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Blueberries Counteract Intestinal Diseases
Blueberries Counteract Intestinal Diseases
February 9, 2010 Source: Science Daily
It is already known that blueberries are rich in antioxidants and vitamins. New research from the
Lund University Faculty of Engineering in Sweden shows that blueberry fibre are important and can
alleviate and protect against intestinal inflammations, such as ulcerative colitis. The protective
effect is even better if the blueberries are eaten together with probiotics.
The project originated as an attempt to see whether various types of dietary fibre and
health-promoting bacteria, so-called probiotic bacteria such as lactobacillus and bifidobacteria, can
help alleviate and prevent the risk of ulcerative colitis and colorectal cancer.
"But new knowledge of this field is also of interest to those who don't believe they run the risk of
developing any intestinal diseases. In recent years the research world has been realizing that our
health is governed to a great extent by what happens in our large intestine," explain Camilla
Bränning, a PhD in Applied Nutrition and Åsa Håkansson, a doctoral candidate in Food Hygiene at
the Division of Applied Nutrition and Food Chemistry.
The researchers tested various types of diets of blueberry husks, rye bran and oat bran with or
without a mixture of probiotic bacteria. The results showed that the protective effect of blueberries
was reinforced if they were eaten together with probiotics.
"The probiotics proved to have a protective effect on the liver, an organ that is often negatively
impacted by intestinal inflammations," explains Åsa Håkansson.
Blueberries are rich in polyphenols, which have an antimicrobial and antioxidative effect. The
combination of blueberries and probiotics reduced inflammation-inducing bacteria in the intestine at
the same time as the number of health-promoting lactobacilla increased.
Åsa Håkansson and Camilla Bränning also noted that if blueberries are eaten together with
probiotics, the content of butyric acid and propionic acid increased in the blood, two substances
that are formed when fibre are broken down and that have previously been known to be important
energy sources for intestinal cells. In recent years they have also been shown to favourably impact
the immune defence. It seems as if the absorption of these components is facilitated by the
presence of probiotics.
"What surprised us was that such a large share of the butyric acid not only was taken up by the
intestinal cells but was also transported onward to the blood. Previously it was thought that the
intestinal cells used all of the butyric acid, but this is not at all the case," says Camilla Bränning,
who recently defended her dissertation on the subject.
"A further explanation for the extremely positive effect of blueberries may be that the blueberry fibre
are not degraded to such a high degree in the large intestine. This means that
inflammation-inducing substances do not come into contact with the mucous lining of the intestine
but are embedded in the fibre instead. Then these substances are transported out of body
together with the faeces," explains Camilla Bränning.
The researchers also found that rye bran was broken down in the large intestine, in the same place
that ulcerative colitis and large-intestine cancer often occur, and that the rye bran provided a rich
supply of butyric acid and propionic acid. On the other hand, the fibre in oat bran were degraded
earlier in the large intestine. The most striking result, however, was that blueberries themselves
had such a favourable effect compared with both rye bran and oat bran.
Some 15-20 percent of all Swedes suffer from stomach pains, diarrhoea, or constipation,
complaints resulting from intestinal disorders and more undefined intestinal problems. The disease
ulcerative colitis is one of the inflammatory intestinal diseases included under the general name
IBD, inflammatory bowel diseases. It can lead to colorectal cancer and afflicts about 1,000 Swedes
per year.
Story Source:
The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials
provided by Expertanswer, via AlphaGalileo.
February 9, 2010 Source: Science Daily
It is already known that blueberries are rich in antioxidants and vitamins. New research from the
Lund University Faculty of Engineering in Sweden shows that blueberry fibre are important and can
alleviate and protect against intestinal inflammations, such as ulcerative colitis. The protective
effect is even better if the blueberries are eaten together with probiotics.
The project originated as an attempt to see whether various types of dietary fibre and
health-promoting bacteria, so-called probiotic bacteria such as lactobacillus and bifidobacteria, can
help alleviate and prevent the risk of ulcerative colitis and colorectal cancer.
"But new knowledge of this field is also of interest to those who don't believe they run the risk of
developing any intestinal diseases. In recent years the research world has been realizing that our
health is governed to a great extent by what happens in our large intestine," explain Camilla
Bränning, a PhD in Applied Nutrition and Åsa Håkansson, a doctoral candidate in Food Hygiene at
the Division of Applied Nutrition and Food Chemistry.
The researchers tested various types of diets of blueberry husks, rye bran and oat bran with or
without a mixture of probiotic bacteria. The results showed that the protective effect of blueberries
was reinforced if they were eaten together with probiotics.
"The probiotics proved to have a protective effect on the liver, an organ that is often negatively
impacted by intestinal inflammations," explains Åsa Håkansson.
Blueberries are rich in polyphenols, which have an antimicrobial and antioxidative effect. The
combination of blueberries and probiotics reduced inflammation-inducing bacteria in the intestine at
the same time as the number of health-promoting lactobacilla increased.
Åsa Håkansson and Camilla Bränning also noted that if blueberries are eaten together with
probiotics, the content of butyric acid and propionic acid increased in the blood, two substances
that are formed when fibre are broken down and that have previously been known to be important
energy sources for intestinal cells. In recent years they have also been shown to favourably impact
the immune defence. It seems as if the absorption of these components is facilitated by the
presence of probiotics.
"What surprised us was that such a large share of the butyric acid not only was taken up by the
intestinal cells but was also transported onward to the blood. Previously it was thought that the
intestinal cells used all of the butyric acid, but this is not at all the case," says Camilla Bränning,
who recently defended her dissertation on the subject.
"A further explanation for the extremely positive effect of blueberries may be that the blueberry fibre
are not degraded to such a high degree in the large intestine. This means that
inflammation-inducing substances do not come into contact with the mucous lining of the intestine
but are embedded in the fibre instead. Then these substances are transported out of body
together with the faeces," explains Camilla Bränning.
The researchers also found that rye bran was broken down in the large intestine, in the same place
that ulcerative colitis and large-intestine cancer often occur, and that the rye bran provided a rich
supply of butyric acid and propionic acid. On the other hand, the fibre in oat bran were degraded
earlier in the large intestine. The most striking result, however, was that blueberries themselves
had such a favourable effect compared with both rye bran and oat bran.
Some 15-20 percent of all Swedes suffer from stomach pains, diarrhoea, or constipation,
complaints resulting from intestinal disorders and more undefined intestinal problems. The disease
ulcerative colitis is one of the inflammatory intestinal diseases included under the general name
IBD, inflammatory bowel diseases. It can lead to colorectal cancer and afflicts about 1,000 Swedes
per year.
Story Source:
The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials
provided by Expertanswer, via AlphaGalileo.