Long term ingestion of a preload containing fructo-oligosaccharide or guar gum decreases fat mass but not food intake in mice

- Fibers, regardless of type, inhibit food intake in short term intake.
- Fibers, regardless of type, lose its ability to inhibit food intake over time.
- Guar gum and fructo-oligosaccharide limit fat storage similarly in long term.

Fermentable dietary fibre such as fructo-oligosaccharide and viscous dietary fibers such as guar gum and alginate affect energy homeostasis. The goal of this study was to compare the impact of long term intake of these three dietary fibers on food intake, meal pattern, body weight and fat accumulation in mice. Over a period of 3 weeks, the mice were fed daily with a preload containing 32 mg of fructo-oligosaccharide or alginate or 13 mg of guar gum. Food intake and body weight were monitored weekly, while meal patterns, adiposity and the expression of hypothalamic neuropeptide genes were evaluated at the end of the study period. The 3 dietary fibers produced a similar decrease in total daily food intake (14 to 22%) at the end of the first week, and this effect disappeared over time. The 3 dietary fibers induced a slight variation in satiation parameters. Body weight and expression of hypothalamic neuropeptide genes were not affected by any of the treatment. Preload of fructo-oligosaccharide and guar gum induced a similar and substantial decrease in the development of adiposity (17% and 14%, respectively), while alginate had no effect. Our results demonstrate mainly that the inhibitory effect of dietary fiber on food intake is lost over time, and that guar gum limits fat storage.