Oats may improve nutritional quality of gluten-free diets

Adding 100g oats each day to a gluten-free diet during a six month trial was found to increase levels of vitamin B1, magnesium and zinc, according to results of a study conducted in Finland. The study included 13 men and 18 women with coeliac disease in remission.

 Another recent study conducted by a group in Sweden reported that consuming oats increased blood levels of the antioxidant bilirubin in patients with coeliac disease. The study was a pilot that included nineteen patients with coeliac disease who consumed 50 grams per day of gluten-free rolled oats for 12 weeks.  At the end of the study, levels of bilirubin were significantly higher than they had been prior to commencement of the study.

The Swedish research group also cited supportive evidence from a larger cohort of patients (136 patients with coeliac disease and 141 healthy controls in the general population) which indicates blood levels of bilirubin were higher in those consumers whose diet included oats.

The researchers noted that lower serum bilirubin levels are known to be associated with endothelial dysfunction and increased carotid intima-media thickness, while moderately increased serum bilirubin levels are connected to reduced risk for atherosclerosis. However, it has not yet been determined whether the serum level of bilirubin in patients with coeliac disease who consume oats is an independent and inversely related predictor of atherosclerosis.

It should be noted that an oat-enriched diet might not be suitable for all patients with coeliac disease as some suffer adverse reactions when they consume oats.

References:

• Kemppainen et al. 2010. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition Vol 64 pp 62-67.  Doi:10.1038/ejcn.2009.113
• Lovik et al. 2010.  e-SPEN, the European e-Journal of Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. pp. e315-e320

Source: Foodnavigator.com