Kimchi and yogurt: a new hope for gut inflammation?

NCT ID NCT04401605

Symptom relief Sponsor: Stanford University Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study tests whether adding fermented foods like kimchi, sauerkraut, yogurt, and kefir to the diet can reduce inflammation and improve quality of life in people with mild to moderate ulcerative colitis. Researchers will measure changes in a stool marker of inflammation and track symptom scores. The study is small, with 21 participants, and aims to fill a gap in understanding how diet affects gut inflammation.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance: Fermented foods (kimchi, sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, etc.)
What this could lead to: If it works, this could point toward a simple dietary approach to help manage ulcerative colitis symptoms and reduce inflammation.
What could go wrong: This is a very small early-stage study with only 21 participants, so results may not apply widely. Diet changes may not be enough to control the disease for everyone.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 21 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Sep 2020

Expected to finish

Jun 2027

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Written informed consent * Male or female subjects, ≥18 years of age * Confirmed diagnosis of UC * Symptomatic disease defined as partial Mayo Score 2 to 7 (inclusive) * Elevated fecal calprotectin Exclusion Criteria: * Women who are pregnant, nursing or expect to be pregnant * Intolerance to fermented food * Individuals with a body mass index (BMI) lower than 18 * Individuals diagnosed with a serious medical condition (unless approved in writing by a physician) * Individuals who have been severely weakened by a disease or medical procedure * Individuals with more than mild-moderate cardiovascular disease or life-threatening cancer (as determined by patient's physician) unless approved by a physician * Individuals with history of severe cardiac disease (particularly uncompensated congestive heart failure NYHA grade 2 or more or LVEF \< 40%) * History of relevant intestinal surgery such as total or hemi-colectomy, proctocolectomy, stoma. Complications of disease such as extraintestinal manifestations (EIMs) are not automatically considered exclusion criteria. Appropriate medical treatment for UC and/or EIMs will not be withheld.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

inflammatory bowel disease ulcerative colitis

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Diet modification Inflammatory bowel diseases Ulcerative colitis

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

The places running it

1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
The official record

ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

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A doctor treating you

A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Kimchi and yogurt: a new hope for gut inflammation?

What the study statuses mean