Eating lots of whole wheat bread, vegetables and beans could minimize your chances of getting life-threatening food poisoning, British research suggests.
Researchers from the University of Cambridge said eating high-fiber foods helps nourish the beneficial bacteria that live naturally in our intestines and protect against insects invading through contaminated food.
They came to this conclusion after examining the microbiome (a term for the ecosystem of microscopic organisms in our digestive system) of 12,000 people from 45 countries.
The scientists said the composition of this microbiome could accurately predict a person’s likelihood of getting food poisoning if exposed to a family of bacteria called Enterobacteriaceae, a family that includes pathogens such as Shigella and E.coli.
Writing in the journal Nature Microbiology, experts said the good bacteria that offered the most protection were a group called Faecalibacterium.
These feed on fiber and convert it into beneficial compounds called short-chain fatty acids that experts say help protect against the hostile invasion of insects that cause food poisoning.
Dr. Alexandre Almeida, a veterinary medicine expert and author of the paper, said the results demonstrated the importance of what we eat.
“By eating fiber in foods like vegetables, beans and whole grains, we can provide the raw materials for our gut bacteria to produce short-chain fatty acids, compounds that can protect us from these pathogenic insects,” he said.
Scientists at the University of Cambridge said eating plenty of fiber helped nourish the beneficial bacteria that live naturally in our intestines, helping to protect against those that could invade through contaminated food.
While food poisoning is usually a mild illness, some members of the Enterobacteriaceae family can trigger serious conditions such as pneumonia and meningitis.
And it is worrying that some of them are becoming increasingly resistant to the drugs used to combat them.
Dr. Almeida, this was another reason to keep the microbiome healthy so that it could act as a preventative measure.
“With higher rates of antibiotic resistance, we have fewer treatment options available,” he said.
“The best approach now is to prevent infections in the first place, and we can do this by reducing the opportunities for these disease-causing bacteria to thrive in our gut.”
Another finding of the study, and at odds with previous research, was that the types of bacteria found as probiotics and sold as healthy gut supplements could coexist with harmful Enterobacteriaceae pathogens.
The previous idea was that these insects would compete for resources in the intestine with probiotics, preventing the growth of Enterobacteriaceae bacteria as a result.
Experts said this discovery had potentially important implications for probiotic-based treatments and suggested it was best to change the environment naturally through a healthy diet.
Food poisoning is a common ailment in Britain and it is estimated that there are almost 2.5 million cases a year in the UK.
Fellow author Dr Qi Yin, another veterinary medicine expert, said: “This study highlights the importance of studying pathogens not as isolated entities, but in the context of the surrounding gut microbiome.”
Food poisoning is a common ailment in Britain and it is estimated that there are almost 2.5 million cases a year in the UK.
The vast majority of them are mild, but for some vulnerable people, such as the elderly, they can be much more serious, with around 200 deaths a year.
Last year, the United Kingdom was hit by a serious E. coli outbreak that led to one death and dozens more hospitalizations, which were ultimately traced to contaminated lettuce.
Fiber, also called fiber, is the part of plant-based foods that our small intestine cannot digest, so it reaches the large intestine and helps prevent constipation.
The latest data from the British Dietetic Association suggests that the average Briton consumes just 18g of fiber per day, well below the 30g recommended by the NHS.