Efeito de padrões alimentares na microbiota intestinal humana

Abstract

The gut microbiota (GM) is responsible for several functions that enable body homeostasis. Its colonization occurs from birth and varies until senescence. GM is composed of several microorganisms, with a predominance of bacteria. Habits such as poor diet, alcohol and drug consumption, as well as lack of physical exercise can trigger GM imbalances. In this sense, diet emerges as one of the main modulating factors of human IM. Despite the evidence, there is a scarcity of studies that compile data on the effects of dietary patterns on GM, especially in Portuguese. In this sense, this work aimed to carry out a narrative review on this topic. To better support the review, a search was carried out for observational studies and clinical trials published in the last 5 (2019 to 2023) years and indexed in the PubMed/MEDLINE database. We observed that each dietary pattern acts in a different way on GM, interfering with bacterial composition and diversity. Only the Western dietary pattern allowed negative effects on GM, due to the large amount of ultra-processed foods ingested. All other patterns had beneficial effects on GM, especially because their high content of fiber from fruits and vegetables, which enables an increase in the production of short chain fatty acids (SCFA). It is expected that more studies will be carried out on this topic and that there will be advances in relation to the modulation of GM through the adoption of specific dietary patterns for the prevention, control or treatment of various clinical conditions.