A recent study has revealed that incorporating avocados into the diet can positively influence the microbiota of adults living with abdominal obesity, without requiring any caloric restrictions, and thus improving gut health.
Conducted as part of the Habitual Diet and Avocado Trial (HAT), the 26-week randomized controlled trial involved 1,008 participants who were split into two groups: one that consumed one avocado daily and another that maintained their usual dietary habits.
Fecal samples from a subset of 230 participants were collected at the start of the study, after four weeks, and after the 26-week period. Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, utilized advanced shotgun metagenomics sequencing to assess the gut microbiota composition and diversity.
The findings indicated that participants in the avocado-consuming group experienced a notable increase in gut microbiota diversity by the four-week mark, a change that persisted throughout the study. Particularly, individuals with lower scores on the Healthy Eating Index (HEI-2015), reflecting less nutritious dietary habits at the outset, showed a more significant increase in microbiota diversity when consuming avocados compared to those in the control group.
At the end of the study, the avocado group demonstrated significant changes in beta diversity, suggesting shifts in the overall composition of gut bacteria. At the species level, notable increases were observed in beneficial gut bacteria, including Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Bacterium AF16_15. However, functional analysis indicated no significant differences in metabolic pathways between the two groups.
The study, which highlights the potential prebiotic benefits of avocados, suggests that incorporating this nutrient-rich fruit could be particularly advantageous for individuals with lower diet quality scores. These findings open new avenues for dietary interventions aimed at improving gut health in people with abdominal obesity.