Effects of Acarbose on Serum Lipoproteins in Healthy Individuals during Prolonged Administration of a Fiber-Free Formula Diet

Abstract

The effects of the disaccharidase inhibitor acarbose on serum lipoprotein lipid concentrations were investigated in healthy subjects during prolonged feeding of a fiber-free formula diet. Acarbose was shown to decrease cholesterol and fasting triglyceride concentrations, whereas the postprandial increment of triglycerides was not diminished. The response of fasting triglycerides to acarbose treatment appeared to be related to dietary fat intake, but not to the drug-induced reduction of postprandial glucose and insulin concentrations. Both the triglyceride and the cholesterol lowering efficacy were less pronounced with a higher amount of saturated fat than with a lower intake of fat mainly composed of polyunsaturated fatty acids. The decrease in total cholesterol was shown to be a consequence of a significant reduction in low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. Since high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol concentrations remained unaltered, the ratio of HDL/LDL cholesterol changed in a beneficial way.

Efficacy of α‐glucosidase inhibitors on lipids in NIDDM subjects with moderate hyperlipidaemia

“…To explain the cholesterol reduction in healthy young men during acarbose treatment, enhanced bile acid excretion in the small intestine is proposed [14]. Furthermore, by delaying the digestion of polysaccharides, acarbose is capable of increasing the fecal shortchain fatty acid excretion [25].…”

Acarbose: safe and effective for lowering postprandial hyperglycaemia and improving cardiovascular outcomes

“…In 1989, Walter-Sack et al 83 concluded that, in patients fed with a fibre-free formula diet, acarbose reduced total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and fasting triglyceride concentration. Reaven et al 84 showed that acarbose lowered plasma triglyceride concentrations (2.4±0.1 to 2.1±0.1 mM, p<0.01) in individuals with poorly controlled T2DM (n=12).…”