- The composition of the gut microbiome is increasingly recognized as essential for overall health and effective weight management.
- A new study in mice suggests that a high-protein diet can affect gut bacteria and their by-products, potentially affecting weight and body composition.
- Although further research is needed, the findings suggest that personalized diets based on an individual’s gut microbiome may promote better health outcomes in the future.
The gut microbiome is the complex community of microorganisms that reside in the digestive system and influence nearly every aspect of health, from digestion and immune function to metabolic processes and body weight.
Diet plays a key role in shaping the composition and diversity of our gut microbes, making it increasingly important to understand how our food choices affect our gut ecosystem.
High-protein diets are increasingly being adopted in Western cultures, likely due to the growing body of research supporting them.
This trend has led researchers to University of Illinois at Chicago A recent mouse study investigates the impact of a protein diet on gut microbiota diversity and body composition.
The research outline is as follows: ASM Microb 2024The American Society for Microbiology Annual Meeting will be held on June 15, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia.
The study also investigated how proteins fermented by gut bacteria in the large intestine produce beneficial metabolites, such as:
They are They found that switching mice from a carbohydrate diet to a diet rich in various proteins led to significant weight loss, reduction in body fat, and rapid changes in the composition of their gut microbiota.
Samson AdejumoA biology doctoral student at the University of Illinois at Chicago led the study. Today’s Medical News The study has not yet been peer reviewed, but the authors are preparing it for publication.
He said that Nutrition Journal or Nutrition Review future.
This short-term experimental study lasted four weeks and involved 16 mice.
For the first two weeks, the mice were fed a regular carbohydrate diet, after which the researchers switched them to one of four different protein diet groups for the remainder of the study.
- Standard Protein Diet
- Aromatic amino acids 10%
- 10% branched chain amino acid diet
- Diet of 5% aromatic amino acids and 5% branched chain amino acids
The portions were the same and had the same protein content.
The researchers collected daily fecal samples and measured body composition weekly to monitor changes in body fat and muscle mass.
The researchers extracted DNA from the fecal samples and analyzed it to see how the mice’s gut bacteria changed over the course of the study.
The study found that the gut microbiome responded differently to each diet type, with major changes seen from a carbohydrate diet to four different protein diets.
Using machine learning, the researchers were able to predict with 97% accuracy what kind of protein diet a mouse would eat, simply by looking at its gut bacteria.
for MNTAdejumo went into detail about which specific protein diet was most effective in reducing fat mass and weight.
“The combination of 5% branched-chain amino acids and 5% aromatic amino acids resulted in the lowest body weight, [10% aromatic amino acid diet] “They had the lowest body fat percentage but the highest weight gain,” he said.
“These results indicate that the type of gut microbiota metabolizing the diet is much more important than the type of diet. Diet-induced gut microbiota metabolism has the greatest impact on the host’s body composition.”
— Samson Adejumo, Principal Investigator
“Weight Results [and] Branched chain amino acids are involved in building muscle protein, which is why they are expected to unexpectedly increase body composition. [branched-chain amino acid] “When you take it, you increase lean mass, but not fat mass,” he says.
Further studies are needed to confirm whether the protein diet caused all of the observed changes in the body composition and gut bacteria of the mice.
However, the predictable patterns the researchers identified suggest a link between protein intake and changes in the gut microbiome.
Adejumo explained how the observed changes in gut microbiota relate to body composition and weight loss.
He said
“In contrast, branched-chain amino acids are involved in the production of proteins in maintaining muscle function and muscle development.”
He further explained:
“Changes in gut microbiota reflect the bioavailability of essential components to the gut microbiota. The availability of dietary components to the gut microbiota has a positive effect on body composition, especially fat and lean mass.”
Essentially, changes in gut microbiota are mediated by the type and amount of protein consumed, which in turn influences body composition, suggesting that a healthy gut microbiota may be crucial for maintaining optimal body composition and weight.
MNT We spoke again Alyssa Simpson, RDN, CGN, CLTa registered dietitian and certified gastroenterological nutritionist and owner of Nutrition Resolution in Phoenix, Arizona, was not involved in the study.
“Changes in the gut microbiome can alter how efficiently calories are extracted from food, potentially having a profound effect on body composition and weight loss,” she says.
For example, she suggested that a high percentage of certain bacteria could increase calorie absorption, leading to weight gain.
In addition, Simpson said, “certain bacteria
Simpson said that while more research is needed, diets high in certain proteins, particularly plant-based proteins, have been shown to improve gut health and body composition in humans.
“Plant-based protein diets promote gut health by supporting good bacteria and regular bowel movements. They are generally lower in calories and saturated fat than animal-protein diets, which may aid in weight management and body fat loss.”
— Alyssa Simpson, RDN, CGN, CLT
Plant-based foods are also rich in dietary fiber, which promotes growth.
Although our bodies produce these amino acids, she also recommends consuming them in our diet, such as glutamine and arginine, which help “maintain a strong intestinal barrier and prevent harmful substances, such as lipopolysaccharides, from entering the bloodstream and affecting body composition.”
For those looking to strengthen their gut flora, overall health, and body composition through diet, Simpson recommends prioritizing “a diet rich in plant-based foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and legumes.”
She also recommends “consuming adequate protein to support muscle and metabolic health without consuming too many unhealthy fats.”
What’s most important, Simpson stressed, is to “choose an eating approach that fits your personal preferences, health goals and lifestyle to get sustainable results.”
Adejumo said the next step would be to “conduct functional analysis and mechanistic experiments so that we can improve overall health.”
“We also intend to formulate diets with single amino acids to fully understand the impact of individual amino acids on the diet and to identify the specific gut microbial strains involved in protein fermentation,” he added.
Although more research is needed and animal studies are not directly applicable to humans,
“This concept is
