How Supporting Your Microbiome Could Be the Key to Appetite Control, Without Drugs
With medication such as Ozempic and Wegovy apparently offering the holy grail of weight loss without exercise or dieting, attention has turned to a powerful hormone that regulates appetite: GLP-1 (Glucagon-Like Peptide-1). Put simply, these weight loss drugs increase, or mimic, GLP-1, to signal ‘fullness’ so helping to reduce the appetite.
However, our bodies naturally produce this hormone as Dr Lucy Williamson, registered nutritionist and gut health specialist explains: “Our gut microbiome, the 100 trillion microbes in our large intestine, can naturally support levels of this key hormone for weight control. Some of the many ‘postbiotics’, (beneficial chemicals that our gut microbiome produces for us), stimulate the production of GLP-1. Our gut microbes literally interact with our own body cells to do this – like our mini pharmacy! This and other benefits to weight control from nurturing our gut health, can be an empowering and lasting “food-first” approach to weight management, not possible with weight loss drugs.”
But it all depends on a healthy gut and feeding those microbes. Here are the golden rules:
Prebiotics are types of fibre that feed beneficial gut bacteria. Prebiotics are found in plants and the bigger variety of plants we eat, the more we benefit! Don’t forget that plants include fruit, veg, nuts, seeds, pulses, legumes, spices, herbs and grains so it’s not as hard as it sounds to reach that magic number of 30/ week! Not only do they support gut health, but fibre-rich foods also help regulate our blood sugar and help a feeling of fullness.
2. Probiotic Foods
Probiotics are live beneficial bacteria found in fermented foods. These can add to the variety and numbers of good bacteria already in our gut. Including small amounts every day is beneficial to our gut health: Kefir, Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Live yogurt, Miso – even cheese. There may well be a place for probiotic supplements to support weight control – science is showing us that the Gut Microbiome can predict how easy it is for an individual to lose weight, certain bacteria ratios being linked with improved weight management. (see below)
3. Bitter-Flavoured Foods
Emerging research is shedding light on the role of bitter flavoursfrom polyphenols (which are like rocket fuel for our gut microbiome!) and our natural appetite control mechanisms – so including more of these foods may help – onions, garlic, leeks, mushroom, brassicas like watercress or broccoli, asparagus and black tea for example
But the way we live is as important as what we eat to support the gut microbiome including:
- Fasting and Time-Restricted Eating
Periods of overnight fasting, such as 12–14 hours without food, or approaches like the 5:2 intermittent fasting plan, may positively impact the gut microbiome and support metabolic health and weight control.
- Avoiding Restrictive Diets
Highly restrictive or low-diversity diets, which ironically can happen when trying to lose weight, have a negative impact on our gut health — ultimately making weight loss harder and less sustainable.
- Exercise!
We know that regular movement, even simple gardening, has a positive impact on our gut health. So, as well as the obvious benefits from keeping on the move, it can nurture your good gut bugs too!
Recent studies show that the balance of specific bacteria in your gut can predict how easily you’ll lose weight. One study found that individuals with a higher Prevotella-to-Bacteroides ratio had greater success with weight loss when following certain high fibre eating plans.*
This suggests that personalised, gut-focussed nutrition can guide weight management strategies — and highlights why maintaining a healthy microbiome is so important. Dr Lucy Williamson offers a Gut Health Programme** that can be tailored to each individual to maximise personal gut health.
But, of course, nurturing gut health is just part of nutrition advice for a balanced approach to weight management. As habit-change is so vital in any weight loss programme, gut health can provide a clear and achievable route, reducing potential overwhelm, as part of a holistic plan for overall weight control.
For recipes or to find out more about Lucy’s Gut Health Programme, visit www.lwnutrition.co.uk