Effects of The Soy Protein Level on Plasma Glucose, Lipids, and Hormones in Streptozotocin-Diabetic Rats

The number of diabetics in Korea is about 3 to 5 percent of the population, and the incidence is increasing yearly due to changes of life style and food intake. Diet is a key element in the management of diabetes, yet the appropriate diet for diabetes remains controversial. We have recently shown that a diet rich in protein of animal origin(casein) seems beneficial to controling plasma glucose and lipids in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. It therefore seemed desirable to find out whether the beneficial effect of high casein diet in experimental diabetes could also be reproduced with a vegetable source of protein(soy). The purpose of this study is to compare these results with the results of our previous study. In the present study, non-diabetic and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats were studied in order to examine the effects of altering the level(20% vs 60%) of dietary soy protein on blood glucose, lipids, and hormones. Results of the present study showed that a high soy protein diet decreased triglyceride concentration in diabetic rats. However, diabetic rats fed a high soy protein diet were not hypocholesterolemic compared to rats fed a control diet. Moreover, diabetic rats fed a high soy protein diet had significantly increased plasma glucose concentration compared to rats fed a control diet. This study was not able to discern a specific effect of dietary protein level on insulin, glucagon, or insulin/glucagon ratio. Except for the hypotriglyceridemic effect, the results were not similar to the findings of our previous study which showed a beneficial effect on streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats fed a high casein diet.