In a new study, researchers found the consumption of dietary fiber from oat and rye brans supported gut health, which in turn improved cholesterol metabolism and reduced liver inflammation.
In addition, diets enriched with oat or rye bran were shown to attenuate weight gain. The effects of oat and rye were partly different, but both were beneficial for health.
The research was conducted by a team at the University of Eastern Finland and elsewhere.
The health benefits of oat, rye, and other whole-grain products have been widely studied, and their use has been linked to decreased inflammation and improved glucose, lipid, and adipose tissue metabolism in human and animal experimental research.
In addition, they have been linked to a decreased risk of obesity, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular diseases, and type 2 diabetes. Different dietary fibers are also known to have different health effects.
Until recently, the mechanisms underlying the health effects or oat and rye bran fibers have not been well understood.
Dietary fiber is known to induce changes in gut microbiota function and to thus modulate the gut environment in a beneficial manner. How this modulation is associated with metabolic pathways is, however, largely unclear.
The current study was an animal experiment during which mice were fed a high-fat Western diet for 17 weeks. Two groups were fed the same diet enriched with 10% of either oat or rye bran.
Among the various gut microbial metabolites, this study focused on those especially relevant to the development of the fatty liver disease, which is often associated with obesity.
The team found that both brans have the capacity to create a favorable environment in the gut by supporting the growth of beneficial microbes.
Via these microbiota changes, oats modified bile acid-related receptor function and rye modified bile acid production, which led to improved cholesterol metabolism.
Both bran fibers enhanced the production of SCFAs, leading to improved gut integrity and reduced liver inflammation.
In addition, both oat and rye supplementation was shown to attenuate weight gain associated with a high-fat diet.
One author of the study is Zuzanna Maria Kundi.
The study is published in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research.
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