{"id":6750,"date":"2025-10-31T12:56:48","date_gmt":"2025-10-31T11:56:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bacteria.de\/insight\/more-energy-from-fiber\/"},"modified":"2025-10-31T13:02:17","modified_gmt":"2025-10-31T12:02:17","slug":"more-energy-from-fiber","status":"publish","type":"insight","link":"https:\/\/bacteria.de\/en\/insight\/more-energy-from-fiber\/","title":{"rendered":"More energy from fiber"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

More energy from fiber<\/h2>\n\n
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Not everyone gets the same amount of energy from their food. A new study shows: Those with a methane-forming gut microbiome can get more energy from dietary fiber. Methanogenic archaea change the fermentation processes in the gut in such a way that more short-chain fatty acids are produced – a hidden energy boost from microorganisms. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n

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Researchers at Arizona State University analyzed 17 test subjects in a strictly controlled nutritional study. <\/p>\n\n

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What was done in the study?<\/h2>\n\n

Each person was given two diets: a low-fiber “Western Diet” and a high-fiber “Microbiome-Enhancer Diet”. Energy intake, excretion, intestinal gases and the microbiome were comprehensively measured, including continuous methane monitoring in a whole-room calorimeter. <\/p>\n\n

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What was the outcome?<\/h2>\n\n

About half of the participants had methanogens, mainly Methanobrevibacter smithii<\/em>. This group had significantly higher methane and propionate levels in the serum – although the amount of fatty acids in the stool remained the same. Genes and transcripts of the propionate-forming succinate pathway were upregulated, indicating increased microbial energy production. <\/p>\n\n

Remarkably, the effect was only seen on the high-fiber diet. The difference disappeared with a typical Western diet. <\/p>\n\n

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What are the effects of methanogens in the gut?<\/h2>\n\n

The microbial breakdown of dietary fiber produces hydrogen (H\u2082) as a by-product of fermentation.<\/p>\n\n

High H\u2082 partial pressure slows down the fermentation processes because many bacteria are then unable to regenerate their NAD\u207a. They virtually “suffocate” on their own electrons. <\/p>\n\n

Methanogens(Methanobrevibacter smithii<\/em>) use precisely this H\u2082 to form methane (CH\u2084):<\/p>\n\n

4 H\u2082 + CO\u2082 \u2192 CH\u2084 + 2 H\u2082O<\/p>\n\n

This lowers the H\u2082 partial pressure in the intestine and makes fermentation thermodynamically more favorable, allowing the remaining bacteria to ferment further and convert more substrates (dietary fiber).<\/p>\n\n

This H\u2082 consumption creates an ecological advantage:<\/p>\n\n