Bacteria in your gut may be the cause of obesity and weight gain

Most experts concur that living healthy is the best way to prevent obesity or being overweight, but a recently-released study on mice (led by Andrew Gewirtz at Emory University) shows some promise.

The study concludes that your intestines harbor a universe of bacteria - the so-called gut microbiota - that may play an important role in whether your body will store the food you eat as extra pounds.

The authors explain in their paper (published in Science Express) the cause that may account for the extra weight. Inflammatory signaling can promote a condition called metabolic syndrome, which causes weight gain, high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels, and a higher risk for developing diabetes and heart disease.

Fatter mice were bred for the study, to lack a protein known as toll-like receptor 5 (TLR5).

The job of TLR5 is to control the mass of pathogens living in the intestine; without it, the normally harmless gut bacteria tend to over flourish and increase in number. When these bugs proliferate, it triggers an inflammatory state as the body attempts to respond to the increasing population of bugs, and at the same time makes cells less sensitive to insulin.

Inflammatory factors and insulin compete for the attention of the same intestinal cells; if the cells are busy responding to inflammatory factors, then they are less likely to take up glucose and process it effectively. This desensitization to insulin and glucose then leads to the symptoms of metabolic syndrome, such as weight gain, high cholesterol and triglyceride levels and elevated blood pressure - which were all present in the TLR5-deficient mice.

So, what causes changes in gut microbiota? Many things, says Gewirtz, including the use of antibiotics, cleaner water and improved sanitation and hygiene in general, which influences the type and amount of microbes that reside in the intestines.

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Children’s Foundation for Nutrition and Wellness

I’m angry!

Sometimes it takes anger to drive you to do something.

I’m passionate about health and wellness and my personal philosophy is to “Improve the Quality of Life.” This does not apply to me alone, but to anyone and everyone.

Happy, healthy children are what all parents desire - so
why are so many of our children overweight or obese?

My dream is to live in a society free of disease where we can all live in peace and harmony. That’s the dream. And I know I cannot influence most of that. But I am determined to do what I can to improve the quality of life of others through education, helping them to live healthier and more productive lives.

So, why am I angry?

Every time I go shopping, I see parents with their shopping carts chock full with food – processed food. Not a single fresh item in sight! These parents normally have two or three children in tow - all of them overweight or obese.

And they are not alone.

The next time you go shopping, take a good look around you. Most people have shopping carts full of processed food: frozen foods, canned goods, instant meals, ice cream. Nothing but garbage in a pretty container or packet.

There’s nothing nutritious in these shopping carts. Is there any wonder that their children are overweight, obese and unhealthy?

I’ve made several blog posts lately about childhood obesity. In a couple of them, I’ve used the same image of an obese child. Every time I see this image, I get angrier and angrier. It’s not the children’s fault that they end up getting fat and unhealthy. They eat what’s given to them by their parents.

I now realize that merely writing about obesity is not enough. To make a difference I need to get more proactive.

This entire nation has been oversized and it’s time the madness ended.

We will start by educating the parents and the children. We will teach them about proper nutrition and reverse this perverse mindset that pervades our society.

The Children’s Foundation for Nutrition and Wellness is born.

The Obesity of America’s Young Males Skyrockets 67%

Obesity has reached staggering proportions in America, home to the most obese people on earth.

One statistic that sticks out is that of extremely obese males aged 6 to 19. For this group, obesity has increased from 9% in 1999-2000 to 15% in 2009-2010 – a shocking increase of 67% in just ten short years!

Bad parental lifestyle choices condemn our nation's
children to a life of disease and misery

According to the (Center for Disease Control and Prevention:

• Obesity in adults has increased by 60% within the past twenty years

• Obesity in children has tripled in the past thirty years

• More than two-thirds (68%) of adults are overweight

• A staggering 34% of American adults are obese

• 17% of children are obese

• Obesity-related deaths have climbed to more than 300,000 a year, second only to tobacco-related deaths

Sadly, there is no mystery behind this epidemic. It is directly attributable to the standard American diet (I call it the SAD diet): fast-food, sodas, canned goods, microwave dinners – most of which are chemically altered – combined with the lack of exercise is a recipe (no pun intended) for disaster. Through bad lifestyle choices, Americans have chosen to literally eat themselves to death.

The solution to this obesity epidemic is no mystery either: fresh, wholesome fruits and vegetables, lots of clean water, regular exercise and sunshine – and suddenly the world starts looking brighter!