Functional foods for gut health
A recently published review paper explores bioactive compounds in seaweeds, highlighting their potential for incorporation into functional foods that promote gut health.
The paper describes a number of natural compounds found in seaweeds and discusses a range of benefits previously reported in the scientific literature. It includes a useful summary of fucoidans, citing evidence that these complex polysaccharides can enhance gut microbial diversity, regulate the balance of microbial populations, and can increase beneficial gut bacteria while reducing harmful bacterial species. Researchers also noted that fucoidans have been shown to contribute to gut health by enhancing the production of short chain fatty acids which can promote intestinal integrity.
Related research recently published by Marinova supports many of these findings. Supplementation with high purity fucoidan from Undaria pinnatifida was shown to enrich colonic microbial diversity in vitro (Wimmer, 2025). Species richness and species evenness were positively enhanced in both the distal and proximal colon. Fucoidan supplementation significantly increased levels of the short-chain fatty acid butyrate, known to assist in the maintenance of the gut barrier, stimulate gut motility and modulate both innate and adaptive immune responses.
The review is a useful resource for researchers investigating novel functional food strategies in support of gut health. The full paper, ‘Seaweed bioactive compounds as functional food for modulating gut microbiota’ was published in the journal Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences.