Gut Bacteria May Determine Whether Your Diet Succeeds Or Fails

A gut bacteria makeover may not be at the top of your list of resolutions for 2017, but you’d be wise to consider it if your goals have anything to do with improving your diet or losing weight. New research finds that dietary sacrifices ― say, giving up pizza and hamburgers in favor of a healthy, low-calorie diet ― may be for naught if your intestinal flora are out of whack from a lifetime of eating a standard American diet. The study, published last week in the journal Cell Host & Microbe, finds that switching from a diet high in calories and processed foods to a plant-based diet may not be very effective (at least initially) if there is still an overgrowth of unhealthy bacteria in the gut. This is because the microbiota already living in your gut determine how well you absorb and processes nutrients, which can affect weight loss, digestion and overall health.  But it’s not all bad news. Over time, a healthy diet will lead to a healthier microbiome ― it just may take longer than you’d like.  “If we are to prescribe a diet to improve someone’s health, it’s important that we understand what microbes help control those beneficial effects,” Dr. Jeffrey Gordon, a biologist at Washington University in St. Louis and senior author of the paper, said in a press release. “And we’ve found a way to mine the gut microbial communities of different humans to identify the organisms that help p...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - Category: Science Source Type: news