The benefits of a plant-based diet on your gut

Summary

Life Kit Podcast Summary: The Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet on Your Gut

Episode Title: The Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet on Your Gut
Host: Marielle Segarra
Release Date: February 11, 2025

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Introduction

In this insightful episode of Life Kit, hosted by Marielle Segarra, the focus is on understanding how a plant-based diet influences the gut microbiome and overall health. Drawing parallels to the beloved children's show The Magic School Bus, Marielle introduces the complex world of gut microbes as essential players in maintaining our health.

Overview of the Nature Microbiology Study

Maria Godoy, NPR Health Correspondent, delves into a comprehensive study published in Nature Microbiology. This significant research involved over 21,000 participants from the U.S., the UK, and Italy, categorized as vegans, vegetarians, or omnivores. Utilizing detailed food tracking through an app, the study meticulously recorded participants' dietary habits over several weeks.

Key Findings:

• Increased Plant-Based Intake: Individuals consuming more diverse and abundant plant-based foods exhibited higher levels of beneficial gut bacteria.
• Gut Microbiome Health: These good bacteria are associated with reduced inflammation and a stronger immune system.
• Flexibility for Meat Eaters: Surprisingly, some omnivores who maintained a diverse plant-based diet had gut microbiomes comparable to those of vegans, highlighting that meat consumption does not necessarily hinder gut health if balanced with ample plant diversity.

Maria Godoy explains at [03:34]:
"The more plant-based foods people ate, the more gut bacteria they had that are linked with better health. So things like less inflammation and a stronger immune system."

The Importance of Variety in Plant-Based Diets

Hannah Holscher, a microbiome researcher and registered dietitian from the University of Illinois, emphasizes the "eat the rainbow" approach to dietary diversity. This strategy involves incorporating a wide array of colorful plant foods to ensure a spectrum of fibers and phytonutrients essential for different gut microbes.

Hannah Holscher states at [05:25]:
"Rainbow, meaning lots of different types of colorful plant foods. Think tomatoes, butternut squash, pineapple, avocado, broccoli and kale, blueberries and eggplant."

Expert Recommendations and Insights

Shauna Spence, a registered dietitian based in Brooklyn, provides practical advice on integrating diverse plant-based foods into daily meals. She advocates for:

• Incorporating Whole Grains: Such as barley and quinoa, which are rich in fiber.
• Utilizing Seeds and Nuts: Adding chia, pumpkin, or flax seeds to meals enhances nutritional value.
• Choosing Frozen Options: Frozen vegetables and berries are affordable, nutrient-dense alternatives to fresh produce.

Maria Godoy elaborates at [06:01]:
"Different microbes need different fibers to do their thing. The fibers are those different tools to build different things."

Practical Tips for Diversifying Plant Intake

The discussion transitions into actionable steps listeners can take to enhance their plant-based diet:

1. Aim for Five Different Plant Foods Daily: Incorporate a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, and seeds.
   Hannah Holscher suggests at [08:00]:
   "Try to eat five different kinds of plant-based foods every day."

2. Meal Planning Ideas:

   • Overnight Oats: Prepare with a mix of fruits and seeds.
   • Smoothies: Experiment with tropical fruits like dragon fruit and passion fruit for diverse flavors.
   • Snack Smart: Carry fruits like apples, oranges, or bananas for convenient snacking.
   • Add Seeds to Dishes: Sprinkle chia or pumpkin seeds on yogurt, salads, or cereals.

3. Embrace Frozen Produce:
   Shauna Spence notes at [09:12]:
   "Buying frozen, whether it's vegetable medleys or berries or what have you, is also a really good option. It's still just as healthy because you're still getting in the vitamins, the minerals, antioxidants."

Benefits of a Plant-Based Diet on Gut Health

Maintaining a diverse and abundant plant-based diet supports a healthy gut microbiome, which is pivotal for:

• Reduced Inflammation: Lower levels of inflammatory markers in the body.
• Enhanced Immune Function: Stronger defenses against illnesses.
• Lowered Risk of Diseases: Decreased associations with inflammatory bowel disease and colon cancer, particularly relevant for omnivores consuming high amounts of red and processed meats.

Hannah Holscher emphasizes at [06:53]:
"Having more bacteria linked with inflammatory bowel disease and a higher risk of colon cancer... the good news is that if you ate a high proportion of plant-based foods and a variety of it, meat eaters could have guts that looked as good as those of vegans."

Conclusions and Key Takeaways

The episode wraps up with a recap highlighting the pivotal role of plant diversity in fostering a healthy gut microbiome. Key points include:

• Plant Variety is Crucial: Different fibers and phytonutrients support various gut microbes.
• Practical Integration: Incorporate a wide range of plant-based foods through meal planning and smart snacking.
• Health Benefits: A diverse plant-based diet is linked to reduced inflammation, stronger immunity, and lower disease risks.

Marielle Segarra concludes by encouraging listeners to "spread the fiber evangelism" and embrace culinary creativity to enhance their dietary habits for better health.

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Notable Quotes:

• Maria Godoy [06:01]:
  "Different microbes need different fibers to do their thing. The fibers are those different tools to build different things."

• Hannah Holscher [05:25]:
  "Rainbow, meaning lots of different types of colorful plant foods. Think tomatoes, butternut squash, pineapple, avocado, broccoli and kale, blueberries and eggplant."

• Hannah Holscher [08:00]:
  "Try to eat five different kinds of plant-based foods every day."

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For more episodes and information on related topics like fiber and hydration, visit npr.org or subscribe to the Life Kit newsletter at npr.org/lifekitnewsletter.

Transcript

[Fred Hutch Cancer Center]

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[Mariel Segarra]

You're listening to Life Kit from NPR. Hey, everybody, it's Marielle. Have you ever seen the kids TV show the Magic School Bus? I was a big fan. The show's main character, the schoolteacher and fashion icon Ms. Frizzle, would take her students on adventures in a magic school bus. Sometimes they'd end up in the human body. They'd pile into the bus, shrink down until they were very little, drive up somebody's nose or down their gullet and observe the wilds of the human body up close and personal. If we could all hop on that bus together and take a trip to the human gut, we would see trillions of microbes at work. Here's NPR health correspondent Maria Godoy.

[Maria Godoy]

They break down food that our bodies can't digest. And as a result of that breakdown process, they produce chemical messengers that influence our health. And we're talking everything from, you know, blood sugar levels to mental health. Some of these chemical messengers can boost health, but others can hinder it. It all depends on what you're feeding your gut microbes.

[Mariel Segarra]

A recent study in the journal Nature Microbiology found that we should be feeding them lots of different kinds of plants in large quantities. And that's true whether or not you eat meat and other animal products. On this episode of Life, Kit, Maria and I talk about the research, why the diversity of plants we eat matters and how we can all mix up our diets.

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[Hannah Holscher]

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[Mariel Segarra]

Okay Maria, tell us about the study.

[Maria Godoy]

Yeah, so this was a really neat study. It was a big study published in the journal Nature Microbiology. There was an international team of researchers that wanted to know how different dietary patterns shape the kinds of microbes that dominate our guts. So, so they analyzed stool samples from more than 21,000 people in the U.S. the UK and Italy. And they knew if the participants were vegan, vegetarian, or omnivores. But not only that, they also had people track their food in an app. So they had really detailed information about everything participants ate for a couple of weeks at a time. And what they found is that the more plant based foods people ate, the more gut bacteria they had that are linked with better health. So things like less inflammation and a stronger immune system. And not surprisingly, these good bacteria were a hallmark of the microbiomes of vegans. But what was surprising is that some meat eaters who ate a lot of plant based foods, they also had gut microbiomes that looked really similar to those of vegans. In other words, they also had a healthy composition of good gut bacteria, even though they also ate meat. And the key seemed to be that they were eating a wide variety of plant based foods in large quantities. So it was both the variety and the amount of plant based foods that made for a healthy gut microbiome, regardless of whether they were vegans or meat eaters.

[Mariel Segarra]

When we say plant based foods, what does that mean? I mean, it's not just fruits and vegetables, right?

[Maria Godoy]

Yeah. When we say plant based foods, it's not just fruits and vegetables, but things like beans too, which are a big part of my diet. Hannah Holscher is a microbiome researcher at the University of Illinois, and she's also A registered dietitian. And she told me, like, the results of this study really reinforced the nutrition advice that dietitians love to give. And something I tell my kids all the time, which is to eat the.

[Shauna Spence]

Rainbow, meaning lots of different types of colorful plant foods. Think tomatoes, butternut squash, pineapple, avocado, broccoli and kale, blueberries and eggplant. And really, don't forget about those whole grains, nuts, seeds and legumes.

[Maria Godoy]

You know, those different colored plant foods don't just contain different kinds of fibers. They also have different phytonutrients that give them their color. And, you know, those phytonutrients are also good for your health. So lots of different reasons to eat the rainbow.

[Mariel Segarra]

Did the researchers have any sense of why the diversity of plants that we're eating matters?

[Maria Godoy]

Yeah, so I love this. So it's because different microbes need different fibers to do their thing. I always like to think of gut microbes like a team of builders building a house. And, you know, your gut's the house. And so you have some microbes that are plumbers and some are electricians, and some are tile workers or masonry experts or what have you. And they all need different tools, tools. And so the fibers are those different tools to build different things. And different plants contain different fibers. So you don't want to rely on just one kind of fiber. You want to eat lots of different fibers from different foods to make sure all these good microbes in your gut have the different tools they need to help keep you healthy.

[Mariel Segarra]

So it seems like good news for meat eaters that they can also get the same benefits, the same kind of healthy gut microbiome, if they eat a diverse array of plant based foods in addition to eating meat.

[Hannah Holscher]

Yeah, no, that's exactly right. Now, I should note that in general, the gut microbiomes of omnivores, the study found that they tended to have more bacteria associated with meat digestion, which totally makes sense. They were trying to look at the profiles. You know, what is the hallmark of these different dietary patterns? And so having more bacteria linked with meat digestion makes total sense, but they also had more bacteria linked to things like inflammatory bowel disease and a higher risk of colon cancer. And we know from other research that high consumption of red meat and processed meats is linked to higher colon cancer risks. So that's the bad news. But like you said, the good news is that if you ate a high proportion of plant based foods and a variety of it, meat eaters could have guts that looked as Good as those of vegans. So the key takeaway is to eat lots of different types of plant based foods in large amounts.

[Mariel Segarra]

When you say large amounts, I mean how much plant, how much kale do I need to be eating? How many bell peppers, how many mushrooms?

[Maria Godoy]

Yeah, so I don't know that there's.

[Hannah Holscher]

A strict number so much as thinking of it in terms of the total proportion of what you eat. So look at my plate. The USDA's recommendation for what you should be eating. Three quarters of your plate should be plant based foods. So half should be fruits and vegetables and then another quarter should be grains, which are also plant foods. And you should opt for whole grains so you get the fiber benefits. So it's like a high proportion. I actually spoke with Hannah about this and she told me just to try to eat five different kinds of plant based foods every day. So think about things like making bean soups with lots of vegetables or mixing up some pears or berries in your salad.

[Shauna Spence]

Make some overnight oats before you go to bed. When you're leaving for work in the morning, you're looking around, what can you toss into your bag? An apple, an orange, a banana, you.

[Maria Godoy]

Know, or you can do things like try adding chia seeds or pumpkin seeds or flax seeds into your yogurt or salad or cereal. I actually eat chia seeds every day in my yogurt. I'm pretty boring like that. But I also talked to Shauna Spence. She is a registered dietitian based in Brooklyn. She notes that buying frozen, you know, whether it's vegetable medleys or berries or what have you, is also a really good option.

[Mariel Segarra]

It's usually cheaper than buying fresh and it's still just as healthy because you're still getting in the vitamins, the minerals, antioxidants. The vegetables are picked at their peak, so they are still getting and providing tons of nutrients.

[Maria Godoy]

And, you know, the goal really should just be to try and give yourself as many opportunities as possible to snack on more and various types of plants every day.

[Mariel Segarra]

I feel like a lot of us get into a routine when we go grocery shopping or when we're cooking dinner just because it's easier. So we might be like, every time I get avocados and kale and salmon and broccoli and that's like, that's like nice. Like that's very healthy. But if that's what you're having every time, it's not, it sounds like it's not as good as if you mix it up and have a lot of different kinds of veggies.

[Maria Godoy]

So it's going to be much better than like having chips, you know, all the time or so I think, you know, go ahead and pat yourself on the back for that. It's still good. But yeah, just try to add one more. I do the same thing. We're all creatures of habit, right? And I think my shopping list sounds just like yours, by the way. But that's why it's good to have things like different kinds of seeds. Like for instance, I'm like just trying to remind myself to sprinkle more pumpkin seeds is something I forget. And frozen I like. Shauna, I am a big fan of frozen. Yeah.

[Mariel Segarra]

I mean, I love a smoothie. I have a smoothie every morning. But I don't just make the raspberry, blueberry, banana. I do a lot of tropical fruits. I do like a dragon fruit, passion fruit, pineapple mix.

[Maria Godoy]

That sounds delicious.

[Mariel Segarra]

It's fun. Yeah, yeah, it's fun to mix it up. You could also do like a cherry banana and some cocoa powder. Or like, I have a cocoa powder that has mushroom in it too.

[Maria Godoy]

Oh, that sounds delicious. My creature of habit thing is that I often have blueberries and raspberries and blackberries mixed into my yogurt. And the other day I went to the store and they were completely out of fresh and I'm like, oh, I hit the frozen aisle, put those, like, pop them in the microwave for like 20 seconds and then mixed it into my yogurt. It was really good.

[Mariel Segarra]

So while this is better for our health, I think it's also better for our imaginations.

[Hannah Holscher]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Mariel Segarra]

It can be a creative outlet too, and it can break up our routines a bit.

[Maria Godoy]

Like a low hanging fruit in terms of, like getting culinarily creative. Right. Just try and add one or two things that you don't normally eat a day in terms of plants into your diet.

[Mariel Segarra]

Yeah.

[Maria Godoy]

And don't forget about things like whole grains, you know, or like barley. It's really rich in fiber. Not something I remember to eat as often as I should, but it's great, you know, experiment a little, live a little. Yeah.

[Mariel Segarra]

When you're tired of rice, try out some barley.

[Maria Godoy]

Yeah, exactly.

[Mariel Segarra]

Yeah. Well, thanks, Maria, as always. This was very informative.

[Maria Godoy]

Oh, my pleasure. I'm doing my job to spread the fiber evangelism out there.

[Mariel Segarra]

It's working. You got me turned onto chia seeds and now I use them every day in my smoothie.

[Maria Godoy]

That makes me really ridiculously happy to know, actually.

[Mariel Segarra]

Yeah, no, it's making a difference. Time For a recap, the more plant based foods you eat, the more you will encourage good bacteria to hang out and thrive in your gut. And those good bacteria are linked with better health, in particular less inflammation and a stronger immune system. Also, focus on eating a wide variety of plant based foods, fruits and veggies, beans and seeds, nuts and whole grains. And one goal dietitians recommend is to get five plant based foods a day. Frozen veggies and canned beans count too. For more Life Kit, check out our other episodes. We have one on fiber and another on hydration. You can find [e-mail] and if you love Life Kit and want even more, subscribe to our [e-mail] lifekitnewsletter. Also, we love hearing from you, so if you have episode ideas or feedback you want to share, email [e-mail] this episode of Life Kit was produced by Claire Marie Schneider. Our visuals editor is Beck Harlan and our digital editor is Malika Garib. Megan Kane is our supervising editor and Beth Donovan is our executive producer. Our production team also includes Andy Taegle, Margaret Serino and Sylvie Douglas. Engineering support comes from Patrick Murray. I'm Mariel Segarra. Thanks for listening.

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