Nearly 60 percent of people in Germany are overweight or obese. Being overweight is associated with several other conditions that increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. One way of helping to prevent them could be to consume food that gives us little energy yet still makes us feel very full. Thanks to their excellent satiating properties, the beta-glucans contained in mushrooms could delay the process that empties the stomach - known as “gastric emptying” - and thus foster a feeling of fullness.
The team led by Prof. Dr. Sabine Ellinger from the Professorship for Human Nutrition in the Institute of Nutritional and Food Science at the University of Bonn is now looking to recruit severely overweight or obese adults for the trial. Participants will consume a standardized meal on two mornings, once enriched with powdered oyster mushrooms and once without anything added. Blood samples will be taken beforehand and during the four hours afterward, and gastric emptying will be measured using breath samples. There will also be questionnaires on appetite and mood/motivation. Four hours after their meal, participants will be able to eat as much pizza as they like until they feel full. The trial, which will be held on the Poppelsdorf Campus at the University of Bonn, will take up five hours of their time on each of two mornings.
Participation criteria include being overweight or obese (with a BMI of 25 kg/m2 or higher), being a non-smoker and not suffering from any gastrointestinal diseases. Participants will be told in advance if they meet the criteria. They will be paid €70 for their time if they complete the trial and will also receive a free check-up of their nutritional status.
Anyone who is interested should contact Jana Johnen (phone: +49 228 73-62023, email: jjohnen@uni-bonn.de) or Prof. Dr. Sabine Ellinger (phone: +49 228 73-62021, email: ellinger@uni-bonn.de) from the Professorship for Human Nutrition at the Institute of Nutritional and Food Science.
Further information:
https://www.humanernaehrung.uni-bonn.de/forschung/probandeninformation_06-06-2023.pdf