(P20-011-25) Regular Black Tea Kombucha Intake Does Not Impact Body Composition but Improves Insulin Response and Increases ADIPOQ Expression in the Subcutaneous Adipose Tissue in Adults

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the effects of regular black tea kombucha consumption on metabolic, inflammatory, and oxidative stress markers, body weight and composition, and obesity-associated genes in individuals with and without obesity.

Methods: This pre-post clinical intervention study lasted eight consecutive weeks. Forty-six participants were allocated into two groups: normal weight + black tea kombucha; and obese + black tea kombucha. Blood and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) were collected at baseline (T0) and after 8 weeks of intervention (T8). This study follows the Transparent Reporting of Evaluations with Nonrandomized Designs (TREND) guidelines.

Results: Following kombucha consumption, the normal weight group showed increased concentrations of IL-13 (p=0.030) and nitric oxide (p=0.002) in plasma. The obese group showed a decrease in insulin concentrations (p=0.002) and an improvement in the markers of insulin resistance and sensitivity, as evaluated by the HOMA-IR (p=0.016), HOMA-β (p=0.002), and QUICKI (p=0.020) indexes, as well as an upregulation of the gene ADIPOQ in the SAT (p=0.0481). A positive correlation was observed between BMI and PPARγ (r=0.58; p=0.030), and between HOMA-IR with NFκB (r=0.73; p=0.002) and SREBF1 (r=0.66; p=0.010). A negative correlation was observed between hs-CRP and SERPINE1 (r=-0.62; p=0.018). No differences were observed among the groups regarding body weight and composition.

Conclusions: Regular kombucha consumption, rich in phenolic compounds, positively influenced the metabolic and inflammatory markers evaluated, with more pronounced effects in the obese group. The upregulation of ADIPOQ in the obese group may explain the positive outcomes related to insulin metabolism.

Funding Sources: This study was funded by CAPES Foundation (Coordination of Higher Education Personnel Improvement), CAPES PrInt (Institutional Program for Internationalization), FAPEMIG (Minas Gerais State Foundation of Support to the Research), and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI).