Abstract

There is a global rise in the incidence of diseases like diabetes mellitus, atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, this study was designed to examine the effect of adding fine bran and date seeds powder as a sources of dietary fibers and active healthy components to prepare functional bread for lowering blood glucose and cholesterol levels. Sensory evaluation revealed that successful replacement of bread samples with 5,10 and 15% fine bran (Fb), 5 and 10% date seeds powder (Dsp) and the mixture of 5% fine bran + 5% date seeds powder. Bread supplemented with 10 and 15% fine bran contained 13.478% and 13.777% (g/100g) protein content respectively, while bread supplemented with mixture of 5% fine bran + 5% date seeds powder, and 10% date seeds powder contained 5.51 and 4.95 (g / 100g) of total dietary fibers respectively. The biological evaluation showed that rats fed on bread sample and its mixtures containing 15% fine bran , 5% date seeds powder, 10% date seeds powder and the mixture of 5% fine bran + 5% date seeds powder for 30 days significantly (p<0.05) reduced serum total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low density lipoproteins (LDL), very low density lipoproteins (vLDL), while high density lipoproteins (HDL) increased. Also, data showed that rats fed on pan bread made from wheat flour substituted with different levels of fine bran and/or date seeds powder significantly lowered their blood glucose level.