Fermented Foods May Help Improve Human Gut

Sep, 2020 - By SMI

The consumption of fermented soy products can reduce the risk of mortality at least by 10% and helps people to live longer.

According to the new research published in the Nature Communications journal, for the human gut, fermented foods could be a major source of potentially probiotic lactic acid bacteria (LAB). Thousands of living LABs are obtained through many fermented foods such as kefir, cheese, yogurt, and more. Some of these LAB have probiotic properties, therefore, many fermented foods are considered to be naturally healthy. However, a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) suggests that the consumption of fermented soy products can reduce the risk of mortality at least by 10%.

A higher intake of fermented soy products keeps people healthy and lowers the chances of suffering from numerous chronic circumstances that may risk people’s life. The consumption of fermented soy products such as tofu (soybean curd), miso (soybeans fermented with Aspergillus oryzae) and natto (soybeans fermented with Bacillus subtilis) helps people to live longer. LABs are used to produce many fermented foods such as fermented vegetables, fermented meats, bakery products, kefir, cheese, and yogurt. The role of the LAB is to produce molecules, transform raw materials that preserve food, and contribute to key features.

LAB strains are also known as probiotics, belonging to the most common genus Lactobacillus. During this research, the researchers reconstructed LAB genomes from around 10,000 human fecal and around 300 foods samples from different continents. The team examined the distribution of LAB based on a lifestyle, age, and geographical origin. The researchers found that the prevalence of LAB depends on lifestyle, age, and geography. Moreover, the team compared around 3,000 LAB genomes’ DNA sequences. The research revealed high levels of similarity of LAB from food with LAB from the human intestine. The researchers suggest that fermented foods can help improve the human gut with these potentially probiotic microorganisms.