Concentrated milk fats increase bowel inflammation where polyunsaturated (plant) fats do not

Increasing consumption of concentrated dairy milk fats in sweets and processed foods are changing gut bacteria and triggering inflammatory bowel disease in Westerners. A study by the University of Chicago has shown that a diet high in saturated milk fat but not in polyunsaturated safflower oil fat encourages an increase in low-abundance, sulphite-reducing pathobiont. Associated with a pro-inflammatory T helper type 1 immune response, this increased the incidence of colitis (inflammation of the colon) in genetically susceptible mice.

The data recorded by the scientists shows that dietary fats can alter the gut microbes, which in turn creates an immune-altering dysbiosis. This means that Western-type diets that are high in certain saturated fats can increase the likelihood of developing immune-mediated disease such as inflammatory bowel disease.

Source: Nature

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First Pubished in May 2012

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