Can our gut ecosystem be the key to long-lasting weight loss?
Our body is colonized with trillions of microorganisms.
Each of us begins to assemble a unique congregation of microbes the moment we pass through the birth canal, acquiring our mother's bacteria first and continuing to gather new members from the diet and environment throughout life.
The ratio of human cells to microbes is approximately 1:10 as per recent scientific research. What this tells us that we have more organisms in our body than our own cells. Our gut bacteria have 250 to 800 times more genes than we have human genes. Even more remarkable, these bacterial genes make substances that get into the human bloodstream, affecting our body chemistry.
Our gut and skin are two major organs colonized with microbes. And interestingly, our gut microbes play critical role in our weight and health.
Some human gut microorganisms benefit the host by fermenting dietary fiber into short-chain fatty acids, which are then absorbed by the host. Gut flora also play a role in synthesizing vitamins like vitamin B and vitamin K.
In studies of twins, researchers found that lean individuals, tend to have a wider variety of Bacteroidetes, a large tribe of microbes that specialize in breaking down bulky plant starches and fibers into shorter molecules that the body can use as a source of energy.
When scientists transferred bacteria from the guts of two strains of mice — one that naturally becomes obese and one that naturally stays lean — into a third lean strain raised from birth to have no gut bacteria, gut bacteria transferred from the naturally obese mice made the germ-free mice become fat, but gut bacteria transferred from the naturally lean mice kept them lean.
The scientific study also has demonstrated the complex interaction among food, microbes and body weight by feeding their humanized mice a specially prepared meal that was high in fat and low in fruits, vegetables, and fiber. Given this “Western diet,” the mice with obese-type microbes proceeded to grow fat . The unhealthy diet somehow prevented the virtuous bacteria from moving in and flourishing.
This shows that diet is an important factor in shaping our gut ecosystem. The food is not only about calories but also about how it is affecting our gut microbes. As an example, a diet of highly processed foods has been linked to a less diverse gut community and subsequently unhealthy weight.
Complex carbohydrates are needed to maintain microbial richness in our gut. Low carb diets have been linked to dysfunction of this system. This microbial imbalance—termed dysbiosis—has been linked to obesity and many other chronic diseases.
On the other hand diets high in simple carbs but low in fiber cause sugar and fat to be absorbed too early by the small intestine and go straight to the bloodstream. In addition to weight gain , these diets rob the large intestine microbes of their meal, a likely cause of the dysbiosis seen with this diet.
Conversely, diets high in fiber shift nutrient uptake to the colon, which can drive lower fat in the body and boost our ‘metabolism’. Also, most experts agree that plant-derived proteins have a better effect than animal-derived ones on gut health.
How to maintain healthy gut microbes?
Should we take probiotics?
The answer is no. Though gut bacteria play an important role in shaping our BMI no study has proven that probiotics pills help us to lose weight.
The best strategy is to eat a diet that is high in prebiotics and probiotics. And avoid highly processed foods and low fiber diet.
Prebiotics are foods (typically high-fiber foods) that act as food for human microflora. Prebiotics are used with the intention of improving the balance of these microorganisms.The highest amounts are found in raw versions of the following: garlic, onions, leeks, asparagus, Jerusalem artichokes, dandelion greens, bananas, and seaweed. In general, fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains like wheat, oats, and barley are all good sources of prebiotic fibers.
Probiotic foods contain beneficial live microbiota that may further alter one’s microbiome. These include fermented foods like kefir, yogurt with live active cultures, pickled vegetables, tempeh, kombucha tea, kimchi, miso, and sauerkraut.
The easiest way to remember to eat healthy is to understand that we are not eating for one living being but for trillions!
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