Food intake and subjective appetite are inversely associated with blood glucose response in the 60 min after consumption of carbohydrates. Carbohydrates with a high glycemic index (glucose, polycose, and sucrose) suppress subjective appetite and food intake in the short term, but those with a low glycemic index (amylose and amylopectin) do not.

We examine the relationships between glycemic carbohydrate and its effects on short-term satiety and food intake. Both high- and low-glycemic carbohydrates have an impact on satiety, but their effects have different time courses. High-glycemic carbohydrates are associated with a reduction in appetite and food intake in the short term (e.g., one hour), whereas the satiating effects of lower-glycemic carbohydrates appear to be delayed (e.g., 2 to 3 hours). There is no consistent evidence that an increase in blood glucose, either acute or sustained, is the primary determinant of their effects on food intake and satiety. Many other preabsorptive and postabsorptive signals for satiety exist and may be the determining factors. Further studies are needed to delineate the role of glycemic carbohydrates and their mechanisms of action in determining satiety.

This review examines the relation between the consumption of sugars and their effects on short-term (ie, to 2 h) satiety and food intake in humans. Many factors need to be considered in the evaluation of reported studies and the conclusions derived from this body of literature. These factors include evaluation of the dose and form (solid or liquid) of the treatments, time of day administered, characteristics of the subjects, sample size, and approaches used to measure satiety and food intake. Mechanisms by which sugars may signal regulatory systems for food intake need to be considered when evaluating both study designs and conclusions. For this reason, the relation between the blood glucose response to sugar consumption and subsequent feeding behavior is also examined. It is concluded that sugars stimulate satiety mechanisms and reduce food intake in the short term and that the mechanisms by which this response occurs cannot be attributed solely to their effect on blood glucose.

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