Effect of 6 Weeks Daily Consumption of a Cereal-based Juice Beverage on Gastrointestinal Health

The project is a randomized, 2-way, blinded parallel trial in which 56 healthy adults of both genders with frequent occurrence of stomach trouble.This intervention trial with 6 weeks of daily intake β-glucans will be carried out with a beverage containing β-glucans and a control beverage without β-glucans. The primary aim is to investigate whether β-glucans from barley has an effect on stomach and intestinal health, including stool volume and frequency. Microbiota, concentrations of short chain fatty acids (butyrate, propionate, acetate), calprotectin, and energy and fat content in feces. Furthermore, blood pressure and exhaled hydrogen and methane, before and after the intervention, subjective perception of gastrointestinal problems and digestion as well as the participants' attitudes towards functional foods are measured using Visual Analog Scale (VAS). Further, specific metabolites of β-glucans in urine (exploratory endpoint) and certain toxic metabolites from the microbiota using metabolite profiling (metabolomics) are also analyzed