Figure 3 (A) shows the blood glucose levels during intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test in mice given the control diet (Control), high fat diet (HF) and high fat diet with oil composition (HF + 1.5% CO), respectively. Figure 3 (B) shows the area under the glucose tolerance curves shown in panel A. Data are expressed as mean ± SE. *P < 0.05 for HF vs Control; #P < 0.05 for HF + 1.5% CO vs HF. Blood glucose levels were significantly increased during the intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test in the HF mice compared with the Control mice. These results show that feeding with a high fat diet for 50 days induced insulin resistance characteristic of type 2 diabetes. Importantly, inclusion of 1.5% of the oil composition of the present invention to the high fat diet counteracted the development of insulin resistance.
Mice on the high fat diet (HF) had reduced myocardial glucose oxidation rates compared to mice on the control diet (Control) (p < 0.05). Glucose oxidation was partly restored, however, in mice that had been fed the high fat diet containing 1.5 % of the present oil composition (HF + 1.5% CO) (p < 0.05). It is evident, therefore, that the oil composition of the present invention may counteract the reduction in myocardial glucose oxidation capacity which occur after feeding with a high fat diet.