Gut Bacteria Diversity Linked With Weight, Study Suggests

The number of bacteria in your gut - as well as the diversity of said bacteria - could be tied to your weight, according to a new study.

September 5th, 2013 by: Amanda L. Chan at The Huffington Post

The number of bacteria in your gut - as well as the diversity of said bacteria - could be tied to your weight, according to a new study.

A team of researchers from around the world found that people who are obese have fewer and less diverse gut bacteria than their leaner counterparts.

"We also see that if you belong to the group with less intestinal bacteria and have already developed obesity, you will also gain more weight over a number of years," study researcher Oluf Pederson, professor and scientific director at the University of Copenhagen's Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, said in a statement. "We don't know what came first, the chicken or the egg, but one thing is certain: it is a vicious circle that poses a health threat."