Effect of Diet and Dietary Components on the Composition of the Gut Microbiota

Abstract

Diet and dietary components have profound effects on the composition of the gut microbiota and are among the most important contributors to the alteration in bacterial flora. This review examines the effects the “Western”, “plant-based”, “high-fat”, “medical ketogenic”, and “Mediterranean” diets have on the composition of the gut microbiota in both mice and human subjects. We show that specific dietary components that are commonly found in the “plant-based” and “Mediterranean” diet play a role in shifting the microbial composition. This review further evaluates the bacterial metabolites that are associated with diet, and their role in systemic inflammation and metabolic endotoxemia. Furthermore, the associations between diet/dietary components and altering bacterial composition, may lead to potential therapeutic targets for type II diabetes, obesity, and inflammatory diseases.

Homemade Kefir Consumption Improves Skin Condition—A Study Conducted in Healthy and Atopic Volunteers

“…Moreover, although we did not identify any relationship between nutrient intake and the measured skin parameters, that influence is expected to exist due to the impact of food in the gut, particularly fiber and water intake [2,44].…”

“…New insights in the field of nutrition increasingly support the evidence of a close relationship between diet and health, namely skin health [2,71]. Diet is a major regulator of the intestinal microbiota, and short-term changes in the diet have the ability to rapidly alter gut bacteria [44,72].…”

“…Diet is a major regulator of the intestinal microbiota, and short-term changes in the diet have the ability to rapidly alter gut bacteria [44,72]. The use of probiotics presents itself as one of the most common interventions to beneficially regulate the gut microbiota [2,10,71]. Probiotics are beginning to be recognized as being able to beneficially impact skin health by modifying its microbiota, preventing pathogen invasion and contributing to the restoration of impaired barrier function [13,[73][74][75].…”

“…Diet has a fundamental role in the homeostasis of bodily functions, including the functions of the skin, which, as an essential protective barrier, plays a crucial role in this balance [1][2][3]. The skin and intestine appear to share a series of indirect metabolic pathways in a dual relationship known as the "gut-skin axis" [4][5][6].…”

Gut Microbiota as Regulators of Th17/Treg Balance in Patients With Myasthenia Gravis

“…Gut microbiota dysbiosis may lead to increased permeability of the intestinal mucosal barrier, infection, and excessive inflammatory response, as well as an imbalance of T cell subsets, which has been described in asthma ( 26 ), rheumatoid arthritis ( 27 ), inflammatory bowel disease ( 28 ), multiple sclerosis ( 29 ), and MG ( 30 ), among others. Accordingly, regulating the immune imbalance of Thl7/Treg cells and inducing the reconstruction of immune tolerance may become a potential treatment modality for autoimmune diseases, such as MG. Studies have revealed that environmental factors, especially dietary factors, can alter the gut microbiota composition and its metabolic activity , which produce adverse implications for human health ( 31 ). For instance, alterations in the gut microbiota caused by a Western high-fat diet have recently been recognized as a major contributing factor to the colorectal cancer epidemic ( 32 ) .…”