Fermented Foods Decrease Inflammation and Improve Gut Diversity, Study Finds

Maria Nechaeva/iStock Eating a diet full of fermented foods, like yogurt, kimchi, and fermented vegetables, and consuming kombucha tea may be a way to reduce the inflammation that’s associated with chronic conditions such as type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and chronic stress. People who consumed more fermented products over a 10-week study period also had an increase in microbiome diversity and a decrease in immune cell activation. “This is a stunning finding,” said coauthor Justin Sonnenburg, PhD, associate professor of microbiology and immunology at Stanford University School in Palo Alto, California. “These results are one of the first examples of how a simple change in diet can reproducibly remodel the microbiota in a group of healthy adults.”