-living subjects) with moderately increased plasma cholesterol levels were recruited. One of the oat products (ropy) was co-fermented with an exopolysaccharide (EPS)-producing strain, Pediococcus damnosus 2.6. A significant (p=0.022) reduction in total cholesterol by 6% was observed in volunteers who had eaten the fermented, ropy oat-based product compared to the control group. A significant increase of total bacterial count (p=0.001) and Bifidobacterium ssp. (p=0.012) was observed in faecal samples from volunteers in the group who had eaten the fermented, ropy oat-based product. This study shows that a fermented, ropy oat-based product, containing both native and microbial glucans can reduce the cholesterol level and also stimulate the bifidobacteria flora in the gastrointestinal tract. Anonymous, 1999, in Daily Mail on Sunday, You-magazine March; Lindahl, L.et al. 1997. US Patent 5,686,123; Mårtensson, O. et al. 2001. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 81, 1314-1321.