In Experiment 1, adult female rats were fed, in addition to chow and water, a
carbohydrate source that consisted of pure
amylopectin corn
starch or hydrolyzed corn
starch (
Polycose) in either a dry
powder form or a hydrated gel form. Over the 30-day test periods,
carbohydrate intake, total food intake, and
body weight gain were greater with the
Polycose than with the
amylopectin, and greater with the gel form than with the
powder form of the
carbohydrates. The
amylopectin gel produced
overeating and
overweight relative to a chow-fed control group, although the effects were less than that obtained with the
Polycose gel. In a second experiment, test meals of the
carbohydrate gels produced larger postmeal increases in plasma
glucose than did the
carbohydrate powders. There was no effect of
carbohydrate type (
amylopectin vs.
Polycose) on the plasma
glucose response. In Experiment 3, the addition of
amylopectin to a
Polycose gel reduced
carbohydrate and total caloric intake. Both orosensory and postingestive factors may contribute to the differential food intake and
body weight gains produced by the different types (
Polycose vs.
amylopectin) and forms (gel vs.
powder) of
carbohydrates.