Summary
This narrative review synthesises evidence that dietary micronutrients—minerals, trace elements, and vitamins—alter intestinal microbiota composition and participate in host-microbe regulation of glucose metabolism and endocrine control. The authors argue that minerals and trace elements directly modify microbiota composition, gut barrier integrity, and glucose transport, whilst vitamins are biotransformed by gut microbes to influence immunity and pancreatic beta cell function. The review emphasises that causal mechanisms linking specific micronutrient excess or deficiency to metabolic disease risk remain incompletely understood, and calls for micronutrient standardisation in pre-clinical and clinical microbiome-metabolic disease studies.
Regional applicability
The findings are broadly applicable to United Kingdom nutrition and metabolic health research, as the physiological mechanisms of micronutrient-microbiota-glucose interactions are universal. However, the review does not address UK-specific dietary intake patterns, micronutrient deficiency prevalence, or policy implications for micronutrient fortification or supplementation recommendations.
Key measures
Intestinal microbiota composition, blood glucose, insulin secretion, gut barrier function, metabolic inflammation, cellular glucose transport, thyroid hormones, pancreatic beta cell function
Outcomes reported
The paper reviews how dietary micronutrients (minerals, trace elements, vitamins) influence intestinal microbiota composition and endocrine control of blood glucose and insulin metabolism. It synthesises evidence on mechanisms linking micronutrient status to metabolic disease risk through host-microbe interactions.
Topic tags
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