Pilot Study of the Effect of Fructans on Fermentation in the Colon & Transit (PERFECT)

University of Nottingham

Status

Completed

Conditions

Evidence of Adaptation to Dietary Exposure to Fructans

Treatments

Dietary Supplement: Inulin challenge

Dietary Supplement: oligofructose supplement

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT01963364

11072013SCSMRI

Details and patient eligibility

About

Some carbohydrates (complex sugars) which are found in grains, fruit and vegetables, cannot be digested by humans. When eaten they pass through the small bowel to the large bowel, or colon. Some bacteria that live in the colon are able to digest these carbohydrates, and use them as an energy source. This releases energy that humans can absorb, and may have other effects on health as well. The process also releases gases such as hydrogen and methane into the colon, which will eventually be released as flatulence.

There is some evidence in animals, and humans, that changing the carbohydrate content of the diet may increase the numbers of bacteria in the colon that can use this energy source. Recent work has looked at how changes in colon bacteria and carbohydrate in the diet affect transit, the speed at which food and stool moves through the stomach and bowels. This undergraduate project will use techniques in Magnetic Resonance Imaging developed in Nottingham to investigate how a prolonged change in dietary carbohydrate might affect speed of transit through the bowel and gas production in the colon, and whether there is any evidence of a change in the level of signalling chemicals that may affect bowel function.

Enrollment

16 patients

Sex

All

Ages

18 to 55 years old

Volunteers

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Aged 18-55
Able to give informed consent
Does not meet criteria for diagnosis of IBS on Rome III questionnaire

Exclusion criteria

Unable to abstain from smoking for the duration of the study (may affect breath hydrogen readings)
Self-declared vegetarian, vegan or kosher/ halal diet who cannot eat carmine red dye
Pregnancy declared by candidate
Female patients during their menstrual period
History declared by the candidate of pre-existing gastrointestinal disorder, including but not limited to:
Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Coeliac Disease
Pancreatitis
Gallstone disease (biliary colic, cholecystitis)
Diverticulitis
Cancer of the gastrointestinal tract
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Reported history of previous resection of any part of the gastrointestinal tract other than appendix or gallbladder
Intestinal stoma
Any medical condition making participation potentially compromising participation in the study e.g. diabetes mellitus, respiratory disease limiting ability to lie in the scanner
Contraindications for MRI scanning i.e. metallic implants, pacemakers, history of metallic foreign body in eye(s) and penetrating eye injury
Reported alcohol dependence
Unable to stop drugs known to alter GI motility including mebeverine, opiates, monoamine oxidase inhibitors, phenothiazines, benzodiazepines, calcium channel antagonists during or in the 2 weeks prior to the test. (Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and low dose tricyclic antidepressants will be recorded but will not be an exclusion criteria)
Antibiotic or probiotic treatment in the past 4 weeks
Inability to lie flat or exceed scanner limits of weight <120kg
Poor understanding of English language
Participation in night shift work the week prior to the study day. Night work is defined as working between midnight and 6.00 AM
Strenuous exercise greater than 10 hours per week (i.e. no competition training the week prior to the study).
Participation in any medical trials for the past 3 months
Anyone who in the opinion of the investigator is unlikely to be able to comply with the protocol e.g. cognitive dysfunction, chaotic lifestyle related to substance abuse