How Can Your Gut Microbiota Contribute to Your Weight Gain?

There are over 100 trilliums of microorganisms in your gut, and they are gatekeepers to your health. From Western Medicine, we have learned that a healthy and balanced gut microbial flora is the key to maintaining proper digestive functions. Furthermore, it performs as a barrier in the gut and plays an important role in the immune system. Your gut microbial flora also ferments indigestible nutrients and aids the production of micronutrients such as vitamin B and Vitamin K, and reduces harmful toxins.

The composition of human breast milk is an amazing example to demonstrate how nature works for a diverse and resilient human gut microbiota. We know that babies do not have the necessary enzymes to break down certain complex carbohydrates such as oligosaccharides in human breast milk, but there is one particular gut bug called Bifidobacterium infantis in the infant’s digestive tract, which helps break down oligosaccharides to provide energy to the baby. It also provides nutrients to the infant’s intestine lining to support its growth. Therefore, it plays an important role in the development of a healthy digestive system and immune system for an infant. Human breast milk nourishes a baby and also feeds the healthy bugs in the gut. This is why breastfeeding is critical for infants’ health and the development of a strong and healthy immune system. Many people are not aware that many auto-immune diseases are linked to infant formulas because an infant’s gut is not fully developed to handle GMO food and other chemicals in the formulas including preservatives and artificial flavoring compounds. They are foreign chemicals to the body and attack the infant’s gut and immune system, which lead to food allergies and other auto-immune system-related health challenges. For example, asthma is related to the lung microbiome. In TCM, the lung is linked to the large intestine. If your gut microbiome is off-balance, it can in turn affects the microbiome in the lungs, did you see the connection here? Fibromyalgia is linked to muscle pain. According to recent research, the gut sends the signal to the brain to trigger the vagus nerve to stimulate the release of the pain signals to the body. Let’s look at it from a different perspective from TCM, the spleen and stomach meridian channels control the healthy state of the muscles, and they are all part of your digestive system, this suggests that fibromyalgia is also linked to the gut health.

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