Gum arabic (GA) is shown to conform to the definitions of dietary fibre, now finally adopted by the
European Union and Codex Alimentarius. A non-starch polysaccharide, GA is not digested in the
intestine but is fermented in the colon to give short-chain fatty acids, leading to a wide range of
potential health benefits. An obstacle to regulatory approval of such health applications could be the
wide natural variability of commercial gum arabic which has been demonstrated to change its
molecular parameters and functional properties. For this reason, a well characterized and specific gum
arabic (Acacia (sen) SUPERGUM) has been produced, which has guaranteed structural reproducibility.
We report here on the studies in vivo and in vitro with this material, which show its compatibility
in the diet of patients suffering with diabetes mellitus and reduction in systolic blood pressure,
which may translate into improved cardiovascular outcome and a reduction in the progression of renal
disease.