Time Restricted Feeding as a Tool to Modulate the Gut Microbiome

The gut microbiome changes with age, the balance of microbial populations shifting to cause more inflammation and a lesser production of beneficial metabolites. To what degree can forms of fasting and time restricted feeding improve the aged gut microbiome? The authors of this paper seem optimistic, but more data is needed. Particularly, I'd want to see data in calorie restricted or intermittently fasted old rodents in direct comparison with the effects of fecal microbiota transplant from young animals. Obtaining human data for the same interventions should not be too challenging a prospect; it just requires the will and funding to run a small and informal clinical trial. The manipulation of the gut microbiota composition through dietary changes and intermittent fasting (IF) has emerged as a potentially effective "pharmaco-nutritional" strategy for reversing dysbiosis and host metabolic disorders. However, the conventional medical care system does not yet have the capability of evaluating both the qualitative and quantitative changes that occur in the gut microbiota. At the population level, one potential strategy for the prevention and management of metabolic syndrome should involve the development of a set of approaches related to changes in the microbiota of the gut. TRF stands for time-restricted feeding in animals and time-restricted eating (TRE) in humans throughout a counted number of hours. It allows for a daily fasting duration that is greater than 12 hours,...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs