The effect of high-fiber diet based on gut microbiota in patients with chronic heart failure.

Abstract

This research explored the effect of a high-fiber diet based on gut microbiota on patients with chronic heart failure (HF). Patients with chronic HF, who had undergone a dietary survey indicating a daily dietary fiber intake of less than 15 g/day, were divided into the control and study groups (n = 50). In addition to conventional heart failure treatment, the study group received dietary guidance, while the control group did not receive any dietary guidance and maintained their usual low-fiber dietary habits. After 1 yr intervention, the daily dietary fiber intake, abundance of gut microbiota, plasma trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), albumin (ALB), prealbumin (PA), transferrin (TF), C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-diastolic index (LVEDVI), and left ventricular end-systolic volume index (LVESVI), Barthel index (BI), and 6 min walking distance (6 MWD) were compared. After the intervention, in both groups, the daily dietary fiber intake increased and the abundance of Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Fusobacteria decreased and that of Bacteroides increased; the plasma TMAO decreased; serum ALB, PA, and TF levels increased; serum CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8 levels decreased, and the change was greater in the study group; LVEF elevated, LVEDVI and LVESVI reduced, and the differences between both groups were not significant; BI and 6 MWD elevated, and the study group was higher than the control group. High-fiber diet positively regulates the composition of gut microbiota, nutritional status, and microinflammatory level in patients with chronic HF, thereby improving patients' quality of life.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Traditional heart failure (HF) treatment primarily focuses on medications and surgery, whereas this study explores the improvement effects of a diet high in dietary fiber on patients with chronic HF from the perspective of gut microbiota, providing a new perspective for HF treatment.