Fiber can Reduce the Risk of Heart Disease by as Much as 20% for Most Individuals

A recent study shows that, for the majority of people, consuming fiber can help protect heart health by reducing the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, or stroke by up to 20%. This adds to the growing evidence that a healthy gut supports a healthy heart.

As dietary fiber reaches the large intestine, gut bacteria break down some of it, producing short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) as a by-product. These SCFAs are vital to the gut-heart connection, helping to protect heart health primarily by reducing blood pressure.

Groundbreaking research from Monash University has, for the first time, highlighted how vital gut microbes and the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) they produce are for heart health. The team focused on individuals with a rare genetic variant that impairs the receptors responsible for binding to SCFAs.

Investigating Genetic Links to Heart Risk

“Our goal was to find out whether people with these genetic differences faced a higher risk of high blood pressure and serious cardiovascular events such as acute coronary syndrome, heart failure, and ischemic stroke,” explained Professor Francine Marques, co-lead author and head of the Hypertension Research Laboratory (Marques Lab).

Using data from the UK Biobank, a large-scale health research resource, the researchers compared individuals with rare gene variants affecting SCFA receptors to a control group. Their analysis revealed that those with impaired receptors had a significantly higher incidence of hypertension and long-term cardiovascular risk.

“Even after adjusting for other risk factors like body weight and smoking, we found that disruption of these receptors was linked to up to a 20% increase in the prevalence of high blood pressure and heart disease or stroke,” noted Dr. Leticia Camargo Tavares, co-lead author and research fellow at the Marques Lab.

Investigating Genetic Links to Heart Risk

The team then examined how individuals lacking the heart-protective benefits of SCFAs would respond if they consumed the recommended amount of dietary fiber.

“If people consumed enough dietary fiber but still didn’t gain protection against heart disease, it would confirm the crucial role of short-chain fatty acid signaling in cardiovascular health,” said Marques.

Tavares added, “As we expected, this group showed a significantly higher rate of hypertension, even among those following a high-fiber diet.”

Fortunately, this doesn’t pose a concern for most people. The genetic variations the researchers focused on are extremely rare.

“These rare genetic variants are found in less than 1% of the population,” Marques noted.

This means that for the vast majority, eating the recommended amount of fiber should offer protective benefits for heart health.

Marques previously led a clinical trial examining how SCFA supplements affect blood pressure, and a new trial is currently underway. However, the ultimate goal is to create a commercially available supplement that boosts SCFA levels to help improve cardiovascular health.

Read the original article on: New Atlas

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