NCT07513610

The Effects of Quinoa and Buckwheat on Weight Management and Gut Microbiome

The Effects of Dietary Quinoa and Buckwheat Consumption on Weight Management and Gut Microbiome

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 148 (actual)
• Sponsor: Hacettepe University · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 25 Years – 45 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This study aims to compare the effects of quinoa, buckwheat, rice, and bulgur consumption on dietary intake, anthropometric measurements, glycemic response, lipid profile, inflammatory markers, blood pressure, and intestinal microbiome in people with overweight and obesity. The primary hypotheses of the studies were given as follows: Hypothesis 1: H1: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet provides weight loss. H0: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet does not provide body weight loss. Hypothesis 2: H2: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet affects glycemic response. H0: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet does not affect glycemic response. Hypothesis 3: H3: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet affects the blood lipid profile. H0: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet does not affect the blood lipid profile. Hypothesis 4: H4: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet changes the composition of the gut microbiome. H0: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet does not change the composition of the gut microbiome. Hypothesis 5: H5: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet increases alpha diversity in the intestinal microbiome. HO: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet does not increase alpha diversity in the intestinal microbiome. Hypothesis 6: H6: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet increases beta diversity in the intestinal microbiome. HO: In people with overweight and obesity, the addition of quinoa and buckwheat to the diet does not increase beta diversity in the intestinal microbiome.

Detailed description

The study is designed as a randomized, controlled clinical trial in which participants will be allocated into four groups (quinoa, buckwheat, bulgur, and rice groups), each consisting of 31 or 32 pre-obese/obese adults. During the 28-day intervention period, participants' diets were supplemented with 40 g/day of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa), buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum), bulgur wheat (Triticum durum), or rice (Oryza sativa). Weekly face-to-face visits were conducted throughout the intervention to collect anthropometric measurements and dietary intake records and to assess intervention compliance and physical activity level. At baseline and at the end of the intervention, physical examinations were performed, blood and fecal samples were collected, blood pressure was measured, and anthropometric measurements and dietary intake records were evaluated. Serum levels of triglycerides, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, glucose, insulin, fructosamine, adiponectin, C-reactive protein, malondialdehyde, uric acid, lipopolysaccharide, TNF-alpha, IL-6, zonulin, and lipopolysaccharides will be analyzed. Additionally, fecal samples will be analyzed to reveal any possible changes in gut microbiome. Given the scarcity of clinical studies in this field, this study is expected to contribute to addressing the lack of high-level clinical evidence in the literature.

Conditions

• Overweight
• Obesity

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT	quinoa	Participants consumed 40 g/d red quinoa during 4 weeks. Participants were instructed to consume red quinoa by boiling it without any other ingredients.
DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT	Buckwheat	Participants consumed 40 g/d of buckwheat during 4 weeks. Participants were instructed to consume buckwheat by boiling it without any other ingredients.
DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT	Rice	Participants consumed 40 g/d rice during 4 weeks. Participants were instructed to consume rice by boiling it without any other ingredients.
DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT	Bulgur wheat	Participants consumed 40 g/d of bulgur wheat during 4 weeks. Participants were instructed to consume bulgur wheat by boiling it without any other ingredients.

Timeline

• Start date: 2024-01-24
• Primary completion: 2025-01-17
• Completion: 2025-02-08
• First posted: 2026-04-07
• Last updated: 2026-04-07

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Turkey (Türkiye)