Nutritional Properties of Starch in Buckwheat Products:  Studies in Vitro and in Vivo

The nutritional characteristics of buckwheat starch were studied to identify the possibility for reduced postmeal metabolic responses to various buckwheat products. The in vitro rate of starch hydrolysis and resistant starch (RS) formation in boiled buckwheat groats and in a series of breads, baked with 30-70% of buckwheat flour (BWF) or groats (BWG), respectively, were evaluated in vitro. In parallel, postprandial glucose and insulin responses and also the satiety score to BWG and wheat bread with 50% BWG as compared with the reference white wheat bread (WWB) were studied in healthy humans. The highest concentration of RS was found in boiled BWG (6% total starch basis). The RS level in bread products based on different proportions of BWF or BWG (30-70%) varied from 0.9 to 4.4%. The rate of in vitro amylolysis was significantly lower (P < 0.05) in all buckwheat products in comparison with the reference WWB. The calculated hydrolysis indices (HI) were lowest in boiled BWG (HI = 50) and in bread with 70% BWG (HI = 54). Consumption of boiled BWG or bread based on wheat flour and 50% BWG induced significantly lower postprandial blood glucose and insulin responses compared with the WWB. The calculated glycemic and insulinemic indices (GI and II) for boiled BWG were 61 and 53 and for the buckwheat bread, 66 and 74, respectively. The highest satiety score was found with boiled BWG. It is concluded that buckwheat has potential use in the design of foods with lower GI properties.