Effect of green banana and pineapple fibre powder consumption on host gut microbiome

Chun Wie Chong; Mei Shan Liew; Weitze Ooi; Hassan Jamil; Angie Lim; Suet Li Hooi; Clarisse S C Tay; Gwendoline Tan

doi:10.3389/fnut.2024.1437645

Effect of green banana and pineapple fibre powder consumption on host gut microbiome

Front Nutr. 2024 Aug 23:11:1437645. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2024.1437645. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Chun Wie Chong¹, Mei Shan Liew², Weitze Ooi², Hassan Jamil², Angie Lim³, Suet Li Hooi³, Clarisse S C Tay³, Gwendoline Tan³

Affiliations

¹ School of Pharmacy, Monash University Malaysia, Subang Jaya, Malaysia.
² Dole Specialty Ingredients, Dole Asia Holdings Pte., Ltd., Singapore, Singapore.
³ AMILI, Singapore, Singapore.

Abstract

Purpose: To determine whether green banana powder (GBP) and pineapple fibre powder (PFP) promote beneficial bacterial species, directly improve human gut health and modulate the gut microbiome and understand their utility as functional foods and dietary supplements.

Methods: Over 14 days, 60 adults followed protocol requirements, completed food diaries and study questionnaires, avoided consuming supplements with prebiotics, probiotics or postbiotics, and ingested food containing 5 g of total daily fibre [placebo (10.75 g), GBP (10.75 g) or PFP (7.41 g)]. Participants' medical and baseline wellness histories, as well as stool samples, were collected at baseline, day 7 and 14. Stool DNA was processed for sequencing.

Results: Dietary fibre and resistant starches (RS) in GBP and PFP promoted temporal increases in beneficial bacteria. GBP significantly elevated 7 species (F. prausnitzii, B. longum, B. bifidum, B. adolescentis, B. pseudocatenulatum, B. obeum, and R. inulinivorans), while PFP enriched 6 species (B. ovatus, B. cellulosilyticus, B. bifidum, B. intestinalis, R. inulinivorans, and E. siraeum). These bacteria, found to be deficient in younger adults, were promoted by both powders. PFP benefitted both genders aged 16-23, while GBP benefitted overweight/obese individuals, including females. GBP and PFP fiber and RS improved bowel regularity and health as well as metabolism by promoting histidine, branched-chain amino acids, short-chain fatty acids, and biotin production. The additional fiber caused "low" bloatedness and reduced "fairly bad" sleep disruptions, without affecting sleep durations.

Conclusion: GBP and PFP supplementation increased beneficial bacteria and metabolites, improved host gut health, and present a valuable nutritional strategy for enhancing human health.

Clinical trial registration: AMILI Institutional Review Board, Identifier 2023/0301.

Keywords: dietary fiber; green banana; gut microbiome; pineapple; short chain fatty acids.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This study was completed with the support of Dole Specialty Ingredients (DSI), who also provided the study materials. DSI contributed to study design and manuscript review. Funding for manuscript preparation was provided by DSI to Dr. Shawna Tan, Medical Writers Asia.