One in four Germans suffers from metabolic syndrome.
Several of four diseases of affluence occur at the same time in this ‘deadly quartet’: obesity, high blood pressure, lipid metabolism disorder and diabetes mellitus.
Each of these is a risk factor for severe health conditions, such as heart attack and stroke.
Treatment aims to help patients lose weight and normalize their lipid and carbohydrate metabolism and blood pressure. In addition to exercise, doctors prescribe a healthy, low-calorie diet. Medication is often also required.
However, it is not fully clear what effects nutrition has on the microbiome, immune system and health.
In a new study, researchers found examined the effect a change of diet has on people with metabolic syndrome.
They found switching to a healthy diet has a positive effect on blood pressure. If the diet is preceded by a fast, this effect is intensified.
The research was conducted by a team from the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine and elsewhere.
In the study, the team recruited 71 volunteers with metabolic syndrome and raised systolic blood pressure. The researchers divided them into two groups at random.
Both groups followed the DASH (Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension) diet for three months, which is designed to combat high blood pressure.
This Mediterranean-style diet includes lots of fruit and vegetables, wholemeal products, nuts and pulses, fish and lean white meat. One of the two groups did not consume any solid food at all for five days before starting the DASH diet.
The team found the composition of the gut bacteria ecosystem changes drastically during fasting. Health-promoting bacteria that reduce blood pressure multiply. Some of these changes remain even after the resumption of food intake.
They also found body mass index, blood pressure and the need for antihypertensive medication remained lower in the long term among volunteers who started the healthy diet with a five-day fast.
The team says if a high-fiber, low-fat diet fails to deliver results, it is possible that there are insufficient gut bacteria in the gut microbiome that metabolize fiber into protective fatty acids.
It is, therefore, a good idea to combine a diet with a fast. Fasting acts as a catalyst for protective microorganisms in the gut.
Health clearly improves very quickly and patients can cut back on their medication or even often stop taking tablets altogether.
The study is published in Nature Communications. One author of the study is Dr. Sofia Forslund.
Copyright © 2021 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
