Dietary Strategies for Gut Barrier Integrity in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: The Impact of Fiber and Beyond

Dietary fiber is increasingly viewed as a promising adjunct in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) management due to its potential to support gut barrier function, shape the intestinal microbiota, and influence inflammatory pathways, yet many patients restrict fiber during flares and remission to reduce symptoms despite uncertainty about the long-term consequences of such avoidance. This narrative review synthesizes mechanistic, clinical, and real-world evidence on dietary fiber characteristics, tolerability, and associations with IBD outcomes, with attention to how fiber quality and intake context vary across patient groups. Overall, available findings suggest that adequate, appropriately selected fiber may contribute to gut homeostasis and symptom control, but substantial gaps persist regarding the most suitable fiber types, effective amounts, and practical food sources that balance benefit with tolerability. Although guidance increasingly favors maintaining adequate fiber intake when feasible, more rigorous, patient-centered intervention studies and improved characterization of real-world intake patterns are needed to enable personalized recommendations and safe integration of fiber-rich foods into individualized care.