Barley: A top crop from your heart to your gut

An important crop for Canadian farmers is also an important crop for your health. Barley's claim to fame has long been its ability to lower cholesterol. And all it takes is 3 grams of barley soluble fibre per day (according to Health Canada). That equates to having 1 ½ Barley Waffles.

A new discovery

Dr. Nancy Ames, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) and her team continue to explore the role barley plays in cholesterol lowering through clinical trials and have recently discovered other health benefits. Barley is also good for your gut!

"The discovery that barley beta-glucan can modulate the microbiota in the gut suggests barley also acts as a prebiotic which can improve overall metabolic health in humans."

- Dr. Nancy Ames, AAFC Research Scientist, Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals, Winnipeg

The barley fibre works by changing the ratio of two important types of bacteria in the gut, called bacteriodetes and firmicutes. Research findings from other scientists have shown that having higher numbers of bacteriodetes and lower numbers of firmicutes in the gut reduces the absorption of fat. These positive changes in gut bacteria are connected to a decrease in cardiovascular disease risk factors like heart attack and stroke, including improvements in body mass, waist circumference and blood pressure, etc.

"Our research at the Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals (RCFFN) was aimed at understanding the biological mechanisms and the factors that affect the cholesterol lowering ability of barley beta-glucan."

- Dr. Nancy Ames, AAFC Research Scientist, Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals, Winnipeg

Through clinical trials, participants were randomly assigned to various levels of viscosity (thickness) of beta-glucan per day along with a wheat and rice based control diet. Researchers found that the high viscosity beta-glucan was the most effective at reducing cholesterol levels. The good news is that normal production methods create a high viscosity fibre, making it easy to get the health benefits from barley products already on the market. Another interesting discovery is that our genes play a role in how effective the barley beta-glucan will be in reducing cholesterol levels.

"We found that people who had a specific allele related to bile acid production were more responsive to beta-glucan in reducing cholesterol."

- Dr. Nancy Ames, Research Scientist, Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals, Winnipeg

This is good news for consumers and producers alike. The research coming from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada on the health benefits of barley will promote the development of new products and increase the demand for barley from producers. So enjoy that healthy bowl of barley soup and reap the benefits. Adding barley is a great and inexpensive way to add healthy ingredients into your diet.

Key discoveries (benefits)

• Eating barley beta-glucan regularly may also improve your overall metabolic health.
• Current methods of production make it easy for us to get the health benefits of barley already on the market.
• Our genes play a role in how effective the barley beta-glucan will be in reducing cholesterol levels.

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Related Information

• Barley is 'in' when it comes to heart health
• University of Manitoba, Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals
• Nancy Ames, Ph.D