(P09-02-26) Effects of Fresh Mango as a Sucrose Substitute Within High- and Low-Glycemic Breakfasts on Postprandial Glycemia: A Randomized Crossover Study

Objectives: Exaggerated glycemic responses to high-sugar meals are associated with cardiometabolic consequences. Compared to small isocaloric snacks (e.g., white bread), fresh mango has postprandial glucose-lowering properties. However, the effects of fresh mango as a direct sugar substitute (matched sugar, not energy) in common high- and low-glycemic breakfast meals on postprandial glucose is unclear.

Methods: Participants in this ongoing cross-sectional study (N=18/24, 7M/11F) completed four meal trials with a high-glycemic (corn flakes; 624-628 kcal; 62g total sugar) or low-glycemic (steel-cut oats; 380-382 kcal; 22g total sugar) base in a randomized order. Fresh mango or sucrose were then added to sweeten corn flakes (36g added sugar) and oats (20g added sugar) to mimic commercial, sweetened products. At each trial, an IV was inserted and glucose measured at 0 and 30-, 60-, 120-, and 180-minutes post-meal (Piccolo Xpress). Preliminary analyses included 2-way repeated measures ANOVAs (time×sweetener) and paired t-tests (baseline to peak change scores, ∆). Data were only compared within cereal and oats conditions. Unadjusted and BMI-adjusted models are presented.

Results: Participants were young adults (27 ± 6 years), normoglycemic (HbA1c = 5.3 ± 0.3%), and had a mean BMI in the overweight range (25.6 ± 3.0 kg/m²). In the unadjusted model, glucose increased regardless of sweetener in the cereal conditions (P_Time < 0.001; ηp² = 0.74); this effect was slightly attenuated when adjusting for BMI (P_Time = 0.11;ηp² = 0.15). ∆ glucose tended to be lower in cereal + fresh mango compared to cereal + sucrose in unadjusted (p = 0.06; d = 0.40) and adjusted (p = 0.11; ηp² = 0.15) models. In the oats conditions, glucose increased with use of both sweeteners in unadjusted and adjusted models (P_Time ≤ 0.05; ηp² = 17–0.77). In the BMI-adjusted model, a main effect of sweetener was observed (P_Sweetener = 0.01; ηp² = 0.31), where mean glucose was lower when consuming oats + fresh mango versus oats + sucrose, regardless of time.

Conclusions: In preliminary analyses, fresh mango had a favorable impact on glycemia compared to sucrose when consumed in a low-glycemic meal. When completed, this project will provide practical data on whether fresh mango is an advantageous sweetener for glycemic control in the context of common breakfast meals.

Funding Sources: National Mango Board