- Inulin-type fructans are abundant in chicory root and Jerusalem artichoke (12, 13).
- Natural FOS are found to varying degree in banana, garlic, honey, onion, wheat (13, 14).
- Natural GOS are abundant in pulses (Legume - Wikipedia) (12).
‘Is collagen hydrolysate/gelatin a prebiotic for your gut microbes?’
No. Thus far no proteins have been labeled prebiotic. Obviously, being indigestible and fermentable are criteria unlikely to be fulfilled by most proteins.
Collagen
is the most abundant structural protein in animals, constituting ~30%
of total animal protein (15). Primarily derived from the
Collagen in connective tissue, bone and skin,
Gelatin
is a high molecular weight protein that unfolds when melted and cools
into a water-trapping helix-coil structure that forms a reversible gel.
Consider
Jell-O - Wikipedia, the ever-present dessert. Though it looks solid, it's actually >99% liquid.
While
it's been part of our diet for centuries, the industrial revolution
made gelatin practically ubiquitous, from foodstuffs to photography
(think glossy photo paper) to glues to pharmaceuticals. Being amphoteric
(
Amphoterism - Wikipedia), having a variable
Isoelectric point - Wikipedia as well as capacity for
Coacervate - Wikipedia (separation of colloid particles from a solution) makes gelatin ideal for
Micro-encapsulation - Wikipedia, hence its ubiquity in industrial food and pharmaceutical products (as capsules, sponges,
Excipient - Wikipedia for example). Other advantages include (
16)
- Easily digestible, high quality protein containing neither carbohydrates nor fats.
- Gluten-free.
- Extremely low allergenic potential.
- Clinical studies have shown special types of gelatin, marketed as collagen hydrolysate,
can have a protective effect on joint cartilage (15). Hence its wide
prevalence as a food additive for osteoarthritis patients and athletes.
Could Gelatin Be A Prebiotic? No Evidence Yet To Support Such A Possibility.
Though
it's ubiquitous in the food industry, no systematic efforts have
assessed if gelatin has prebiotic qualities. For example, as recently as
2015-2016, comprehensive reviews on collagen and gelatin list their
major potential biological effects as antioxidant, antihypertensive,
anticancer, antiphotoaging and cholesterol-lowering (15,
17) with no mention at all of prebiotic capacity.
However,
neither is this unsurprising since most confirmed prebiotics tend to be
poorly digested carbohydrates. Since carbohydrates yield certain
defined effects such as fermentation, lactic acid, etc., efforts to
identify new prebiotics focus on capacity to do likewise. It's entirely
possible such a 'looking under the lamp post approach' may impair
uncovering novel classes of prebiotics, which may not generate
fermentation products or SCFA and yet be indigestible or primarily
digested by gut microbes and have beneficial gut microbe and health
effects.
Reports of gelatin's direct effect on microbes are meager.
- Gelatin strongly supports the growth of many microbes (16).
This is why extremely stringent ISO9000-compliant quality control
procedures are necessary during its industrial-scale manufacture.
- At least one known Probiotic - Wikipedia, (microbes with proven health benefits), namely, Bacillus clausii - Wikipedia (https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/i...),
can hydrolyze Gelatin. A soil bacterium first described in 1995, its
probiotic properties are currently the focus of active research (18).
A few clinical studies have noted oral Gelatin/Collagen hydrolysate can influence appetite, suppressing it in the short-term (
19) but not in the long-term (
20), influence weight (21), again not in the long-term (22), and improve skin texture (
23,
24, 25,
26). None of these studies have even speculated the observed biological effects could be due to effects on gut microbes.
Bottomline,
as of 2016 there appear to be no scientific studies that have
explicitly, comprehensively and systematically examined if and what
effect Gelatin/Collagen hydrolysate have on gut microbiota, let alone
explored the possibility they may have prebiotic effects.
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1.
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Microbiota of the Human Body
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https://www.researchgate.net/pro...
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Oligosaccharides: a boon from nature’s desk
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Gelatine Handbook
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Hochstenbach-Waelen, Ananda, et al. "Single-protein casein and gelatin
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2285-2292.
Single-Protein
Casein and Gelatin Diets Affect Energy Expenditure Similarly but
Substrate Balance and Appetite Differently in Adults
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https://www.researchgate.net/pro...
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