The key to weight loss has always been a mystery. Every fitness guru offers their very own secret to weight loss. We have always been told that cutting fat from our diets will help you lose weight. The next we know is that everyone is talking about counting calories. Then it’s all about ditching those carbs. But could it be that we’ve had it wrong all along and that the secret is actually already within us? More specifically, within our gut?
Each person has their own unique microbiome, which means that each of us responds differently to carbohydrates and fats and sugar. Therefore, any diet plan that excludes whole groups of food damages your microbiome and increases your likelihood of putting on weight.
Excluding certain food groups may help you lose weight for the first few weeks because you’re eating less and selecting carefully what you do eat. However, in the long-term, they’ll decimate your microbes by reducing their diversity and can end up making you fatter.
To put it simply, an imbalance of gut flora stops our digestive system from working properly, the calories consumed are not used efficiently and our energy levels drop. The increased fatigue means the fat-storing stress hormone cortisol kicks in, which will lead to heightened blood sugar and insulin levels. Basically, weight gain is inevitable when there is an imbalance of good and bad bacteria in our guts. Our gut craves variety, it craves variation of healthy foods. Our much-slimmer ancestors enjoyed about 150 ingredients each week and no doubt had a more flourishing microbe gardens. Most people today consume only about twenty different food varieties in their weekly diet. Most of which are artificially refined and wreak havoc on the biodiversity of our microbiome.
According to recent studies the more diverse your gut microbes, the more likely you are to be healthy and lean, and the more sparse your microbes, the more likely you are to be overweight.
Several studies have determined that gut microbiota play an important role in weight management and regulation, and the research is continually pointing us in the same direction: a healthy GI tract can help create an environment more favourable for maintaining a healthy weight.
Your Gut is your Second Brain
Why do people get butterflies in the stomach before going on stage or when speaking before a large gathering? Why does an impending job interview sometimes cause an attack of intestinal cramps? The reason for these common experiences is because our gut is the second brain and is interconnected with the brain encased in our skull. When one gets upset, the other does, too.
Your Gut is The Key to Your Immune System
Your digestion actually plays a key role in your natural immunity to diseases. This is because your gut isn’t sterile. It’s actually an entire ecosystem of bacteria and yeast — some beneficial to you, others toxic.
When the intestinal ecosystem is healthy, the good bacteria keep yeasts and other fermentation microorganisms at bay in this part of the digestive tract. An imbalance of microorganisms, results in overgrowth of fungus and other pathogens, resulting in numerous digestive disorders.
Bacteria in your gut might sound like a bad thing, but your gut actually uses bacteria to process food into energy. This helpful or good bacteria is called probiotics. Many people are not familiar with probiotics. The truth is that proper digestion is essential to your health and probiotics are essential to your gut. Therefore, the best way to ensure a healthy gut environment is to maintain sufficient colonies of probiotics, the beneficial gut microbes that absorb vital nutrients, fortify your stomach and intestinal lining, and promote overall health and wellness. Probiotics are the seeds for your microbial garden. However, it goes without saying that some form of workout is essential. Exercisers with a normal BMI have more diverse microbes than exercisers with a high BMI. They also have higher levels of Akkermansiaceae, a type of bacteria that has been linked to lower obesity rates. So sweat daily to trim your gut—and to boost your gut bacteria.
Taking care of your Gut
- Remove all food toxins from your diet
- Eat plenty of fermentable fibers (starches like sweet potato, yam, yucca, etc.)
- Take a high-quality probiotic
- Treat any intestinal pathogens (such as parasites) that may be present
- Take steps to manage your stress
- Eat as many different whole foods as possible.
- Eat fermented foods daily.
- Avoid Alcohol
- Avoid junk food. However, if you occasionally eat junk food then make sure to also eat fibre rich food. Plenty of vegetables, fruit, and whole grain will help replenish good bacteria that the junk food has wiped out.
Diets high in refined carbohydrates, sugar and processed foods can contribute to unhealthy gut flora. Chronic stress and infection also play a key role in messing up our gut and make us fat and diabetic.
It’s interesting to note that the diabesity epidemic has neatly coincided with the increasing prevalence of factors that upset the gut flora. However, I am not suggesting that poor gut health is the single cause of obesity and diabetes, but I am suggesting that it plays a much larger role than most People think.
The bottom line
We’re only just beginning to understand the fascinating world of the beneficial bacteria that live within the human gut environment. However, what we’re learning is helping us to better understand and change the way we think how our bodies function. And most importantly how our gut functions. This new understanding along with a good diet and a plan for better gut care can address several important health issues.
In addition to healthy probiotic colonies, weight management still entails a balanced diet, stress management, and regular physical activity. But keep in mind that if your gut is unhealthy, you will not be able to fully benefit from these other important lifestyle changes.
The bottom line is that gut health should be a priority for everyone, but if you’ve struggled with losing weight, it may very well be the piece of the puzzle that you’ve been missing. An effective, multi-strain probiotic formula like Probiotic Extra care by PlantOrigin can easily help to rebalance your gut microbiome and can help you tip the scales in your favor, allowing you to experience a happier, healthier, and more vibrant lifestyle.
