The Role of Dietary Fibre in the Human Colon

Overview

Journal Can Med Assoc J

Specialty General Medicine

Date 1980 Dec 6

PMID 6257366

Citations 14

Authors

J H Cummings

A M Stephen

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Several effects of dietary fibre on colonic function have been documented by experiment or deduced from epidemiologic observation. The magnitude of these changes depends on the source and the physical and chemical composition of the fibre used, and on the individual response of the subjects. Three theories of the mode of action of fibre are discussed; they relate to the water-holding capacity of fibre, the production of short-chain fatty acids from fibre in the colon and the alteration by fibre of the colonic microflora.

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