What is Butyrate and What Are Its Health Benefits? - Pendulum

To learn more about butyrate, watch Pendulum CSO John Eid's conversation about butyrate on the Dr. Gundry podcast.

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Butyrate is an important short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) that appears to be intimately tied to health. 

Despite its importance, however, many people may not be getting enough of this essential postbiotic. 

Humans can't make butyrate on their own. Instead, we get butyrate from our food and from a series of reactions that take place in the gut microbiome.

These "reactions" are what convert dietary fibers into a bounty of butyrate.  

The loss of butyrate-producing bacteria in the gut microbiome can have far-reaching effects in the human body. 

If you are looking to increase the levels of butyrate-producing bacteria in your gut, learn more about Glucose Control, which contains 3 probiotic strains that have been shown to product high levels of butyrate. Those strains are Clostrdium butyricum, Anaerobutyricum hallii, and Clostridium beijerincki. 

What is butyrate and how is it made?

The name "Butyrate" comes from the ancient Greek word for butter.

That's because the Greeks noticed that as butter or milk goes rancid, it takes on a potent smell, which is partly due to the production of butyrate in the dairy.  

Butyrate is produced in the large intestine as a byproduct of soluble-fiber metabolism. Butyrate is often made in the process of breaking down large, complex, and resilient molecules such as fibers and resistant starches.

Humans rely almost entirely on bacteria to produce their butyrate, and it takes a lot of effort to break up these molecules—and human cells just aren’t good at it. 

When you eat foods that are rich with these molecules (e.g. green bananas, cold potatoes, or oats), your cells struggle to break them down. As a result, the fibers and resistant starches tend to survive the digestive process.

That is until they reach the gut microbiome—more specifically the large intestine.

Many bacterial species can use fibers and resistant starches as sources of energy. These bacteria absorb the fiber and resistant-starch molecules and then begin to digest them—ripping them apart and extracting the parts of these molecules that they find useful. 

In the process, butyrate is formed.

This butyrate is discarded back into the gut where human cells can then absorb it and put it to use. 

Like other SCFAs, butyrate serves multiple purposes within the body: 

• It often serves as an energy source for cells when sugar isn’t available (it's one of the primary sources of energy for the cells that line the colon—also known as colonocytes)

• Sometimes it’s used as a building block to help cells construct larger molecules

• Other times it functions as a basic signaling molecule, able to change a cell’s behavior in dramatic ways (more on this below) 

What are the health benefits of butyrate? 

Dr. Emeran Mayer, a gastroenterologist, neuroscientist, and distinguished research professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, calls SCFAs the main currency of the microbial world.

Dr. Mayer says that SCFAs are a major influencer in maintaining proper functioning of the complex system of different cell types that interact with each other.

"Within the gut, butyrate receptors can be found in a wide range of epithelial, endocrine, immune, and nerve cells," says Dr. Mayer. "Because of the ubiquitous expression of these short chain fatty acid receptors on various gut cells, butyrate has a wide range of homeostatic effects on gut function."

One of the great things about butyrate is that once it's released into the gut, it can have both local and global effects on the human body. 

Research into the effects of butyrate covers many diverse topics and is still very much a work in progress. But, here is what we do know: 

Butyrate fuels your gut cells

The body uses sugars, fats, and proteins for energy. Being a fatty acid, butyrate serves as an energy source for some cells. 

This is particularly true for colonocytes—the cells that line the intestinal barrier of the colon—which get 70% of their energy from butyrate.  

Because colonocytes digest it, only about 5% of the butyrate made in the gut actually makes it into circulation. 

When butyrate levels are low, colonocytes show signs of distress due to the lack of their preferred energy source. 

Butyrate helps with managing type 2 diabetes

Butyrate has been well studied for its influence over blood-sugar levels. 

Several studies performed in cells and mice have reported a link between butyrate production and the release of hormones that are known to:

• Suppress the appetite

• Promote the breakdown of fats

• Increase sensitivity to insulin

The exact mechanism of how butyrate is linked to these hormones isn’t clear. However, it likely has to do with the regulation of DNA and how or when sections of it are read. 

Regardless of the mechanism, there is strong evidence to suggest that butyrate production helps regulate blood sugar levels.

One study showed that people with type 2 diabetes who were given a high-fiber diet had an increase in butyrate-producing bacteria that correlated with a >20% decrease in A1C levels (compared to a <15% decrease in the control group). 

These results are echoed in numerous other studies showing that increased fiber and butyrate-producing bacteria improve blood-sugar regulation.   

What causes low butyrate levels?

Humans primarily get butyrate from two sources: 

• Food

• Butyrate-producing bacteria in the gut microbiome

Low butyrate levels can happen when there's a decrease in the number of butyrate-producing bacteria in your gut, you decrease the amount of butyrate-containing foods in your diet, or you body is less able to absorb butyrate.

Foods like butter and other dairy products are rich with butyrate. 

Fiber is a major component in the diets of cattle and other farm animals, so they also have a gut microbiome that's capable of converting that fiber into butyrate, which ultimately finds its way into the animals' milk.  

If you don’t eat much dairy, your body will have to look elsewhere for its butyrate.

Like all ecosystems, the gut microbiome is a complex environment where survival of bacterial species depends on their ability to get nutrients and outcompete other bacteria for scarce living space.  

For butyrate-producing bacteria, this means they stand the best chance at survival when their host (the person whose gut they live in) eats fibers and resistant starches. 

When these are lacking from the diet, the butyrate-producing bacteria may not be as competitive and are less likely to thrive. 

As a side effect, lower levels of butyrate are produced. 

Antibiotics can also dramatically shift the landscape of the gut microbiome. 

Aside from targeting the bacteria that may be causing an infection, antibiotics also affect bacteria in the gut microbiome, potentially devastating the population of butyrate-producing bacteria (as well as other species). 

Lastly, some health conditions—like type 2 diabetes—can affect the microbiome composition, which correlates with a decrease in butyrate-producing bacteria.

How to boost your butyrate levels

Fortunately, there are multiple ways to boost your butyrate levels. 

In essence, each approach aims to make sure that:

• You have a balance of butyrate-producing bacteria in your gut

• You’re giving these bacteria the food (i.e., fiber and resistant starches) they need to survive 

What specific bacteria help create butyrate?

Production of butyrate is a collective effort as some bacteria partially break down carbohydrates (like fiber and resistant starches) and release the fractured molecules into the gut where other species can then convert these molecules into butyrate . 

There are many species of bacteria that either contribute to the butyrate making process, or are responsible for the actual production of butyrate. 

Here, we’ve listed some of the most common species responsible for producing butyrate:

• Faecalibacterium prausnitzii

• Eubacterium rectale

• Roseburia spp. (Roseburia faecis, Roseburia inulinivorans, Roseburia intestinalis, and Roseburia hominis)

• Clostridium butyricum

• Clostridium beijerinckii

• Eubacterium spp. (Eubacterium hallii)

• Anaerostipes spp. (Anaerostipes butyraticus, Anaerostipes caccae, and Anaerostipes hadrus)

• Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum

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Additionally, species of bacteria in the Bifidobacterium genus are known to help carry out the first steps in fiber digestion, providing molecules to the gut microbiome that the above species can use to make butyrate.  

Are there supplements/probiotics that can increase your butyrate levels?

Yes.

There are different probiotic-containing supplements that can help you boost the number of butyrate-producing bacteria—so called butyrate-producing probiotics.

Butyricum is a powerful new probiotic packed with a butyrate-producing strain that can help relieve occasional gas, bloating, diarrhea, and constipation.

In evaluating butyrate-producing probiotics, it's important to make sure that they have the right bacteria and come with a prebiotic to help those bacteria survive.

Another butyrate-containing probiotic is Glucose Control, which helps deliver several species of butyrate-producing bacteria (e.g. Anaerobutyricum hallii, Clostridium butyricum, Clostridium beijerinckii) as well as inulin to help these bacteria establish a competitive foothold in the microbiome environment. 

In a recent peer-reviewed paper published in the January 8, issue of BMC Microbiology, it was discovered that people with type 2 diabetes who took Glucose Control during a 12-week, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, randomized trial showed increased levels of butyrate and the secondary bile acid ursodeoxycholate (UDCA).

In people with type 2 diabetes who were also taking metformin, boosting butyrate-producing bacterial species is believed to help reduce their A1C and after-meal blood sugar levels. 

This hypothesis is supported by recent findings using Glucose Control. In a double-blinded study, researchers gave patients with type 2 diabetes this probiotic for 12 weeks, measuring their change in blood A1C levels from the beginning of the study to the end. 

What foods can increase your butyrate levels?

There are several foods that can help boost butyrate levels.

As mentioned earlier, dairy products tend to be high in butyrate. 

You can also boost your butyrate levels by eating foods rich in fibers and resistant starches. In general, foods that come from plants tend to have fibers and digestion-resistant starches. As the specific strains mentioned above break down these fibers, it will produce butyrate in the large intestine.

These foods include:

• Inulin

• Guar gum

• Agave

• Bananas

• Onions

• Garlic

• Jerusalem artichoke

• Cooled boiled potatoes

• Cereal bran

• Oats

• Barley

• Wheat

• Rye

• Pears

• Apples

• Guavas

• Plums

• Oranges

What is butyric acid—and is it different that butyrate? 

Butyrate and butyric acid are two forms of the same molecule. 

Butyric acid is butyrate with an extra hydrogen molecule attached to it, which alters how it interacts with other molecules.  

Butyrate can fluctuate between states, existing as butyric acid in one environment and then transitioning to butyrate in another (or vice versa). 

Butyrate is the more common form of the molecule in nature.  

Final Thoughts

After decades of research, it's clear that butyrate is an important molecule that can influence many aspects of health. 

With the right diet and help from probiotics, it's possible to boost your butyrate levels and potentially improve many aspects of your health. 

The benefits of butyrate, a postbiotic short-chain fatty acid produced in the colon, begin in the gut and extend to a host of other important body systems. A key component of the gut microbiome, butyrate has been found to support gut function, hormone regulation, control centers of the brain, and more.* 

Here are the top ten reasons why butyrate is widely considered by functional and holistic health professionals to be a foundation of total body health.

Butyrate benefits:

1. Fuel the gut lining*
2. Support healthy gut permeability* 
3. Promote a healthy inflammation response in the gut*
4. May fight colonic diseases and cancers*
5. Promote healthy blood sugar levels*
6. Supports normal proliferation of healthy yeast levels*
7. Promote cell differentiation*
8. Regulate the immune system*
9. Combat brain fog and improve sleep*
10. Supports healthy blood pressure levels*

1. Fuel the Gut Lining*

Butyrate is produced naturally in the gut when you eat foods that are high in “resistant starch”. Special cells in the gut called colonocytes use butyrate as their primary fuel source. Colonocytes make up the lining of your colon, which helps your body absorb nutrients and protects it from harmful bacteria, yeast, and other pathogens that reside in your gut. 

When you don’t eat enough foods consisting of resistant starch, the bacteria in your gut don’t produce enough butyrate, and your gut lining suffers. Carefully increasing your prebiotic dietary fiber (resistant starch) intake and/or supplementing butyrate can nourish the gut lining, help restore healthy nutrient absorption, and more [1]. We discuss butyrate and diet more in-depth here. 

2. Support Healthy Gut Permeability*

Your gut lining is the gatekeeper of your large intestine. When your gut lining is healthy, its permeable barrier allows good things such as vitamins and minerals to pass through to your bloodstream, where they travel on to the organs and systems that need them. At the same time, a healthy gut lining must also not allow substances like toxins and pathogens to enter the bloodstream; it keeps them inside so that they can continue on their path towards being removed from the body.

When your gut lining lacks the butyrate “fuel” it needs to maintain healthy gut permeability, toxins and pathogens can slip through. This may cause what is commonly called leaky gut syndrome [2]. Leaky gut syndrome is believed to cause an array of uncomfortable symptoms, including gastrointestinal distress and low energy levels. By keeping the gut lining healthy, butyrate may be a key means of how to heal leaky gut. 

3. Promote a Healthy Inflammation Response in the Gut*

The lining of your gut is also responsible for maintaining proper levels of inflammation. When the cells in your immune system fight off invading germs, they produce substances called “free radicals” as part of the process. Free radicals are oxidized, inflammatory substances. 

Some inflammation - a very small and controlled amount - helps protect the gut. Chronic inflammation in the gut occurs when your immune system is constantly fighting off what it views to be pathogens. Sometimes, these pathogens are actually invading germs, but sometimes the body overreacts (as with allergies) and fights off substances that are ultimately not harmful. 

Regardless, too many free radicals over time can lead to oxidative damage and chronic inflammation. Butyrate prevents the action of inflammatory processes that would normally put stress on our cells by increasing the production of the antioxidant glutathione [3].

4. May Combat Chronic Inflammation, Colonic Diseases, and Cancers*

Chronic inflammation of the gut can cause diseases like IBD (inflammatory bowel disease - the umbrella term for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis) and colorectal cancer down the line. 

By neutralizing free radicals, butyrate does more than lowers inflammation: it reduces the risk of immune system reactivity, developing chronic diseases like IBD or colorectal cancer, and more [3].*

While increasing butyrate levels in the colon would help prevent colonic diseases from manifesting in the first place, by strengthening the gut lining, controlling pathogens, lowering inflammation, and modulating the immune system, it may be useful in treating pre-existing colonic conditions as well.* In other words, one of the most exciting prospects of butyrate is its ability to manage and support healthy gut functions for those who already struggle with gastrointestinal issues.*

Butyrate has been shown to modulate the gut microbiome in patients who have inflammatory bowel disease [4].* Research also indicates that butyrate has therapeutic potential for IBD patients, particularly with immunomodulation and mucosal healing [5, 6]. This therapeutic potential is exciting since rates of IBD continue to increase globally and patients are looking for more alternative and complementary treatment solutions [7]. 

Finally, one of butyrate’s key functions in the gut is to regulate gut motility, how fast or slow food is processed and moves through the colon. Many people with IBS and IBD suffer from either fast motility, diarrhea, or slow motility, and constipation. No matter which type you have, butyrate helps to restore normal colonic motility [8].

5. Promote Healthy Blood Sugar Levels*

Both mice and cell studies show that butyrate has a positive effect on blood sugar balance. Butyrate may increase insulin sensitivity, encourage the body to use stored fat as an energy source, and suppress hunger hormones. Because of these effects, butyrate has been shown to reduce weight gain in mice with “diet-induced obesity,” suggesting that increasing butyrate levels in the gut may also encourage weight loss [X, X, X].

6. Support Healthy Yeast levels*

A study found that sodium butyrate has “significant antifungal activity” on pathogenic yeasts like Candida albicans, Candida parapsilosis, and Cryptococcus neoformans.* Researchers noted that sodium butyrate inhibited the yeasts from spreading and decreased the production of protective biofilms, making them easier to eradicate. Sodium butyrate also enhanced the activity of antifungal drugs, suggesting it might do well as a complementary therapy with medications such as “azole” drugs. [9] 

7. Promote Cell Differentiation*

Butyrate promotes cell differentiation, our cells’ ability to change to a specific type like a liver cell or a blood cell. When cells don’t differentiate properly and simply proliferate, we can end up with tumors which then lead to cancer. Butyrate also helps prevent these serious complications by inducing cell apoptosis, the natural death of a cell. [10]

Butyrate is also an HDAC inhibitor. 

8. Regulate the Immune System* 

Butyrate influences most immune cells, which have receptors to detect it whether in the gut or other parts of the body and bloodstream. Research shows that butyrate upregulates anti-inflammatory immune pathways and downregulates inflammatory ones, even when faced with an inflammation trigger like allergens or toxins.  

In your gut, butyrate influences tissues called the gut associated lymphoid tissues, or GALT. The GALT determines the intensity of an immune response based on the microbial balance in the gut. If there are more adverse bacteria or yeasts present, for example, it will launch an attack. This can cause damage and inflammation to the gut tissues over time [12]. 

Butyrate can modulate the immune system not only by having a direct effect on certain pathogens (like candida overgrowth), but also by fueling the gut tissues, promoting microbial balance in the gut, and lowering inflammation, all of which help the GALT become less reactive. 

9. Combat Brain Fog and Improve Sleep*

Butyrate is one of the ultimate players in the gut-brain connection. It increases brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a critical metabolite that supports our learning and memory abilities [13]. Butyrate also sequesters ammonia, a toxic byproduct that can cause brain fog.* It may also enhance the brain’s plasticity, the ability to “rewire” new thought pathways, such as when learning a language or changing a habitual behavior. [14, 15]

And here’s the icing on the cake: a study on mice showed that both oral butyrate and intraportal butyrate injection increased non-rapid eye movement sleep by 70% in six hours. It also decreased sleep latency, the time it takes to fall asleep. This is still a new area of research, but the theory is that butyrate may have an effect on sleep-promoting hormones via signaling from the intestinal microbiome [16]. 

10. Support Healthy Blood Pressure* 

Butyrate corresponds inversely to blood pressure, meaning low blood pressure = higher butyrate levels, and higher blood pressure = lower butyrate levels. In a study with 205 participants, researchers found that increasing butyrate production in the microbiome may help regulate blood pressure in obese pregnant women [17]. A study on rats also showed that sodium butyrate had antihypertensive effects [18]. 

How to Reap the Benefits of Butyrate

There are three main ways to boost butyrate levels in your microbiome:

1. Increase your intake of foods that already contain butyrate

What foods are high in butyrate? Unfortunately, many of the foods that already contain comparatively large amounts of butyrate, such as butter and some cheeses, are not suitable for consumption in large quantities. However, you can always include them as a balanced part of your diet! 

2. Increase your intake of foods that support the microbiome’s creation of butyrate

If you’re looking to increase your butyrate levels via dietary changes, consume foods that are high in fiber, particularly those with high levels of resistant starch. These include:
 

• Cold rolled oats 
• Legumes
• Potatoes (cooked then cooled) 
• White rice (cooked then cooled for at least 24 hours) 
• Underripe bananas 
• Plantain flour 
• Whole grains
• Fibrous plant parts such as asparagus ends, broccoli stems, apple skins, etc. 

For more information, check out our in-depth resources on butyrate foods and why fiber is important to the body.

3. Butyrate supplementation

Most people find it difficult to eat the recommended 25 grams of fiber a day. Some are sensitive to the types of foods that support butyrate production (typically legumes), while others simply don’t like them (hard asparagus ends and cold potatoes, anyone?). If you are having a hard time integrating butyrate foods into your diet, butyrate supplements can help. 

Try BodyBio Butyrate Supplements for Gut & Body Health

When considering all of the supplementation options for your personal health and well-being, it can be overwhelming to try to narrow down just a few—or even just one—key player. While prebiotics, probiotics, and postbiotics all have a place in a well-rounded diet and health-supportive regimen, postbiotics like butyrate have the most therapeutic bang for your buck.

BodyBio’s Butyrate Supplements aren’t just for gut health support, though they exert many benefits there. Butyrate supplements can also promote a healthy brain, immune system, basic cell functions, blood pressure, inflammation, and even your sleep. 

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