Fiber helps in building the environment within the stomach and large intestine wherein micro-organisms inside can flourish. It is now well understood that a good micro-organism colony in the gut impacts not just the digestive system but also the cardiovascular, neurological, endocrine, and other systems.

The gut is now regarded as the second brain in the human body. An inter-relationship between the gut microbiota and overall human health is a hot topic of research. Changes in the composition of gut microbiota’s association with disease referred to as dysbiosis, have been linked to pathologies such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, heart failure, chronic kidney disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes mellitus. (Tang, W.W., et al., 2017)

Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) produced primarily from the microbial fermentation of dietary fiber appear to be key mediators of the beneficial effects elicited by the gut microbiome. Not only does dietary fiber fermentation regulate microbial activity in the gut, SCFA also directly modulate host health through a range of tissue-specific mechanisms related to gut barrier function, glucose homeostasis, immunomodulation, appetite regulation, and obesity. (Chambers, E.S., et al., 2018).

Fiber is clearly critical to heart health.

References:

Tang, W. W., Kitai, T., & Hazen, S. L. (2017). Gut microbiota in cardiovascular health and disease. Circulation research, 120(7), 1183-1196.

Chambers, E. S., Preston, T., Frost, G., & Morrison, D. J. (2018). Role of gut microbiota-generated short-chain fatty acids in metabolic and cardiovascular health. Current nutrition reports, 7(4), 198-206.

Nutrition Facts; A guide to good health – Sudhir Ahluwalia

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