Among the many factors that can promote insulin resistance, weight gain and even obesity, abnormal bacterial growth in the gut is clearly a very common factor. Abnormal bacterial growth can be a significant contributing factor to the occurrence of metabolic syndrome and its many adverse health consequences.
Scientific research has shown that obese people have a significantly different bacterial composition in their gut than lean people. The type of bacterial overgrowth in overweight people have the ability to increase body inflammation and as a result, insulin resistance. Inflammation of the GI tract as the result of bacterial overgrowth will cause impairment of absorption of crucial minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants. For instance, iron deficiency can be caused by bacterial overgrowth in the GI tract.
One of the factors that can alter the composition of gut bacteria is what you eat and don’t eat. A western style diet typically high in saturated fat, trans fat and sugars can change the composition of the bacteria within 24 hours. Besides the foods you eat, certain medications can also affect, in a negative way, the composition of the gut bacteria.
Patients with autoimmune thyroid disease may be more prone to bacterial changes in the gut which, in turn, can promote more immune system reactivity and more inflammation in the body. Your genes may have a say on the composition of your gut bacteria so that if you are predisposed to obesity, you may be more likely to have bacterial over growth that promotes more weight gain and more inflammation in your body, which can lead to non insulin dependent diabetes.
Because well balanced bacterial flora is crucial for minimizing body inflammation, weight gain, metabolic syndrome, and immune system reactivity, it is crucial for anyone to pay attention to GI health by eating a healthy well balanced diet low in sugars, high in fiber, and low in saturated fats and trans fats, such as the ThyroLife Protein Boost Diet. In addition to the healthy eating plan you need to take, on a daily basis, an excellent probiotic to re-balance bacterial flora so that you can optimize the health of your gut and you succeed in losing extra weight.