diets causing a "boom in bad bacteria", according to US researchers.
Mouse experiments detailed in the journal Nature linked certain fats,
bacteria in the gut and the onset of inflammatory diseases.
The researchers said the high-fat diet changed the way food was
digested andencouraged harmful bacteria.
Microbiologists said modifying gut bacteria might treat the disease.
Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs), such as Crohn's and ulcerative
colitis, affect one in every 350 people in the UK. When the gut
becomes inflamed it can lead to abdominal pain and diarrhoea.
The researchers at the University of Chicago said the incidence of the
diseases was increasing rapidly.
They used genetically modified mice which were more likely to develop
IBDs. One in three developed colitis when fed either low-fat diets or
meals high in polyunsaturated fats. This jumped to nearly two in three
in those fed a diet high in saturated milk fats, which are in many
processed foods.
They also suggest an effective means of dealing with such diseases, by
simply reshaping the microbial balance of the gut"
Dr Roy Sleator
Cork Institute of Technology
These saturated fats are hard for the body to digest and it responds
by pumping more bile into the gut. This changes the gut environment
and leadsto a change in the bacteria growing there, the researchers
said.
Treatments
One bacterium in particular, Bilophila wadsworthia, was identified. It
thrives in the extra bile produced to break down the fats. It went
from being incrediblyrare to nearly 6% of all bacteria in the gut in
the high-fat diet.
Prof Eugene Chang, of the University of Chicago, said:"Unfortunately,
these can be harmful bacteria. Presented with a rich source of
sulphur, they bloom, and when they do, they are capable of activating
the immune system of genetically proneindividuals."
However, he said this couldlead to possible treatmentsas the gut
bacteria could be "reshaped" without"significantly affecting the
lifestyles of individuals who are genetically prone to these
diseases".
Commenting on the research, Dr Roy Sleator, from the Cork Institute of
Technology, said: "Not onlydo the authors provide, what is in my
opinion, the first credible explanation asto how Western diet
contributes to the unusually high incidence ininflammatory bowel
disease; they also suggest an effective means of dealing with such
diseases, by simply reshaping the microbial balance of the gut."
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