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Early effects of peppermint oil on gastric emptying: a crossover study using a continuous real-time 13C breath test (BreathID system)

Journal of Gastroenterology volume 42, pages 539–542 (2007)Cite this article

Abstract

Background

The aim of this study was to determine whether there was a correlation between peppermint oil and gastric emptying by using a novel noninvasive technique for measuring gastric emptying with a continuous real-time 13C breath test (BreathID system, Oridion, Israel).

Methods

Ten healthy male volunteers participated in this randomized, two-way crossover study. The subjects were randomly assigned to receive a test meal (200 kcal per 200 ml) containing 0.64 ml of peppermint oil or the test meal alone, after fasting overnight. A 13C-acetic acid breath test was continuously performed with the BreathID system, which monitors gastric emptying, for 4 h after the administration of the test meal. Using Oridion Research Software (β version), the time for emptying of 50% of the labeled meals (T 1/2), the analog to the scintigraphy lag time for 10% emptying of the labeled meal (T lag), the gastric emptying coefficient (GEC), and the regression-estimated constants (β and κ) were calculated. The parameters between two occasions were compared using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test.

Results

After peppermint oil intake, the T lag and β constant were significantly decreased. No significant differences in T 1/2, GEC, or κ were observed between the two occasions.

Conclusions

The decrease in the T lag and β constant suggests acceleration of gastric emptying during the early phase. This study showed that peppermint oil enhances gastric emptying, suggesting the potential use of peppermint oil in clinical settings for patients with functional gastrointestinal disorders.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gastroenterology Division, Yokohama City University, 3-9 Fukuura, Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama, 236-0004, Japan

    Masahiko Inamori, Tomoyuki Akiyama, Keiko Akimoto, Koji Fujita, Hirokazu Takahashi, Masato Yoneda, Yasunobu Abe, Kensuke Kubota, Satoru Saito, Norio Ueno & Atsushi Nakajima

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  1. Masahiko Inamori
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  2. Tomoyuki Akiyama
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  3. Keiko Akimoto
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  4. Koji Fujita
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  5. Hirokazu Takahashi
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  6. Masato Yoneda
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  7. Yasunobu Abe
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  8. Kensuke Kubota
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  9. Satoru Saito
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  10. Norio Ueno
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  11. Atsushi Nakajima
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Inamori, M., Akiyama, T., Akimoto, K. et al. Early effects of peppermint oil on gastric emptying: a crossover study using a continuous real-time 13C breath test (BreathID system). J Gastroenterol 42, 539–542 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-007-2067-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00535-007-2067-3

Key words

  • peppermint oil
  • gastric emptying
  • breath test