Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

Your diet goal for 2023 should include hacking your gut biome — here’s why

Gut health and weight loss: What experts wish you knew about the two

BethAnn Mayer
By

If your New Year’s resolution to lose weight is stalling, consider your gut health. Last month if you logged onto the r/nutrition subreddit, the buzzy word “gut microbiome” came up.

“There is an increasing body of research concluding that gut microbiome strongly [affects] a lot of aspects of our bodies – composition, weight, mood, mental clarity, etc.,” posted u/Dr.Melbourne.

Recommended Videos

The guy may have “Dr.” in his username, but Reddit isn’t the best place for medical advice. We asked a real doctor: What is the gut microbiome?

Related

It’s the “collection of bacteria that live in the digestive tract,” notes Dr. Kenneth Brown, a gastroenterologist and host of the podcast “Gut Check Project.” And it may be affecting your weight-loss goals.

“The gut microbiome…has been shown to influence metabolism and energy balance, suggesting that it may be a key factor in weight loss,” Brown says.

Brown and other experts shared why.

a produce flatlay on a green background

What’s the link between gut health and weight loss?

Gut health and weight loss are intertwined.

“Your gut is the gateway to optimal health,” says Dr. Amy Myers, a two-time New York Times bestselling author and internationally acclaimed medical and functional medicine physician.

Research from 2018 indicated that the composition of a person’s gut microbiome might offer clues into a person’s obesity risk.

“Those with obesity have been found to have a different gut microbiome composition compared to lean individuals,” says Rachel Dykman, MS, RDN, CDN, a registered-dietician nurse with a private practice in New York City. “Our gut bacteria may impact the amount of calories we extract from food we eat. Our gut microbiome may also impact our blood sugar regulation and appetite, which can both affect our weight.”

Myers agrees that diet plays a role in gut health. Other factors include:

Like diet, these lifestyle habits and environmental exposures can affect the number on the scale.

“All of these factors can lead to weight gain and prevent you from losing weight,” Myers says. “Sometimes, your gut can be so out of balance it leads directly to weight gain, which can happen when you develop autoimmunity.”

person drinking cucumber water
Eugene Chystiakov/Unsplash

Can fasting reset the microbiome?

The early months of a New Year – and even the lead-up to summer — are famous for diet and weight loss advice that often includes “cleanses.” These are typically euphemisms for fasting. Might fasting help your gut health?

“There is some promising evidence that fasting can positively alter the gut microbiome and reduce body weight,” says Jennifer McManus, an RD, LDN, CDCES at Pendulum, a biotech company offering solutions to aid in gut health and the gut microbiome. “This weight loss could be due to the increased microbiota diversity and abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila [a keystone microbe associated with weight loss] after fasting. Calorie restriction through fasting can be a promising way to alter the gut microbiota composition.”

McManus pointed to a 2021 study that found that fasting could change the gut microbiome and help people with metabolic syndromes lose weight. It also helped lower blood pressure. She also noted a 2015 study of overweight people that found that weight reduction via a fasting program, plus a probiotic, could improve the gut microbiota.

However, what you do post-fast is as important as the fast itself.

“The microbes are essentially starved for food, so the first thing you put in your body coming off a fast is super important,” McManus says. “You are deciding who gets the jumpstart with food! So, when you break your fast, think about providing for the good bugs with things like high fiber and high polyphenol foods.”

McManus suggests speaking to a healthcare provider before starting one.

“A fasting plan might not be conducive to everyone’s lifestyle,” she notes.

a fruit basket
Image used with permission by copyright holder

How to improve your gut health

You may want a quick fix. However, it’s unclear how long it will take to improve your gut microbiome.

“The time it takes to improve your gut microbiome can vary depending on factors, such as the individual’s current gut health, diet, and lifestyle,” Brown says.

All you can do is the best you can. Experts shared best practices for trying to move things along.

Consume gut-healthy foods

McManus suggests focusing on fiber if you’re looking to add gut-healthy foods to your diet.

“High-quality dietary fiber is found mostly in whole fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, whole grains, and seeds,” McManus says. “Prioritizing foods with soluble fiber such as pears, apples, avocados, broccoli, and sweet potatoes can help lead to a healthier gut.”

Bonus: “The cool thing about fiber is that it also leads to satiety which can help prevent overeating and lead to weight loss,” McManus says.

She also suggests foods rich in antioxidant polyphenols.

“Polyphenols are abundant in certain plant-based foods such as pomegranates, cranberries, grape seeds, plums, and artichokes,” McManus says.

Myers suggests avoiding certain foods that can affect the gut microbiome, including:

  • Alcohol
  • Sugar
  • Caffeine

Consider a probiotic supplement

Supplements aren’t regulated by the FDA, making them controversial at times. However, McManus says there’s evidence, such as the 2015 study, showing probiotic supplements can aid in gut health and weight reduction.

“With all of the research supporting Akkermansia muciniphila’s role in weight management, this would be an ideal microbe to introduce,” she says. “There are other strains easily available to help metabolize fiber and produce a powerful short-chain fatty acid called butyrate. Butyrate is very important for many different metabolic processes that take place in the body and can be beneficial as part of a weight loss strategy.”

Get regular physical activity

Gut-healthy foods are useful, but exercise is still a key part of weight loss.

“Regular physical activity can help to improve gut health by increasing the number of beneficial bacteria in the gut,” Brown says.

The American Heart Association recommends getting 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity each week.

Improving gut health could aid in weight loss. Diet plays a critical role. Aim to eat fiber-rich, gut-healthy foods like fruits and veggies. Getting foods with polyphenols, like pomegranates and plums, is also beneficial. Regular physical activity can also improve gut health. Fasting can help, but experts know it’s not for everyone. Always discuss your concerns or any changes to your dietary plan with a doctor first. They can let you know if you’re at risk for adverse effects, and can develop a better plan for you to help you improve your gut health.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
BethAnn Mayer
BethAnn Mayer
Contributor
Beth Ann's work has appeared on healthline.com and parents.com. In her spare time, you can find her running (either marathons…
Improve your skin and eyes with these delicious foods high in vitamin A
Stay healthy with foods that give you a good dose of vitamin A
Foods high in vitamin A.

Most of us know that vitamin A is good for us, helping our eyes function at their very best. But there are plenty of other benefits as well, from dealing with inflammation and promoting healthy skin cells, keeping cancer at bay, and giving an assist to the immune system. Not enough? Well, vitamin A is good for your bones, too.

Think of vitamin A as a two-pronged essential nutrient. There's preformed vitamin A found in things like fish and carotenoids, which tend to show up in produce and plant-based foods. What's the best way to get your daily intake (an estimated 900 mcg for the average man)? A well-balanced diet, of course. But there are some foods high in vitamin A that are worth targeting the next time you're at the farmer's market or grocery store to keep your eyes, skin, immune system, and hormones functioning optimally.

Read more
Cruciferous vegetables are the secret to a healthy diet — here are 9 you should be eating
9 health-boosting cruciferous vegetables for your diet
Fresh broccoli in a bowl

With many health issues in numerous people’s lives, people are starting to transform their diets to better support their health. Cruciferous vegetables are taking the lead due to their increasing popularity and potential benefits, such as weight loss promotion and better control of blood pressure.

That being said, what are some cruciferous vegetables to include in a healthy diet?

Read more
Plant-based diet facts: A beginner’s guide to this lifestyle
Find out how this diet compares to vegetarian and vegan
Plant-based noodle salad

There are a lot of debates within the world of diets of nutrition: Are low-carb diets or low-fat diets better for weight loss? Does saturated fat increase the risk of heart disease or not? Do foods high in cholesterol increase your cholesterol levels? Is red meat healthy or should it be eaten sparingly? That said, there are a couple of things most nutrition experts and wellness gurus agree on: It’s important to eat vegetables. Therefore, a diet that puts vegetables and plants as the central tenet of the diet must be at least somewhat healthy—and this is precisely where plant-based diets come into play.
It used to be that vegan diets and vegetarian diets were the only diets that excluded animal products and focused on eating plants, but in recent years, “plant-based diets” have entered the scene. But what exactly is meant by a plant-based diet? Is it different from a vegan or vegetarian diet? Can you eat only plants on a plant-based diet? Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about plant-based diets, the benefits of plant-based diets, and what you can and can’t eat on plant-based diets to see if following a plant-based diet may be something you want to try.

What is a plant-based diet?
“Plant-based” is a broad term used to describe any diet that is composed of mostly but not necessarily exclusively, plant foods. In other words, vegan diets and vegetarian diets fall under the umbrella of plant-based diets, but there is also some flexibility to include some amount of animal products as well. Plant-based diets emphasize vegetables, fruits, seeds, grains, legumes, and nuts. Foods that are grown or cultivated are meant to be the centerpiece of every meal, with the option to have meat, dairy products, eggs, poultry, fish, seafood, and animal-derived ingredients as accouterments. In other words, animal products aren’t necessarily prohibited, but they are to be limited.
There are no strict definitions or exclusions with a general plant-based diet. Of course, within the umbrella of plant-based diets, there are more restrictive specific diets, such as the vegan diet, which excludes all animal products entirely. On the other end of the spectrum, the Mediterranean diet can also be considered a plant-based diet because the true emphasis is on plant-based foods even though fish and poultry are consumed. When following a plant-based diet, your goal is simply to focus on eating mostly plant-based foods.

Read more