Individuals’ gut microbiotas are dominated by fiber-utilizing bacteria, which ferment dietary fiber into short-chain fatty acids that are beneficial to human health. Prevotella, Bacteroides, and Ruminococcus are the most common enterotypes in the gut microbiota. There is a link between each microbial community’s concentration and diet. Prevotella has been associated with non-industrialized populations with higher fiber diets. Bacteroides are more common in Western populations that consume a higher proportion of animal-based diets.
In diets high in meat and animal products, there are high abundances of Bilophila, Bacteroides, and Alistipes, all of which are bile tolerant and may promote gut inflammation. A plant-based diet, on the other hand, is associated with greater diversity in the gut microbiome overall, as well as a higher abundance of Prevotella, which is responsible for long-term fiber processing.
The link between nutrition and the composition of the gut microbiome has been investigated in the context of the development of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), as the bacterial composition is crucial for causing intestinal inflammation. some commensal bacteria, which provide essential nutrients to the host and protect him from opportunistic pathogens, are found in lower numbers in individuals with IBD.
Considering butyrate’s anticancer and anti-inflammatory functions, a fiber-rich diet for people with IBD was recommended due to the expected modulation of gut microbiome composition by increasing butyrate-producing bacteria. It was reported that a Lacto-Ovo vegetarian intervention with fish once a week and meat once every two weeks was capable of preventing Crohn’s disease relapse.
Butyrate is a short-chain fatty acid that your gut microbes produce when they break down dietary fiber. This metabolite performs many important functions in the human body, including improving digestive health, preventing cancer, stabilizing blood sugar levels, preventing obesity, protecting the brain from diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s,
Scientific evidence shows that eating a vegetarian diet vs an omnivore diet leads to a different gut microbial composition, with more beneficial bacteria, which influences processes involved in the pathogenesis of various chronic diseases. A plant-based diet appears to promote the formation of more diversified and stable microbial systems, which is favorable to human health. Fibers significantly increase Ruminococcus, E. rectale, and Roseburia lactic acid bacteria while decreasing Clostridium and Enterococcus species. Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus, which give anti-pathogenic and anti-inflammatory properties are increased by polyphenols.