Cereal Chem 64:352-355   |  VIEW ARTICLE

Absorption of Chromium as Affected by Wheat Bran.

K. S. Keim, C. L. Holloway, and M. Hebsted. Copyright 1987 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

This study was designed to investigate the influence of dietary fiber and phytate, as found in wheat bran, on the absorption of chromium. Twenty male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into two groups of 10. The control group was fed a semipurified casein-based diet. The experimental group was fed the same diet but with soft red winter wheat bran added to a level of 35% of the diet. To determine chromium absorption and uptake by selected tissues, rats were fasted for 24 hr, fed 5 g of the respective diet, 2 hr later intubated with 100 microCuries of 51Cr, and sacrificed 24 hr later. The rats were housed in metabolic cages after the 51Cr intubation. The incorporation of wheat bran into the diet did not significantly affect chromium absorption as measured by percent dose of 51Cr in the 24-hr urine. The percent dose in urine in the casein group was 0.64 +/- 0.20% (mean +/- SEM) and in the wheat bran group 0.60 +/- 0.20% (mean +/- SEM; ns). The 51Cr uptake of liver, spleen, jejunum, and blood was not satistically different between groups. These results indicate that dietary fiber and phytate as found in wheat bran do not impair intestinal absorption of chromium.