High-sugar diet can damage the gut, intensifying risk for colitis

“Colitis is a significant public well being drawback within the U.S. and in different Western nations,” says Hasan Zaki, Ph.D., who led the examine that seems in at this time’s Science Translational Medication. “This is essential from a public well being standpoint.”

Colitis may cause persistent diarrhea, belly ache, and rectal bleeding. The variety of American adults affected by IBD (which incorporates Crohn’s illness) jumped from 2 million in 1999 to three million in 2015, in response to the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. As well as, colitis is starting to point out up in youngsters, who traditionally didn’t undergo from it, says Zaki, a UT Southwestern assistant professor of pathology.

Due to the illness’s a lot larger prevalence in Western nations, researchers have appeared to the Western-style weight loss plan — excessive in fats, sugar, and animal protein — as a potential threat issue, says Zaki. Whereas high-fat diets have been discovered to set off IBD, the function of sugar has been extra controversial, he says.

This new examine factors to sugar — significantly the glucose present in excessive fructose corn syrup developed by the meals trade within the 1960s after which more and more used to sweeten gentle drinks and different meals — as a main suspect. “The incidence of IBD has additionally elevated in Western nations, significantly amongst youngsters, over this similar interval,” in response to the examine.

UT Southwestern researchers fed mice an answer of water with a 10 p.c focus of varied dietary sugars — glucose, fructose, and sucrose — for seven days. They discovered that mice that have been both genetically predisposed to develop colitis, or these given a chemical that induces colitis, developed extra extreme signs in the event that they have been first given sugar.

The researchers then used gene-sequencing methods to determine the categories and prevalence of micro organism discovered within the giant intestines of mice earlier than and after receiving their sugar routine. After being given sugar remedies for seven days, these fed sucrose, fructose, and — particularly — glucose confirmed vital adjustments within the microbial inhabitants contained in the intestine, in response to the examine.

Micro organism identified to provide mucus-degrading enzymes, akin to Akkermansia, have been present in better numbers, whereas another sorts of bugs thought of good micro organism and generally discovered within the intestine, akin to Lactobacillus, grew to become much less ample.

The researchers noticed proof of a thinning of the mucus layer that protects the liner of the massive gut in addition to indicators of an infection by different micro organism. “The mucus layer protects intestinal mucosal tissue from infiltration of intestine microbiota,” the examine explains. “Larger abundance of mucus-degrading micro organism, together with Akkermansia muciniphila and Bacteroides fragilis, in glucose-treated mice is, due to this fact, a possible threat for the intestinal mucus barrier.

“As a result of erosion of the mucus layer, intestine micro organism have been in shut proximity with the epithelial layer of the massive gut in glucose-treated mice,” the examine continues. “Breaching of the epithelial barrier is the important thing initiating occasion of intestinal irritation.”

Though glucose had the best impact, “all three easy sugars profoundly altered the composition of intestine microbiota,” the examine stories. Earlier research have proven that intestine microbiota of each people and mice can change quickly with a change in weight loss plan. “Our examine clearly reveals that you just actually should thoughts your meals,” says Zaki.

After discovering adjustments within the intestine microbiota in sugar-fed mice, the researchers fed feces from the sugar-treated mice to different mice. These mice developed worse colitis, suggesting that glucose-induced susceptibility to colitis will be transmitted together with the damaging intestinal microbiota from affected animals.

Zaki says he now plans to review whether or not and the way excessive sugar consumption impacts the event of different inflammatory illnesses akin to weight problems, fatty liver illness, and neurodegenerative illnesses like Alzheimer’s.