Low-fiber diets mess up gut microbes—and changes can become heritable

(credit: whologwhy)

“Think of the children!” may one day be a slogan for a health campaign imploring people to eat more fiber.

Doctors and nutrition experts have been harping on the importance of fiber for years, particularly how most people in industrialized countries eat less than the recommended daily dose of 25 to 38 grams. After all, the nutrient, a diverse group of molecules that includes complex carbohydrates, helps keep you “regular.” Perhaps less well-known, fiber helps maintain a healthy, diverse population of gut microbes.

But eating fiber may not just benefit the microbial balance of the eater—it may also benefit that of the eater’s progeny, according to a new study in Nature.

Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments