The Gut Health Benefits of Ayurvedic Herbs
Ayurveda, India’s ancient medical system, has become more widespread in the West over the past 20 years. Ayurveda considers that disease first begins in the gut. Ayurveda seeks to correct imbalances early in the disease process and has long considered the digestive system both the source of disease and the primary site of prevention and treatment.
Ayurvedic medicine incorporates herbs in treatment, but you may wonder how they work. Herbs might utilize unknown mechanisms, and some fascinating mechanisms are already known. They include direct absorption across the gut lining into our bloodstream, signaling via taste receptors on the tongue and gut walls, bacterial metabolism of herb compounds in the gut, and the production of health-promoting molecules, referred to as postbiotics, by the gut microbes upon metabolizing the herbs.
Ayurvedic medicines are chemically complex and can affect several targets and bodily systems. Because of their complexity, many plants utilized in Ayurveda are classified as adaptogens. Adaptogenic herbs help the body maintain homeostasis and balance to resist the damaging effects of stress in a synergistic manner. Synergy suggests herbal ingredients work better together than individually, meaning the combined effects are greater than additive.
Herbal medicines have potent impacts on the gut microbiota, as revealed in humans and lab models that mimic the gut environment, according to our research. Our research group examined the Ayurvedic spices turmeric, ginger, black pepper, and long pepper (commonly called Pippali). These spices are often used for cooking or mixed in a formulation to take before or with meals to aid in digestion and assimilation of food. These culinary spices all suppressed inflammatory bacteria and were prebiotic. Thus, good bacteria grew and harmful ones decreased in abundance.
We wanted to determine what ingredients changed the gut bacteria’s growth and functions. Our lab model showed that the herb’s sugar content is not the main cause of the gut flora alterations. Herb response is more strongly related to specific glycosyl hydrolase enzymes. Gut microbes produce glycosyl hydrolases to metabolize polysaccharides in our diet. Without our microbial inhabitants, we simply cannot digest most carbohydrates. These complex sugars in the diet selectively drive the growth of microorganisms with the particular enzyme needed to metabolize the particular sugar and thus subsequently influence numerous functions. The microbes teach us that we are not what we eat, but rather, we are what we digest and absorb.
In our gut environment model, turmeric caused strong microbiota composition alterations that increased beneficial butyrate-producing bacteria. Short-chain fatty acids are important beneficial end products of bacterial fermentation. Butyrate, a short-chain fatty acid, fuels intestinal cells lining the gut, maintains the immune system, and regulates the nervous system. Several spices also increased propionate, a short-chain fatty acid that improves fat metabolism.
In a randomized, double-blind pilot clinical trial, we found that turmeric treatment increased the diverse repertoire of glycosyl hydrolase enzymes in important health-promoting microbes. These microorganisms release carbohydrates that fuel secondary groups of fermentative bacteria, like a variety of Clostridium species that produce beneficial short-chain fatty acids. Thus, culinary spices may affect the gut microbiota structure and community metabolism to improve digestion and other functions. While larger human trials are needed to validate these findings, the data suggest that making healthy choices like cooking with additional spices or taking an Ayurvedic Agni mix could be beneficial for these reasons.
Triphala, a mixture of three dried fruits, treats a variety of conditions, from gastrointestinal to skin diseases. These rejuvenating fruits boost stamina and immunity in people of all ages due to their complex composition. Our team examined the gut microbial impacts of Triphala, Slippery Elm, and Licorice, which are popular herbs for gastrointestinal health. These herbal supplements increased health-promoting bacteria such as Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, and Bacteroides species, which included butyrate-producing bacteria. Herb supplementation also decreased gut pathogen abundance. The digestive herbs also enhanced microorganisms that digest amino acids such as tryptophan, which the brain later converts to serotonin.
Ayurvedic herbs for the mind are referred to as nervine herbs. Nervine herbs support the nervous system and functions related to mood, memory, and cognition. Our data revealed that many gut microbes coordinated their responses and activities to herb supplementation. We discovered networks of microorganisms that may synchornize their response to herbs or certain carbohydrates in the herbs. The nervine herbs modulated the community structure and metabolism of the gut microbiota. The changes in gut community metabolism may impact signals in the nervous system of the gut and the gut-brain axis.
We have learned that Ayurvedic medicines promote a prebiotic effect and stimulate the growth and activity of good gut bacteria while perhaps suppressing harmful bacteria. Some gut microorganisms employ their specific enzymes to release sugars from herbs, so other bacterial groups can produce beneficial post-biotics like short-chain fatty acids. Other gut bacteria breakdown amino acids that are converted to neurotransmitters to regulate gut-brain processes. Gut microbial communities may work together to coordinate responses to herb treatment. Gut microorganisms produce beneficial metabolites like neuroactive butyrate and metabolize polymolecular herbs to make health-promoting molecules like polyphenols more readily available.
Microbes working in communities provide health advantages and capacities we could never achieve as separate human organisms. Herbal medicine now includes the gut microbes as therapeutic mediators due to the discovery of herbs’ prebiotic effects on gut bacteria and their production of beneficial metabolites. Fortunately, our microbial species lead by example and communicate, collaborate, and share resources in an integrated community.
