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Review
. 2021 Feb 8;18(4):1616.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18041616.

Nutritional Approach Targeting Gut Microbiota in NAFLD-To Date

Małgorzata Moszak  1 , Monika Szulińska  1 , Marta Walczak-Gałęzewska  2 , Paweł Bogdański  1
Affiliations
Review

Nutritional Approach Targeting Gut Microbiota in NAFLD-To Date

Małgorzata Moszak et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a significant clinical and epidemiological problem that affects around 25% of the adult global population. A large body of clinical evidence highlights that NAFLD is associated with increased liver-related morbidity and mortality and an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, extrahepatic cancers, type 2 diabetes, and chronic kidney disease. Recently, a series of studies revealed the pivotal role of gut microbiota (GM) dysbiosis in NAFLD's pathogenesis. The GM plays an essential role in different metabolic pathways, including the fermentation of diet polysaccharides, energy harvest, choline regulation, and bile acid metabolism. One of the most critical factors in GM stabilization is the diet; therefore, nutritional therapyappearsto be a promising tool in NAFLD therapy. This paper aims to review the current knowledge regardingthe nutritional approach and its implications with GM and NAFLD treatment. We discuss the positive impact of probiotics, prebiotics, and symbiotics in a reverse dysbiosis state in NAFLD and show the potential beneficial effects of bioactive substances from the diet. The full description of the mechanism of action and comprehensive examination of the impact of nutritional interventions on GM modulation may, in the future, be a simple but essential tool supporting NAFLD therapy.

Keywords: NAFLD; NASH; bioactive substances; diet; gut microbiota; prebiotics; probiotics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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