**3. Results**

Mean total polyphenol content (TPC) was lowest in the cumin aqueous extract (103.0 ± 3.4 mg GAE/100 g of cumin powder) and highest in the tamarind aqueous extract (440.1 ± 13.3 mg GAE/100 g of tamarind pulp). Mean TPC of corn silk was 233.1 ± 2.2 mg GAE/100 g of dried corn silk.

Of the 18 volunteers enrolled in the study, 16 volunteers completed all nine test sessions. One volunteer only completed three test sessions, while another only completed five sessions. The baseline anthropometric and metabolic characteristics of the volunteers to indicate the profile of volunteers who completed the study are presented in Table 2. All participants had their fasted glucose concentration at screening visit of less than 6.0 mmol/L, except for one participant who had a concentration of 6.20 mmol/L and would therefore be considered as having impaired fasted glucose (IFG).

**Table 2.** Baseline anthropometric and metabolic characteristics.


#### *3.1. Postprandial Glycemic and Insulinemic Response to Control and Test Meals*

Figures 2 and 3 respectively show plasma glucose and insulin concentrations over time. As expected, mean plasma glucose concentration rose significantly above baseline fasting levels in the first hour after meal initiation, peaking at T30 and falling below baseline at T150 and T180 (Figure 2). Similarly, the mean plasma insulin concentration rose significantly above baseline fasting levels in the first 2 h after meal initiation, peaking at T45 and returning to baseline levels at T150 (Figure 3). There were no significant di fferences between the various treatments as compared with the control on postprandial glycemia, irrespective of the food form, evaluated using incremental areas under the curve for various time intervals (iAUC30, iAUC120, or iAUC180), as shown in Table 3. There were also no di fferences in the postprandial glycemic responses between the two di fferent forms (rice vs. drink) of consumption, irrespective of the test ingredients. Similarly, there were no significant di fferences in the influence of the various treatments as compared with the control on postprandial insulinemia as evaluated using incremental areas under the curve for various time intervals (iAUC30, iAUC120, or iAUC180). However, there was a significant increase (*p* < 0.01) in postprandial insulinemia (iAUC120 or iAUC180) when the test ingredients were consumed as a drink (D) as compared with the

same ingredients being cooked within rice (R), irrespective of the test ingredients. It should also be noted that the form × treatment interactions were not significant across all measures, as shown in Table 3.

**Figure 2.** Postprandial changes in plasma glucose concentration during various treatments. CSD12: corn silk drink 12 g; CSR12: corn silk rice 12 g; CSD24: corn silk drink 24 g; CSR24: corn silk rice 24 g; CUD: cumin drink; CUR: cumin rice; TAMD: tamarind drink; TAMR: tamarind rice.

**Figure 3.** Postprandial changes in plasma insulin concentration during various treatments. CSD12: corn silk drink 12 g; CSR12: corn silk rice 12 g; CSD24: corn silk drink 24 g; CSR24: corn silk rice 24 g; CUD: cumin drink; CUR: cumin rice; TAMD: tamarind drink; TAMR: tamarind rice.



a All analyses were done using the linear mixed effects procedure with compound symmetry covariance structure in SPSS. b Model testing effects of treatment overall, including control. c Model testing effects of form × treatment without control. Bold lettering indicates *p* < 0.05.

#### *3.2. Postprandial Changes in Blood Pressure during Control and Test Meals*

The postprandial changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressures are shown in Figures 4 and 5, respectively. There were no significant differences between treatments, irrespective of form or between forms, irrespective of treatments at baseline and in the total area under the curve (tAUC) of the postprandial systolic or diastolic blood pressure, as shown in Table 4.

**Figure 4.** Postprandial changes in systolic blood pressure during various treatments. corn silk drink 12 g; CSR12: corn silk rice 12 g; CSD24: corn silk drink 24 g; CSR24: corn silk rice 24 g; CUD: cumin drink; CUR: cumin rice; TAMD: tamarind drink; TAMR: tamarind rice.

**Figure 5.** Postprandial changes in diastolic blood pressure during various treatments. CSD12: corn silk drink 12 g; CSR12: corn silk rice 12 g; CSD24: corn silk drink 24 g; CSR24: corn silk rice 24 g; CUD: cumin drink; CUR: cumin rice; TAMD: tamarind drink; TAMR: tamarind rice.


**Table 4.** Baseline and total areas under the curve (tAUCs) of blood pressure over the postprandial period.
