Gut Health and Weight Loss

Your gut is loaded with bacteria – hopefully healthy bacteria – that play a critical role in your weight loss success. An unhealthy gut can make it more difficult for your body to absorb crucial nutrients and leave you feeling uneasy.

Research has found that the right bacteria can make a big difference in weight loss success.

You consume food and it makes its way through your intestinal tract to your gut where it is broken down so its nutrients can be delivered to the rest of your body via your blood stream.

It is the bacteria in your gut that breaks down your food, manufactures vitamins, and keeps your immune system working properly. All of the bacteria in your gut are part of your gut’s microbiota.

Diets low in fiber, fruits, and vegetables create a difficult environment for this healthy bacteria to survive in your gut. Without healthy bacteria, it becomes more difficult for your body to absorb the nutrients you eat as well as it should.

Healthy gut bacteria help your body operate more efficiently and make maintaining a healthy weight more achievable long term. A healthy diet with enough fiber can help your gut bacteria help you as you try to achieve your weight loss goals.

In a 2013 study gut bacteria from obese patients was placed in mice. With the new gut bacteria, the mice gained weight, alluding to a connection between the bacteria in our gut and our ability to manage our weight.

What Does Gut Health Influences Throughout Your Body?

Digestion/Nutrient Absorption: Healthy gut bacteria can better facilitate the absorption of nutrients (learn more about the problems associated with a leaky gut below)

Immune Support: A healthy gut is a smart gut. It can regulate your immune system to respond to injury or infection without attacking healthy tissue.

Hormone Balance: The health of your gut is believed to be connected to estrogen regulation, so if your gut is imbalanced, your hormones may be as well.

Decreasing Risk of Chronic Illness: Irritable bowel syndrome, obesity, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and more.

What do Probiotics do for your body?

Probiotics are the “good” bacteria found in supplements and a limited number of foods (most popularly yogurt). Probiotics are beneficial in helping your body digest food while limiting gas, bloating, diarrhea, and other digestion concerns. Consuming probiotics in your diet can aid in boosting the health of your gut microbiome which will aid in boosting nutrient absorption in your gut.

How Can You Support Gut Health?

These may seem like common and universal pieces of advice (they really are) but they make a meaningful difference for your gut health and weight loss journey.

Eat Healthy Foods

Fiber intake among most Americans is lower than what it should be. Even if you are eating fruits and vegetables, check your daily fiber.

Sleep

A lack of sleep is often connected to obesity – ensure you are getting at least 7 hours of sleep each night.

Exercise

Regular exercise is an easy choice to help your gut and manage your weight.

Manage your Stress

Stress has been linked to poor gut health – work on ways to manage your stress that work for you.

What is a "Leaky" Gut?

Prolonged poor gut health brought on by bacteria imbalance, poor diet, or prolonged stress can result in a “leaky” gut. The gut lining can become damaged and as a result, the gut becomes an ineffective barrier for filtering out bad bacteria or particles of undigested food.

A leaky gut will often lead to widespread inflammation and hormone complications throughout the body which can contribute to weight gain.