Three-quarters of severely obese patients had unhealthy, not very diverse gut microbes (low microbial gene diversity).

This unbalance was associated with a greater tendency to have a high-fat mass in the trunk of the body and an increased likelihood of having type 2 diabetes, hypertension, or more severe versions of these comorbidities.

According to the researchers, more work is needed to determine "whether specific interventions (specialized diets, prebiotics/probiotics, or gut microbiota [fecal] transfers) may be useful to consider prior, or post, bariatric surgery in severely obese individuals."

"This is "an exciting field" of research… one day we'll probably have the perfect combination of gut organisms in a fecal pill form.”--Samer G. Mattar, MD, president of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS).

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/899158

I love the idea of a fecal transplant... But only for married people. Imagine the vows.

My $h!t will become your $h!t / Your $h!t will forever and always be my $h!t

Lol

VSG2017 HW 249 SW 238 CW 167

You can improve your gut microbiota significantly by eating fermented foods.

Sauerkraut, Miso paste, tempeh (bleh!..lol), yogurt, pickles, kefir, olives, Kimchi....awesome natural probiotics.

Good gut bacteria need fiber to live. Shoot for about 25g per day if you're a woman (more if you're a man)

Feed your gut bugs beans, barley, fruits with skins on, raspberries, nuts, figs, avacado, veggies

Most of all....eat lots and lots of diversity. When I make a smoothie, I go around the kitchen and add a little of everything. A grape, a few raspberries, a few spinach leaves, one of each kind of nut in my cupboard, a little piece of banana, avacado, a piece of carrot, Anything I think I can get away with.....that doesn't make it undinkable. LOL.

Lots of gut bug diversity...matters.

Sugar and processed foods boost populations of the worse bacteria, they'll crowd out the better bacteria...and they'll add to rebound hunger...because they'll get hungry and want sugar too. If you eat sugar and processed crap for a treat? Rebalance. Get some good stuff in ya ASAP. Put a pause in there and let your good bugs recover.

I know this all sounds like witchcraft....but there's gonna be some amazing developments in gut microbiome research.

My own personal testimony about this nonsense... I was stalled for about three weeks... 3 months out. My kiddo who is studying microbiology at the University of Michigan had just attended a seminar on this research and suggested adding natural probiotics to my diet (not the pills...just the foods) and feeding the right bugs with more fiber...increasing dietary diversity.

Can't say for certain there's causation....but within a couple weeks of doing this, I started losing well again and have been losing steadily since.

I really think there's something to this.

@Creekimp13 Excellent information and follow-up. I loved your personal testimony paragraph. My oldest son completed his medical fellowship at UM-Ann Arbor and now lives and works in Pontiac. I hope through you and your talented son you can keep us up-to-date on this research topic. I personally find it fascinating. No thoughts of witchcraft here. Pure science and purely amazing. Thank you.

5 hours ago, Missouri-Lee's Summit said:

I hope through you and your talented son you can keep us up-to-date on this research topic.

Mine is a talented daughter, not son:) Sounds like you have a very talented son, though! A fellowship at UMich is quite an accomplishment!

My kiddo did her undergrad in Ann Arbor. What a wonderful place! Love AA! She's hoping to go to grad school for medical entomology, and is doing mite research this summer. She likes bugs. Both macro and microscopic.

The gut microbiome lecture she attended was with Justin and Erica Sonnenburg, and she got a chance to talk to them about my surgery...which I thought was pretty funny.

Funnier still....she begged me to keep samples of my vomit during the course of my "weight loss journey" because she wanted to document what my gut bugs were doing. LOL. I suppose this is what happens when you study bacteria, fungus and viruses all day....you get a little...odd.

Sadly, I've never vomited! Not once since surgery...and she's been very disheartened about this.

"So, Mom, have you felt nauseated?"

"No, you vulture!" LOL

References to witchcraft are very tongue in cheek. Sometimes you have to make a little fun of the world we live in.

PS... Speaking of such things, though....If your son enjoys haunted houses, Pontiac has a doozie called Erebus...one of the best in the nation:) Hollywood quality effects! Quite a rush...the easiest cardio i've ever done. LOL:)

Edited July 20, 20188 yr by Creekimp13

Oops. I don't know why I assumed your kiddo was a son. My daughter is the PharmD. My two middle sons are medical doctors. K lives in Omaha, NE and the older one (the one I mentioned above) is in Pontiac. Actually, C doesn't live in Pontiac, but in a nearby city. I can't remember that city's name now, even though I've been there!

My youngest son wanted nothing to do with medicine. He's studying computer engineering. Go figure.

Edited July 20, 20188 yr by Missouri-Lee's Summit

Your family sounds quite a bit like mine. Lots of doctors and veterinarians, here:) We've even got a token computer engineer.

Justin and Erica Sonnenburg have a microbiology lab at Stanford. Their research on gut microbiota is worth keeping track of. Their book is worth a read. "The Good Gut".

Your daughter's academic interests are intriguing. I loved every tidbit that you shared about her. Medical entomology has to be one of the coolest pursuits ever. Parasitology is a favorite of mine as well. I'm also captivated by anything to do with pain management research that involves discoveries like toxic sea snail venom and secretions from waxy tree frogs.

Do you seriously have 1.5 lbs to go until you reach your goal weight?

As one forum member said, it was a guy, of course (they seem to thrive on scatological humor), "One trip to the bathroom should do it."

Daughter just stuck her head in here and I said...Have you heard of sea snails and waxy tree frogs for pain management?

She had that greedy look..."Rudimentarily. Tell me more! Who are you talking to?"

LOLOLOL

I'm like....some lady on my bariatric board with smarty pants kids. One did his fellowship at UMich.

She's like... I will look into these things!

(and she probably will)

That said...the reason she stuck her head in here...is that I'm supposed to be grilling salmon. Hubby cut veggies to grill and she made a sauce. Need to run:)

I will message you!

And yes...i'm one big poop from goal:) LOL

Edited July 20, 20188 yr by Creekimp13

* casually inserting smart kid jealousy *

VSG2017 HW 249 SW 238 CW 167

@Creekimp13 Thought your daughter might be interested in this tidbit. (I personally think I'll try food sources other than crickets to boost my gut microbes. How 'bout you?)

A new clinical trial shows that consuming crickets can help support the growth of beneficial gut bacteria and that eating crickets is not only safe at high doses but may also reduce inflammation in the body.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/08/180803134654.htm

I am so ready to try crickets. Just need to order it. To me it's less gross than eating a cow, pig or chicken.

@IveGotThePower If you're serious, please let me know how they tasted, how much they cost, etc. Millions, probably billions of people around the world rely on insects as a major source of protein.

CreekImp said they were crunchy and slightly nutty, rather like an Eco-Crouton!