The Mediterranean Diet could Boost Healthy Gut Bacteria

Nagpal R, Carol A. Shively, Susan A. Appt, Thomas C. Register, Kristofer T. Michalson, Mara Z. Vitolins, Hariom Yadav. Gut Microbiome Composition in Non-human Primates Consuming a Western or Mediterranean Diet. Frontiers in Nutrition, 2018; 5 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2018.00028

The Mediterranean Diet could Boost Healthy Gut Bacteria

A study was recently conducted over two and a half years among twenty Cynomolgus monkeys. Ten were fed a typical western diet, consisting of food like lard, beef tallow, butter, eggs, cheese, high fructose corn syrup and sucrose. Ten were fed a Mediterranean diet, consisting of fish oil, olive oil, fish meal, butter, eggs, beans, fruit and vegetable juice.

The Mediterranean Diet has been widely accepted as one of the healthiest diets, being modeled after the diets of people native to the Mediterranean region of the world whom experience significantly lower incidence of heart disease and cardiovascular disease compared to the rest of the world. The diet focuses on eating fish, olive oil, legumes, fresh fruits and vegetables, while limiting sweets, red meats, and other high fat foods.

Feces was collected and analyzed for microbiotic composition. The Mediterranean diet group showed slightly higher abundance of bacteria than those on the Western diet. This may be attributed to higher fiber and healthy fat intake of the Mediterranean diet, which can feed healthy bacteria in the gut, which will aid digestion in general.

-CK

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