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. 2022 Mar 3:2022:4569100.
doi: 10.1155/2022/4569100. eCollection 2022.

Probiotic Foods Are Effective on Weight Loss, Biochemical Parameters, and Intestinal Microbiota in Wistar Albino Rats with Obese Microbiota

Nadide Gizem Tarakci  1 , Nihal Zekiye Erdem  2 , Emek Dumen  3
Affiliations

Probiotic Foods Are Effective on Weight Loss, Biochemical Parameters, and Intestinal Microbiota in Wistar Albino Rats with Obese Microbiota

Nadide Gizem Tarakci et al. Int J Clin Pract. .

Abstract

The positive effects of various probiotic foods on weight control, intestinal microbiota, and biochemical markers have been proven by various studies. However, there is no study on such effects of tarhana and kefir + tarhana consumption, a type of Turkish food rich in Lactobacillus spp., Pediococcus pentosaceus, Pediococcus acidilactici, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This study aimed to determine the changes caused by regular consumption of kefir and/or tarhana for 6 months on weight gain, intestinal microbiota, and biochemical parameters in Wistar albino rats with obese microbiota. Therefore, thirty-five rats were fed with five different methods of oral gavage (n = 7 per group): Normal Diet Control (NDC), High Fat Diet Control (HFDC), 6 mL/kg Kefir + High Fat Diet (Kefir + HFD), 0.2 g/kg Tarhana + High Fat Diet (Tarhana + HFD), and 6 mL/kg Kefir + 0.2 g/kg Tarhana + High Fat Diet (Kefir + Tarhana + HFD). Normality tests were evaluated using the One-Sample Kolmogorov test and Histogram graph. Multiple group comparisons were performed using one-way ANOVA and Tukey's HSD post hoc test, and the statistical significances were indicated by different letters (p < 0.05). Comparisons by gender were performed using the independent samples t-test. Kefir consumption was more effective on decreasing weight gain. Obese microbiota significantly increased blood glucose level and decreased red blood cell (RBC), hematocrit (HCT), hemoglobin, mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), platelets (PLT), and white blood cells. RBC and HCT values in Kefir + HFD, PLT value in Tarhana + HFD, and mean corpuscular volume (MCV), MCH, and MCHC values in Kefir + Tarhana + HFD were higher than those of other groups (p < 0.05). Kefir + tarhana consumption significantly showed an increase in blood glucose. Kefir and/or tarhana induced the abundance of Lactobacillus and blocked the abundances of total coliform bacteria and Escherichia coli (p < 0.05). We demonstrated that kefir was effective in decreasing weight gain, and all dietary interventions induced positive alterations on biochemical findings and intestinal microbiota.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Demographic characteristics of the rats. NDC, Normal Diet Control; HFDC, High Fat Diet Control; Kefir + HFD, Kefir + High Fat Diet; Tarhana + HFD, Tarhana + High Fat Diet; Kefir + Tarhana + HFD, Kefir + Tarhana + High Fat Diet.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The weight gain before and after dietary intervention by intervention.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The weight gain before and after dietary intervention by gender.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Blood glucose levels of rats before and after dietary intervention.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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