PhD defence Theresa Maria van Deuren

Keywords: Microbial metabolites, Obesity, Metabolic health, Fibers
 

"Optimizing Microbial Metabolite Availability A path toward improved metabolic health in individuals with obesity?"

Overweight and obesity are rapidly increasing worldwide and raise the risk of type 2 diabetes. The gut microbiome (all the microorganisms living in our intestines) and the substances it produces, such as short-chain fatty acids, play an important role in this process. This thesis investigated whether increasing short-chain fatty acids could contribute to improved metabolism in people with overweight. The results showed that special oils enriched with short-chain fatty acids can indeed raise their levels in the blood. This suggests potential health benefits, although the long-term effects remain uncertain. A combination of dietary fibers that appeared promising in laboratory studies for increasing short-chain fatty acids did not induce the same effect in humans. In individuals with overweight following a (partially plant-based) high-protein diet, no beneficial effects were observed and it sometimes led to unfavourable outcomes. These findings highlight the complexity of influencing the gut microbiome and emphasize the need for further research to identify effective strategies.

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