In the case of the laboratory mice in the study I mentioned before, the fiber - starved, mucus - degrading bacteria of the gut microbiota ramped up the expression of special enzymes that decimated the protective mucus lining of the intestine. (mindbodygreen.com)
Another recent study shows that when microbes are starved of fiber, they can start to feed on the protective mucus lining of the gut, possibly triggering inflammation and disease» [1]. (resetyourweightbasics.com)