- An estimated 3 million adults in the United States suffer from Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).
- The health of your gut and the gut microbiota has been shown to affect inflammation, which is the key feature of IBD.
- Dysbiosis has been observed in patients with IBD as compared to healthy individuals.
- The Anti-inflammatory Diet for IBD (IBD-AID), which includes the use of more prebiotic and probiotic foods to restore the healthy levels of gut microbiota, has been researched and studied as an adjunct therapy for IBD treatment.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the gut and bowels. The 2 conditions that are commonly associated with IBD are Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). The differences between CD and UC lie in the following [1]:
- Location: inflammation can affect any part of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract for CD; for UC, it is limited to the colon and the rectum - Type: damaged tissues appear in patches in CD, whereas the damaged areas are often continuous in UC - Extend: the extend of inflammation can affect multiple layers of the GI tract in CD, while inflammation is only often present in the innermost layer of the colon in UC.
An estimated 3 million adults from the United States (U.S.) suffer from IBD [2], with many more children under the age of 18 years old being diagnosed as well [3]. Common symptoms of IBD may resemble irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), but they are not the same condition. Some symptoms include abdominal pain, weight loss, and rectal bleeding.
The health of your gut and the gut microbiota (also called gut microbiome) has been shown to affect inflammation, which is the key feature of IBD [4]. Fiber intake may also have certain roles in the cause of IBD, which includes (but not limited to) its effects as a prebiotic for the gut microbiota.
World IBD Day falls on 19 May every year [5]. In conjunction with this day, find out how the health of your gut (including your gut microbiota) is related and associated with this autoimmune and inflammatory disease of the bowels!
The human digestive system and health is greatly affected by the microorganisms harbored within the gut, which includes bacteria, virus, and fungi species. This is termed as the gut microbiota, with the number of bacterial cells estimated to be more than 10 times the number of human cells [6]. Its composition is unique to everyone, as several factors such as environmental and lifestyle contribute to the uniqueness of the gut microbiota composition [7].
Indications of an unhealthy digestive system can range from local (i.e., gut-related) such as digestive issues, to more systemic-related problems like skin health, mood swings, and even depression [8], and many of these effects may be contributed by the gut microbiota [9]. A change in the bacterial species and environment could happen because of drugs (e.g., antibiotics), toxins, and pathogens. This is called ‘dysbiosis’ [10].
There have been several published reports that studied the effects of the gut microbiota on IBD, mainly reflected by the gut microbiota’s effect on reducing inflammation.
Dysbiosis has been observed in patients with IBD as compared to healthy individuals [11]. As a healthy gut microbiota has been associated with anti-inflammatory effects on the gut, dysbiosis could have pro-inflammatory effects on the gut, leading to symptoms of IBD. An increase in the number of ‘bad’ bacteria in the gut also affects the gut in other ways, such as changing the permeability of the intestine walls [11]. This effect has also been shown in animal studies, where rats with gut microbiota changes induced by using antibiotics were associated with recurrent gut inflammation [12].
The gut microbiota also produces short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) through the fermentation of prebiotics such as dietary fiber [9]. The concentrations of these SCFAs were also found to be lower in IBD patients, which may also play a part in inducing inflammation, leading to IBD and its respective symptoms [11].
Dietary changes that target gut microbiota may help to alleviate IBD symptoms [13]. The Anti-inflammatory Diet for IBD (IBD-AID) has been researched and studied as an adjunct therapy for IBD treatment [14]. The IBD-AID includes the use of more prebiotic and probiotic foods to restore the healthy levels of gut microbiota. According to the study, a 61.3% of patients on IBD-AID for 8 weeks reported a significant decrease in IBD symptoms [14]. IBD-AID also emphasize on the importance of using soluble fiber, which also promotes benefits such as SCFAs production by the gut microbiota, as mentioned above as well [15].
Prebiotics are substrates that are used and broken down by the gut microbiota to form metabolites such as SCFAs. Different forms of prebiotics include [16]:
- Resistant starches such as Fibrosol Prebiotic - Frutans - Galacto-oligosaccharides - Pectin
Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease that can affect any part of the gastrointestinal system, depending on the type of IBD. The gut microbiota and alterations of the composition of it has been associated with IBD, as dysbiosis has been shown to be observed in patients with IBD as compared to healthy individuals. Dietary changes such as increasing the usage of prebiotic and soluble fiber may be useful in alleviating the symptoms of IBD.
This article is written in conjunction with World IBD Day, which falls on 19 May every year.
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- In 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that around 1.28 billion adults aged 30-79 years worldwide have hypertension.
- The use of fiber to reduce blood pressure has been studied and published in various clinical trials.
- The effects of fiber on blood pressure lowering may have also been due to the gut microbiota. The gut microbiota ferments the undigested fiber (acting as prebiotics) that passes through to the large intestine, producing short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) which activate receptors that play a part in blood pressure regulations.
- Other mechanisms include the regulation of genes related to immunity, inflammation and metabolism which may also affect blood pressure.
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is an increasingly prevalent condition worldwide. In 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that around 1.28 billion adults aged 30-79 years worldwide have hypertension, and less than half have it diagnosed and treated [1]. Some complications of high blood pressure include cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks and strokes [1]. Often dubbed as the ‘silent killer’, this condition often shows no signs and symptoms [1].
Blood pressure reading is mainly divided into 2 numbers [2]:
- Systolic blood pressure (i.e., the top number): this number indicates the pressure your blood is exerting against the blood vessels’ walls when the heart beats - Diastolic blood pressure (i.e., the bottom number): this number indicates the pressure your blood is exerting against the blood vessels’ walls when the heart relaxes between beats
With the incidence of hypertension on the rise, there is also an increasing awareness of how diet and other means can help with lowering the blood pressure naturally (i.e., without the use of medications). The implications of using dietary fiber and their effects on blood pressure has garnered interest [3]. How does the use of dietary fiber help with lowering blood pressure? Does the fiber affect blood pressure directly or through other mechanisms, such as via its interactions with the gut microbiota?
World Hypertension Day falls on 17 May every year. In conjunction with this day, find out how the health of your gut and dietary fiber intake is implicated in your blood pressure readings!
Fiber is a form of carbohydrates, naturally present in plants. Although most carbohydrates can be broken down by the body’s enzyme into simple sugars, our body is unable to completely break down fibers and gets passed through to the large intestine. It is generally divided into 2 forms: soluble and insoluble fibers [4].
The use of fiber to reduce blood pressure has been studied and published in various clinical trials. A meta-analysis done in 2005 aggregated data from 24 different studies and trials to see the effects of fiber on blood pressure [5]. This study found that fiber supplementation at 11.5g per day caused a non-significant decrease in systolic blood pressure and a significant change in diastolic blood pressure, with effects larger for older and hypertensive populations [5].
The authors of the study also concluded that increasing fiber intake in the general population may contribute to prevention of hypertension [5], especially as the intake of dietary fiber in the general population is low [6]. A high-fiber diet was also found to have experienced a 15% reduction in systolic blood pressure, along with an inverse risk of developing cardiovascular diseases [7].
The effects of fiber on blood pressure lowering may have also been due to the presence of the microorganism environment in the gut, which is also termed as your gut microbiota. The gut microbiota consists of a range of microorganisms consisting of bacteria, virus, and fungi [8], and the composition differs depending on several factors such as environmental and lifestyle reasons (e.g., diet) [9].
The gut microbiota ferments the undigested fiber that passes through to the large intestine, producing short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and gases. These SCFAs produced by the breakdown of fiber by the gut microbiota play important roles in multiple body functions, one of which includes the modulation of blood pressure and decreasing the risk of developing hypertension from a fiber-rich diet [10]. Dysbiosis of the gut (i.e., alterations of the gut microbiota) is also found to be linked with hypertension [11].
There are many mechanisms on how the gut microbiota and its derivatives affect the blood pressure [12]:
- SCFAs produced from the fermentation of the fibers activates receptors that play a part in blood pressure regulations - Reduction in microbial gene richness may also lead to inflammation, which can also be a cause of high blood pressure - Gut microbiota can influence the production of chemicals by gastrointestinal cells, which has effects on the gut-brain axis - Gut microbiota may also regulate genes related to immunity, inflammation and metabolism which may also affect blood pressure
Hypertension, often termed as the ‘silent killer’, often presents with no symptoms, and affects more than 1 billion of adults worldwide. It has severe complications if it goes undetected and untreated, including heart attacks and strokes. There has been much interest in natural ways such as the use of diet and dietary fiber in managing and lowering blood pressure. The use of fiber has also been touted to be able to reduce blood pressure, with potential effects due to the gut microbiota. Importance of the gut microbiota on blood pressure could also have been mediated by other factors such as its effects on the immunity and metabolism of the individual.
This article is written in conjunction with World Hypertension Day, which falls on 17 May every year.
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