Fermented Vegetables and Gut Microbiome Pilot Study

"Participants will be provided with reduced-sodium fermented vegetables developed by Dr. Ilenys Pérez-Díaz at the USDA-ARS Food Science and Market Quality and Handling Research Unit. The fermented, refrigerated vegetables have been shown to have Lactiplantibacillus spp. content \>10\^7 CFU/mL at 21 days shelf-life.~Products are prepared in a Good Manufacturing Practices Facility at North Carolina State University, Department of Food, Bioprocessing, and Nutrition Sciences.~The fermented vegetables will be shipped in coolers on cold packs with temperature indicators to the WHNRC. Participants will be asked to consume two pre-packaged 50g servings of fermented vegetables a day, for a total daily serving of 100g, not to heat the fermented vegetables prior to consumption, to log their consumption and to rate the acceptability of the fermented vegetables. They will be advised to avoid other fermented foods and to otherwise maintain their habitual diet."