Nutrition Plays a Key Role in Obesity Management but Maintaining a Healthy Gut is Equally Crucial
Obesity is fast increasing in most western nations and is prompting an urgent need for more effective methods of obesity management. The traditional advice provided by doctors and nutritionists focuses on the importance of diet and exercise. However, while many more people can now be seen jogging beside or cycling along the streets of Europe and the United States, and there has been a marked transition to vegetarianism and veganism, this alarming trend persists. Statistics suggest that 53% of Europeans aged 18 or older are now overweight. While healthy nutrition is essential for weight management, forsaking your usual fast-food favourite, fries and fizzy drink for a bowl of salad and a glass of mineral water might not be a complete solution.
Because our physical activities determine the rate at which carbohydrates and fats are metabolised to meet the body’s energy requirements, exercise can be an effective weight-loss option. Likewise, a Mediterranean diet consisting of whole grains, vegetables, beans, fruits, nuts, and seafood is a healthy lifestyle choice but may not always be sufficient to shed those extra kilos. In practice, a third factor is involved and, unfortunately, it is frequently overlooked. A healthy gut can be equally essential for achieving and maintaining a healthy weight.
How the Gut Contributes to Weight-loss and Obesity Management
The gut is a complex ecosystem containing microorganisms, as well as acidic and alkaline secretions to adjust the pH in various gastrointestinal tract regions and numerous digestive enzymes. Studies have revealed almost 2,000 species make up the human gut microbiome. Many of these bacteria display properties that assist some of the natural bodily processes involved in digestion and absorption and, therefore, play a crucial role in ensuring efficient nutrition. However, like all living things, these bacteria also have nutritional needs. To a large extent, they can derive their requirements from dietary fibres. Ironically, the growing tendency to favour fast foods, which generally have low fibre content, tends to create imbalances in the gut microbiome that often result in excessive weight gain. Conversely, supplementing the GI tract’s microbial population or providing it with an alternative source of nutrition will reverse these ill effects and could help maintain a healthy weight.
Providing the Improved Gut Function Necessary to Facilitate Obesity Management
Being markedly overweight is not just a cosmetic issue. Adding 10 kilograms of extra fat to your bulk will result in 29 kilometres of additional blood vessels, placing added strain on the heart, causing hypertension and increasing the risk of cardiac disease and stroke. In addition, the link between obesity and diabetes is well established. The threat of such life-threatening complications should be ample proof of the need to maintain a healthy weight. However, ensuring a healthy gut microbiome can be crucial to achieving this goal.
A newly discovered species of gut bacteria, named Akkermansia muciniphila, may play a key role in managing metabolic syndrome, including excess weight, by reinforcing the gut barrier and thickening the mucous layer lining the gut.
The Akkermansia Company offers a food supplement for weight management* and glucose control**, containing ECGC Green Tea, Chromium, Vitamin B12 and Akkermansia muciniphila. Sign up for The Akkermansia Company’s newsletter to learn more.
