- A recent study looked at the effects of tomato consumption on the gut microbiome of pigs.
- After feeding 10 piglets a diet that was 10% freeze-dried tomato powder, their ratio of “good” to “bad” bacteria changed towards a more favorable profile.
- The tomato-fed pigs also gained greater diversity in their gut microbial community, which is believed to be an indicator of stronger gut health.
- The findings could potentially lead to dietary recommendations for long-term health in humans.
Rich in the antioxidant lycopene and other essential nutrients, tomatoes are known for their health benefits.
But less understood are the implications of tomato consumption for intestinal health.
In a new study, researchers examined the effects of a diet rich in tomatoes on the gut microbiome using an animal model.
The researchers fed the piglets a tomato-supplemented diet for 14 days and found that the balance of their gut bacteria shifted toward a healthier and more favorable profile.
The results were recently published in Microbiology spectrum.
lead study author jessica cooperstonePh.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at The Ohio State University in Columbus, said today’s medical news:
“Tomato consumption has been correlated with a variety of positive health outcomes, and it is the second most consumed vegetable in the United States. About 22% of total vegetable intake comes from tomatoes, so we are interested in better understanding the health effects of this commonly consumed food.”
The researchers used 20 male piglets that were born in the summer of 2019 at the OSU swine facility in Dublin, OH. After being weaned from their sows, they were fed a basal diet for 1 week.
Next, the researchers randomly assigned 10 piglets to a tomato diet consisting of freeze-dried tomato powder added to the basal diet. The remaining 10 piglets received the control diet, which consisted of the basal diet modified to match the sugar, fiber, and other macronutrient content of the tomato diet.
“We wanted to make sure we were able to provide a constant source of tomatoes to the pigs throughout the study,” said Dr. Cooperstone.
“In Ohio, we can only grow tomatoes in the field for harvest toward the end of summer, so freeze-drying serves as a preservation step. We wanted to incorporate tomato into the pigs’ base diet, and that diet is powdered,” she added.
The tomatoes from which the powder was derived were a hybrid grown at The Ohio State University (OSU) North Center Agricultural Research Station in Fremont, OH.
Furthermore, to prevent any spread of non-dietary bacteria, the pigs were housed only with other members of their group on one side of a walkway. The pens allowed snout-to-snout contact between grouped companions.
At the end of the experiment, there were no differences in body weight between the two groups of piglets.
The researchers analyzed fecal samples from all the pigs at the beginning of the experiment, 7 days later, and then again after 14 days.
Using DNA shotgun genomicsthe researchers identified the bacteria present at each spot.
Sequencing detected a change after 14 days in the ratio of bacillota (“bad” bacteria) to Bacteroidota (“good” bacteria).
Both types or lineages of bacteria, known as phyla, contain a large number of bacteria, some of which may or may not be useful.
The researchers also observed higher bacterial diversity in samples from the tomato group, which may suggest a phenotype.
While diversity is considered helpful in the gut microbiome, much remains to be done. unknown about the overall impact.
Dr Ashkan FarhadiA gastroenterologist at MemorialCare Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, who was not involved in the study, questioned what might have resulted if the pigs had been fed regular tomatoes instead of tomato powder.
Furthermore, it is not yet known whether the amount and duration of tomato consumption might have yielded different results and may warrant further study.
“There are many questions that arise from a good study, and this is a good study,” said Dr. Farhadi. MNT.
Dr. Farhadi noted that comparisons between two species are difficult to make definitively.
“We both have intestinal germs, [but] Are they identical between us? There are no identical germs between even two individuals or in one individual in two days. Gut germs are so dynamic that even if you’re stressed for a period of 1 hour, the germs are different,” he explained.
Although pigs are not human, there is reason to suspect that tomato consumption could equally benefit the human microbiome.
“Us [are] gain a more detailed understanding of how specific foods affect human health,” said Dr. Cooperstone.
“Previous studies have found that the gastrointestinal tract of pigs is more similar to that of humans than mice to humans, which is why we chose to do this study in pigs. Other studies have found that the two main phyla of bacteria in the gut microbiome are the same between pigs and humans. We hope to move our trials to humans in the future.”
– Jessica Cooperstone, Ph.D., lead study author
speaking to Ohio State News About the study, Dr. Cooperstone said that a better understanding of the effects of different foods on gut health “could lead to more evidence-based dietary recommendations for long-term health.”
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