As per usual, it seems to be the most ‘attractive’ (to many, not all) food that gets us into the most trouble.
A high intake of animal products, processed foods, alcohol and sugar is linked to a gut microbiome that encourages inflammation, says online journal Gut.
However, a diet rich in plant-based foods is linked to gut microbes that have the opposite effect, prompting researchers to suggest that dietary modifications may help to ease inflammation in the body.
Systemic immunity is also affected, as an imbalance is implicated in a growing number of inflammatory conditions, ranging from diabetes to arthritis, heart disease and systemic lupus erythematosus, notes the researchers.
It’s still not clear if specific foods and dietary patterns might affect the composition of the gut microbiome and consequently inflammatory responses in the gut.
Research findings
After conducting an experiment, an analysis of the data reveals 38 associations between dietary intake and particular bacterial clusters.
Additionally, 61 individual foods and nutrients were associated with 61 species of bacteria and 249 metabolic processes across all the study participants.
Processed foods and animal-derived foods were consistently associated with a higher relative volume of ‘opportunistic’ bacterial species, including certain bacteria belonging to Firmicutes and Ruminococcus sp, and involved pro-inflammatory activity.
Plant foods and fish, however, were associated with ‘friendly’ bacterial species involved in anti-inflammatory activity.
Eating nuts, oily fish, fruit, vegetables and cereals was linked to a higher abundance of bacteria, such as Faecalibacterium sp which produce short chain fatty acids: these acids help control inflammation and protect the integrity of the cells lining the gut.
The researchers conclude, “Long-term diets enriched in legumes, vegetables, fruits and nuts; a higher intake of plant over animal foods with a preference for low-fat fermented dairy and fish; while avoiding strong alcoholic drinks, processed high-fat meat and soft drinks, have a potential to prevent intestinal inflammatory processes via the gut microbiome.”
