Guar gum, weight, hunger and blood sugar in obese people
What it found
In obese people, taking guar gum with meals lowered blood sugar peaks, cholesterol and body weight over eight weeks.
It also reduced hunger more than wheat bran over up to ten weeks.
What they found
Studies in people
Blood sugar after meals
A single 10 g dose of guar gum before a meal lowered the peak blood sugar by about 10% in five obese people. After eight weeks of daily use, two people who started with very high blood sugar saw drops of 19% and 26%.
Cholesterol levels
After eight weeks of taking guar gum, total cholesterol fell in nine obese subjects. The type of cholesterol linked to heart protection stayed the same, as did triglycerides.
Body weight and fat
Over eight weeks, nine obese women lost weight and body fat even though they were asked not to change what they ate. In the hunger study, weight also dropped over ten weeks.
Hunger compared to bran
Twenty-one obese people rated their hunger daily on a scale from 1 to 9. Guar gum taken before meals brought hunger scores down more than the same amount of wheat bran, especially at lunch and dinner.
Insulin response
Fasting insulin and the insulin rise after meals stayed about the same after eight weeks of guar gum. Because blood sugar fell without extra insulin, the authors suggest the body responded better to its own insulin.
Gut side effects
People reported more gas and looser stools when they started taking guar gum. These issues usually faded after two to three weeks or when the dose was briefly lowered.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that guar gum improved how the body handled sugars and fats in obese people.
- The authors say the drop in hunger makes guar gum a useful addition to other weight-loss treatments.
- They note that long-term use gave extra blood-sugar benefits only in those who started with poor sugar control.
How it was done
Obese people face a higher chance of developing diabetes and often have unusual fat levels in their blood. The authors wanted to see if guar gum could help manage blood sugar, fats, weight and hunger in this group.
Nine obese women took 10 g of granulated guar gum twice a day for eight weeks while keeping their usual diet. A separate group of twenty-one obese people alternated weekly between guar gum and wheat bran for an average of 6.6 weeks, rating their hunger daily.
What it can’t tell you
- Only nine women took part in the eight-week metabolism study, so the results may not apply to everyone.
- Because there was no inactive placebo group, it is hard to know how much of the weight loss came from the fibre itself rather than other factors.
- Wheat bran might affect appetite too, so comparing guar gum against it does not show exactly how much guar gum alone changed hunger.
The paper
- Title
- Effect of guar gum on body-weight, hunger ratings and metabolism in obese subjects
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Krotkiewski M (1984). Effect of guar gum on body-weight, hunger ratings and metabolism in obese subjects. The British journal of nutrition. doi:10.1079/bjn19840075Free full textPubMed 6331498DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error