Author Identifier (ORCID)
Abstract
Purpose: A diet low in FODMAP may negatively affect the gut microbiota of some Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) patients, despite alleviating symptoms. This pilot study comprehensively explores the effects of a 3-week ur gut® supplementation on gut microbiota, gut health, dietary intake, sleep, mental health and quality of life (QOL) in individuals with IBS following a low FODMAP diet.
Methods: Adult participants (n = 26, 3 males) completed a randomised, double-blind controlled study. Participants were provided with either ur gut® (n = 13) or placebo (n = 13) for 3 weeks after a 1-week baseline. At baseline and end of intervention, blood, 24-h faecal samples and 3-day weighed-food diaries were collected. Validated questionnaires were used to evaluate mental health, sleep, QOL and gut symptoms. Participants reported daily IBS symptoms and wore a wrist-based actigraphy to capture daily sleep.
Results: During the intervention, both groups maintained baseline stable gut symptoms and sleep patterns. After the intervention, the ur gut® group had lower energy (P < 0.05) and protein (P < 0.01) intake compared to the placebo group, and increased resistant starch intake (P < 0.001) compared to baseline. Changes in overall genus-level gut microbiota composition (P < 0.01), including Ruminococcus E (5.5-fold increase, P < 0.01), were observed. ur gut® improved GI-specific anxiety (P = 0.01) and sexual subscale of QOL (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: Compared with placebo, ur gut® increased dietary fibre intake, improved gut microbiota and gastrointestinal-specific anxiety without negatively impacting sleep, despite no changes observed in faecal and blood biomarkers. This provides a dietary strategy to support gut health without compromising symptom control in IBS.
Australia and New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry http://www.anzctr.org.au/, ACTRN12620000032954.
Keywords
dietary fibre, gut microbiota, irritable bowel syndrome, quality of life, short chain fatty acids
Document Type
Journal Article
Date of Publication
10-1-2026
Article Number
263
E-ISSN
14366215
ISSN
14366207
Volume
65
Issue
7
PubMed ID
42782339
Publication Title
European Journal of Nutrition
Publisher
Springer
School
Nutrition and Health Innovation Research Institute / School of Medical and Health Sciences / School of Science / School of Nursing and Midwifery
RAS ID
100726
Funding Information
The study was partly funded by the School of Medical and Health Science of Edith Cowan University. Ran Yan was supported by the scholarships from China Scholarship Council and Edith Cowan University.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Yan, R., Devine, A., Lo, J., Marlow, E., Dunican, I. C., Kunaratnam, K., Andrew, L., & Christophersen, C. T. (2026). Dietary fibre blend improves gut health in patients with irritable bowel syndrome following a low FODMAP diet: A randomised, double-blind control trial. European Journal of Nutrition, 65, Article 263. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-026-04113-5