Beta-glucans are soluble fibers made of chains of glucose, found in oats, barley, yeasts, fungi and bacteria. As a supplement they are used for cholesterol and heart health, appetite and immune support; oat and barley beta-glucan carries an FDA-authorized heart health claim.
Also known as: beta-glucans, oat beta-glucan, yeast beta-glucan, β-glucan.
There is no RDA or upper limit. FDA's heart health claim (21 CFR 101.81) requires 3 g or more per day of beta-glucan soluble fiber from whole oats or barley, with at least 0.75 g per serving of the food. The weight-loss trials ODS describes used 3 to 10 g a day for 4 to 12 weeks. These are study protocols, not a recommendation.
It is sold in the US as a dietary supplement. Under the 1994 dietary supplement law (DSHEA), FDA does not approve dietary supplements before they are marketed, and the maker, not FDA, is responsible for safety and labeling. Under 21 CFR 101.81, foods with beta-glucan soluble fiber from whole oats or barley may say that, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, soluble fiber from these foods may reduce the risk of heart disease. The claim covers only the oat and barley sources listed in the rule, not beta-glucans from yeast or mushrooms.
On weight, ODS says beta-glucans are thought to increase fullness and slow sugar absorption, and barley beta-glucan reduced appetite and calorie intake in people. But in trials, 3 to 10 g a day for 4 to 12 weeks did not significantly affect weight loss; in one 3-month study of 66 women with overweight on a low-calorie diet, adding oat beta-glucan made no difference.
ODS says beta-glucans appear to be well tolerated; the reported side effect is more gas, without changes in stool or bloating.
Beta-glucan is a soluble fiber that acts in the gut (ODS), so there is no blood half-life to list.
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