Posted on 04/11/2025 9:01:24 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
A study researchers suggests that a diet rich in soluble fiber can protect the intestine against pathogenic bacteria.
The conclusion is based on experiments with mice exposed to Clostridioides difficile, which causes colon inflammation and diarrhea.
"We were able to treat the mice that had an infection with a diet supplemented with soluble fiber. This is digested by intestinal microbiota, which produces compounds such as acetate. This initiates a cascade of interactions that leads to an appropriate immune response to deal with the infection," explains José Fachi.
The authors observed that the mice that consumed a diet rich in soluble fiber produced more acetate in the intestine. This increase helped regulate the immune response in the layer that covers the inner wall of the organ, known as the epithelium, making it effective in fighting the C. difficile bacteria.
Acetate is a short-chain fatty acid produced by the digestion of soluble fibers, a process carried out by the bacteria that live in the intestine.
In the study, mice fed a low-fiber diet produced little acetate. As a result, the expression of components of the so-called major histocompatibility complex class 2 (MHC-II) was increased in the intestinal epithelium. Although MHC-II is an essential molecule in the defense against infection, its excessive production can cause exaggerated inflammation.
In the animals treated in the study with a diet low in fiber and therefore low in acetate production, the immune response was exacerbated. The epithelial cells overproduced MHC-II, which has the function of presenting pathogen molecules (antigens) to activate CD4+ T lymphocytes, which are responsible for fighting infection.
The researchers analyzed biopsies from patients who had been infected with C. difficile. As in the animals, the most severe cases had a higher presence of MHC-II and CD4+ T lymphocytes compared to the less severe cases.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
“Ever eat a pine tree? Many parts are edible.” Euell Gibbons
Pine is a soft wood, if your teeth are strong. Lots of fiber.
My body type hates bread and dairy and likes steak.
Well, dairy and steak eat fiber....
My doctor recommended Metamuscil twice a day, after doing so I became a convert. Highly recommend it.
Soluble fiber like in carrots, black & blueberries, bananas, summer squash, green beans, etc. Not just oatmeal.
https://www.verywellhealth.com/best-ibs-friendly-sources-of-soluble-fiber-1945020
I have a form of IBS which makes it hard for me to process insoluble fiber.
Milled/ground Flaxseed is a good source of soluable fiber, I put it on eggs and mix it in smoothies. It becomes almost gelatinous and my system really does well with it.
Other things I can eat are cooked collards, spinach, and zuchinni. I can eat all the foods you listed but I have to soften the carrots.
Green beans. My next-door neighbor, elderly, IBS-D and diverticulosis — she swears by green beans, discovered they are just about the only food that works on her gut problems. She has a bowl of them for breakfast, keeps her normal. Metamucil didn’t work for her, bananas made matters worse. Ditto avocados.
I wouldn’t want to eat green beans for breakfast, but I guess it beats long visits to the bathroom.
All my senior friends have gut problems. Every last one. I have learned a lot from doing their grocery shopping.
I wonder how much is oxalates causing problems...I think that was my problem...since resolved.
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