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Effect of ancient Khorasan wheat on gut microbiota, inflammation, and short-chain fatty acid production in patients with fibromyalgia.
Baldi, S, Pagliai, G, Dinu, M, Di Gloria, L, Nannini, G, Curini, L, Pallecchi, M, Russo, E, Niccolai, E, Danza, G, et al
World journal of gastroenterology. 2022;28(18):1965-1980
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Fibromyalgia (FM) is a systemic syndrome of unclear aetiology, characterized by widespread pain and tenderness, sleeping disorders, fatigue, and cognitive dysfunction. In many cases, gastrointestinal distress is also reported, suggesting a potential involvement of the gut microbiota (GM), as demonstrated by the frequent dysbiosis found in FM subjects. The aim of this study was to examine whether a replacement diet with ancient Khorasan wheat could influence the GM composition, the faecal molecular immune profile, and short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) production in patients suffering fibromyalgia syndrome. This study was a randomised, double-blind crossover trial which enrolled patients with documented FM who consumed control wheat products or Khorasan wheat products for 8 weeks and then crossed over. Participants (n=20) were randomly assigned to one of the two groups. Results showed that: - both 8-week interventions did not significantly modify either the microbial composition and diversity or the SCFAs levels; - in terms of changes in microbial abundances produced by each dietary intervention, Khorasan wheat products (KD) did not result in modifications at any taxonomic level, whereas the controlled diet (CD) was associated with a significant increase of Turicibacter spp. [bacteria belonging to the phylum Firmicutes]; - faecal molecular inflammatory profile showed that CD resulted in an increased level of a particular anti-inflammatory marker, while no significant differences were reported after KD. Authors conclude that an ancient Khorasan wheat diet results in some beneficial GM compositional and functional modifications that positively correlate with an improvement of fibromyalgia symptomatology.
Abstract
BACKGROUND Fibromyalgia (FM) syndrome is mainly characterized by widespread pain, sleeping disorders, fatigue, and cognitive dysfunction. In many cases, gastrointestinal distress is also reported, suggesting the potential pathogenic role of the gut microbiota (GM). The GM is deeply influenced by several environmental factors, especially the diet, and recent findings highlighted significant symptom improvement in FM patients following various nutritional interventions such as vegetarian diet, low-fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols based diets, gluten-free diet, and especially an ancient grain supplementation. In particular, a recent study reported that a replacement diet with ancient Khorasan wheat led to an overall improvement in symptom severity of FM patients. AIM: To examine the effects of ancient Khorasan wheat on the GM, inflammation, and short-chain fatty acid production in FM patients. METHODS After a 2-wk run-in period, 20 FM patients were enrolled in this randomized, double-blind crossover trial. In detail, they were assigned to consume either Khorasan or control wheat products for 8 wk and then, following an 8-wk washout period, crossed. Before and after treatments, GM characterization was performed by 16S rRNA sequencing while the fecal molecular inflammatory response and the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) were respectively determined with the Luminex MAGPIX detection system and a mass chromatography-mass spectrometry method. RESULTS The Khorasan wheat replacement diet, in comparison with the control wheat diet, had more positive effects on intestinal microbiota composition and on both the fecal immune and SCFAs profiles such as the significant increase of butyric acid levels (P = 0.054), candidatus Saccharibacteria (P = 9.95e-06) and Actinobacteria, and the reduction of Enterococcaceae (P = 4.97e-04). Moreover, the improvement of various FM symptoms along with the variation of some gut bacteria after the Khorasan wheat diet have been documented; in fact we reported positive correlations between Actinobacteria and both Tiredness Symptoms Scale (P < 0.001) and Functional Outcome of Sleep Questionnaire (P < 0.05) scores, between Verrucomicrobiae and both Widespread Pain Index (WPI) + Symptom Severity scale (SS) (P < 0.05) and WPI (P < 0.05) scores, between candidatus Saccharibacteria and SS score (P < 0.05), and between Bacteroidales and Sleep-Related and Safety Behaviour Questionnaire score (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION The replacement diet based on ancient Khorasan wheat results in beneficial GM compositional and functional modifications that positively correlate with an improvement of FM symptomatology.
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The Effect of Gluten Free Diet on Components of Metabolic Syndrome: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Ehteshami, M, Shakerhosseini, R, Sedaghat, F, Hedayati, M, Eini-Zinab, H, Hekmatdoost, A
Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention : APJCP. 2018;19(10):2979-2984
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Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions related to cardiovascular disorders risk factors such as blood pressure, dyslipidaemia, hyperglycaemia, excess body fat around the waist and insulin resistance. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of a gluten-free diet on components of metabolic syndrome in patients diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. The study is a randomised control trial that recruited fifty subjects diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. Subjects were block randomised by gender into control and gluten-free diet groups. Results showed that a gluten-free diet induces significant reduction in waist circumference in comparison to control diet. Reduction in waist circumference without significant reduction in body weight may indicate preferential loss of abdominal fat. Furthermore, results indicate that a gluten-free diet improved glucose tolerance. Authors conclude that a gluten-free diet significantly improved some key features of metabolic syndrome including blood glucose and serum triglycerides.
Abstract
Background: This study aimed to assess the effects of Gluten free diet (GFD) on components of metabolic syndrome (MES). Materials and Methods: In this randomized clinical trial, 50 subjects diagnosed with MES were randomly divided into two groups (n=25). The first group received a GFD and the second group continued their regular diet. Biochemical markers of MES and blood pressure were measured before and after 8-week intervention. Results: Forty five subjects completed the study. A post-hoc comparison of the groups showed no effects of the GFD and control diet on LDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels. The GFD reduced fasting blood glucose, waist circumference (WC) and serum triglyceride concentration significantly compared with the control diet (p<0.05). Conclusion: Short-term GFD reduced WC and improved glycemic control and Triglyceride level in subjects with the metabolic syndrome.
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Pilot Study: Comparison of Sourdough Wheat Bread and Yeast-Fermented Wheat Bread in Individuals with Wheat Sensitivity and Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
Laatikainen, R, Koskenpato, J, Hongisto, SM, Loponen, J, Poussa, T, Huang, X, Sontag-Strohm, T, Salmenkari, H, Korpela, R
Nutrients. 2017;9(11)
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Among patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), many report wheat-consumption related symptoms. There is an on-going debate as to whether IBS symptoms from wheat consumption are due to FODMAPs (Fermentable, Oligo-, Di-, Mono-saccharides and Polyols) or wheat proteins such as gluten. The aim of this randomised double-blind controlled study was to evaluate the impact of sourdough fermentation on wheat tolerance in 26 participants with IBS as well as changes in the molecular content of bread. Participants were randomised to consume 150 grams of either sourdough-fermented or yeast-fermented bread daily for one week and adhered to a gluten-free diet one week prior to the start of intervention and throughout the intervention. Blood samples were taken and gastrointestinal symptoms were recorded at baseline and post-intervention. The protein and FODMAP content of both types of bread was recorded as well. This study found sourdough fermentation reduced both the quantities of wheat proteins and FODMAPs significantly, however was not tolerated symptomatically any better than yeast-fermented bread. This sheds light on the fact that studies using unfermented wheat products cannot necessarily be extrapolated to fermented wheat products such as sourdough bread. Based on these results, the authors conclude further large-scale clinical studies are required to better classify the role of wheat proteins in functional gastrointestinal disorders.
Abstract
Many patients suspect wheat as being a major trigger of their irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) symptoms. Our aim was to evaluate whether sourdough wheat bread baked without baking improvers and using a long dough fermentation time (>12 h), would result in lower quantities of alpha-amylase/trypsin inhibitors (ATIs) and Fermentable, Oligo-, Di-, Mono-saccharides and Polyols (FODMAPs), and would be better tolerated than yeast-fermented wheat bread for subjects with IBS who have a poor subjective tolerance to wheat. The study was conducted as a randomised double-blind controlled 7-day study (n = 26). Tetrameric ATI structures were unravelled in both breads vs. baking flour, but the overall reduction in ATIs to their monomeric form was higher in the sourdough bread group. Sourdough bread was also lower in FODMAPs. However, no significant differences in gastrointestinal symptoms and markers of low-grade inflammation were found between the study breads. There were significantly more feelings of tiredness, joint symptoms, and decreased alertness when the participants ate the sourdough bread (p ≤ 0.03), but these results should be interpreted with caution. Our novel finding was that sourdough baking reduces the quantities of both ATIs and FODMAPs found in wheat. Nonetheless, the sourdough bread was not tolerated better than the yeast-fermented bread.