Neurogastroenterology and motility : the official journal of the European Gastrointestinal Motility Society
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Neurogastroenterol. Motil. · Sep 1996
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialEffect of glucose and lipids on intestinal absorption of sorbitol: role of gastric emptying.
The aim of our study was to test the hypothesis that the better absorption of sorbitol when ingested with glucose could be related to a delayed gastric emptying. We tested the effect of the ingestion of glucose and lipids on the gastric emptying and intestinal absorption of sorbitol in six healthy volunteers, using gastric scintigraphy and hydrogen breath test. After an overnight fast, subjects ingested in random order, on 48-h test periods separated by at least one week, the following solutions: (a) 20 g sorbitol alone; (b) 20 g sorbitol and 20 g glucose; (c) 20 g sorbitol and 9 g lipids. ⋯ The three curves of sorbitol gastric emptying differed significantly from each other, the gastric emptying being the slowest for sorbitol plus lipids, and the fastest for sorbitol taken alone. We found a positive correlation between the half-emptying time and the hydrogen areas under the curve (r = 0.46, P = 0.05). In conclusion, our study demonstrates that adding glucose or lipids to a solution of sorbitol slows the gastric emptying of sorbitol, resulting in a better intestinal absorption of sorbitol.