Oral butyrate improves postural balance by repairing leaky gut in geriatric adults

Postural imbalance in older adults is a common problem and is partly due to a leaky gut. However, the effective treatments are poorly known. We investigated the effects of butyrate supplementation on postural imbalance and intestinal leak in older adults.

We recruited geriatric adult men into placebo (n = 66, age range=73.2 ± 3.4 years) and butyrate (n = 64, age range=70.4 ± 2.9 years) groups. The butyrate group received oral butyrate (300 mg/day) for 16 weeks. We measured postural balance in supine, tandem, and semi-tandem positions using a standardized tool. We also measured handgrip strength (HGS), gait speed, plasma zonulin and lipopolysaccharides-binding protein (LBP) levels as markers of intestinal leak in the study participants.

At baseline, the balance scores, HGS, gait speed, plasma zonulin, and LBP levels were similar in the two groups. Butyrate supplementation was associated with a significant increase in HGS and gait speed and a reduction in plasma zonulin and LBP levels (all p < 0.05), which were not observed in the placebo group. Participants with higher postural balance exhibited higher HGS, gait speed, and lower plasma zonulin and LBP than participants with poor postural balance. We also observed dynamic associations of balance scores with HGS, gait speed, plasma zonulin, and LBP levels in the butyrate group. However, plasma CRP and 8-isoprostane levels were not affected by the butyrate supplement.

Altogether, butyrate mitigates postural imbalance in older adults, which, at least partly, involves intestinal mucosal repair and improvement in skeletal muscle strength and gait speed.