Participants sought: How does dietary fibre affect your immune system and overall health?

Would you like to find out first-hand how dietary fibre (DF) might affect your immune system, blood pressure and gut function? We are seeking healthy participants for our research study.

DF is important for gut health. Within the large intestine, some DFs are broken down by the gut bacteria (microbiota) in a process called fermentation. A product of fermentation are metabolites called short-chain fatty acids (SFCAs). These can also be found in fermented foods and drinks, such as vinegar. In animal studies, SFCAs have been associated with reduced inflammation and lower blood pressure.

This research project is investigating whether increasing SFCAs through increasing fibre and fermentable foods in the diet will influence:

• Immune cells and inflammation
• Blood pressure
• Gut function

To answer these questions, we are asking for healthy volunteers to participate in this dietary intervention study. This will involve consuming a diet with varying levels of fibre and fermented foods that will be provided to you. Blood and stool samples will be collected. We hope that this study will help us to understand if these foods have health benefits.

Contact details:
Mr Paul Gill
Email: paul.gill@monash.edu
Phone: 0447 021 592
Website: www.monash.edu/medicine/ccs/gastroenterology/research/clin-trials
Ethics Committee Project Number: 11190