HealthAugust 16, 2026

phenol

FEE-nohl

Definition

An organic chemical compound that serves as a base structure for various metabolites produced by gut bacteria during the digestion of amino acids.

Etymology

Derived from the French 'phène', based on the Greek 'phainein' meaning 'to show' (because it was originally discovered in coal tar illuminating gas), combined with the chemical suffix '-ol' for alcohols.

In the news

The article discusses how bacteria produce specific 'phenol metabolites' from amino acids, which can either be beneficial or harmful depending on the presence of dietary fibre.

Scientists warn your gut bacteria could literally start ‘eating you’ if you don’t get enough fibre

Read the full article ↗

UNILAD

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