The Best Probiotic Strains For Weight Loss

Have you been counting the calories, hitting the gym and eating healthy, only to find that you’re incapable of losing weight?

If you’re experiencing weight gain or have reached a weight loss plateau, then rebalancing your gut might be the key to shedding the pounds for good. 

When it comes to probiotics and weight loss, research in the area is proving to show a direct link between the two. A growing body of research suggests that probiotics and healthy gut microbiome are the keys to losing weight and boosting your metabolism. 

The Link Between Probiotics and Weight Loss

Did you know that the microbes in the intestines of overweight and obese people differ from those of lean individuals?

According to a study in the medical journal Beneficial Microbes, overweight people have a higher ratio of harmful microbes to beneficial ones. 

So the key to losing weight for you may lie in your gut. “Gut health is a significant determinant of one’s metabolism and the likelihood of gaining weight,” says California MD Nancy Rahnama. “The gut is where all of the body’s nutrients, micronutrients and minerals are absorbed. Therefore, if there is impairment in the gut, the body will likely be deficient in key nutrients that are necessary for an optimal metabolism.”

Your gut’s bacteria help break down and digest food, create nutrients and vitamins, and feed on fibers to turn them into useful compounds. 

But if you have an unhealthy digestive system this will lead to an imbalance in your gut, which is a process that’s also known as dysbiosis. 

In an unhealthy state, the gut is filled with too many harmful bacteria and the diversity of gut flora is significantly lower.

A 2013 study concluded that gut dysbiosis contributes to obesity.

And in 2015, another study concluded that people with healthy weight and obese individuals displayed dramatically characteristics in their gut flora. 

In the same study, researchers identified the following items as factors that can change a person’s gut flora from a thin to an obese pattern:

• a high-fat diet
• a high-calorie diet
• consumption of artificial sweeteners
• a disrupted diurnal rhythm

Probiotics can help re-balance your gut flora, but if you’re looking to lose weight as well, not all probiotics are created equal!

There are basic ingredients you need to for when searching for the best probiotic for weight loss. Here are the most important strains of probiotics your probiotic should have if you want to maximize your weight loss.

Benefits of Probiotics for Weight Loss

As more scientists discover a link between probiotics and weight loss, the benefits to the weight loss journey continue to mount. Here are five links between healthy gut flora and weight loss:

1. Increased Fat Elimination

According to a study published in the Lipds in Health and Disease, probiotics may be helpful in eliminating fat before it causes damage in the body.

Fat consumed by study participants was not as easily digested for use or storage when probiotics were consumed — forcing excess consumed fat to be eliminated through the digestive tract.

Larger droplets of fat were found in individuals who consumed probiotics, and though the exact mechanism is unknown at the moment, it is thought that the body has a harder time consuming the larger droplets.

2. Decreased Appetite

If your voracious appetite is getting in the way of reaching your weight loss goals, probiotics can help you curb your appetite.

Research in the British Journal of Nutrition indicates that probiotics helped regulate how satisfied you feel by regulating how your body reacts to a hormone called leptin.

Leptin is produced by fat cells and signals to the brain that there is enough to produce energy for the body. Subsequently, the brain then signals to the body to reduce its appetite. Thus probiotics can help you eat fewer calories and lose weight.

3. Diminished Fat Storage

Consuming probiotics and regulating the microbiome in the gut has also been linked to decreased storage of excess fat in the body.

According to a study published in PloS One, an increased number of beneficial microbiota was linked to the presence of a protein (ANGPTL4), which reduced how much-consumed fat would be stored for later use.

4. Reduced Body Fat

According to research published in the Journal of Functional Food, increased weight loss, healthier BMI and a loss of belly fat are linked to the presence of good bacteria in the intestines.

Through the use of probiotic supplementation, study participants experienced a change in body shape which was spurred by changing the way the body utilized food for energy.

5. Boosted Metabolism

By regulating the number of beneficial bacteria in the body, studies have shown that probiotics can also boost your metabolism’s function.

A highly functioning metabolism continues to use calories even when you’re not exercising and when consuming probiotics, this rate will be even higher.

The Best Probiotics For Weight Loss

Lactobacillus Fermentum and Lactobacillus Amylovorus

According to a 2012 study,  the consumption of Lactobacillus Amylovorus (LA) and Lactobacillus Fermentum (LF) lead to weight loss in 100% of participants. 

Consumption of LA and LF lead to changes in the participant gut flora with a significant reduction in the abundance of Clostridial cluster IV. The study further determined that the rebalance lead to increased energy metabolism, which resulted in body fat loss of  4% (LA) and 3% (LF).

Lactobacillus Gasseri (L. Gasseri)

One study showed that participants who consume L. Gasseri lost 8.2 to 8.5% of their belly fat after just 12 weeks!

According to the Gut Health MD, Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, the ideal probiotic for weight loss should include L. Gasseri and a variety of the Bacteroidetes family of bacteria strains. “The ideal probiotic would feature the Bacteroidetes family, specifically several types of Lactobacillus bacteria including L. Gasseri,” he says. 

Lactobacillus Rhamnosus

A study published by the British Journal of Nutrition indicates that Lactobacillus Rhamnosus helped boosted weight loss. In the controlled study, women who took L. Rhamnosus lost more weight than those who took a placebo. 

In addition to their direct links to weight loss, probiotics have also been shown to stabilize blood sugar levels, which not only reduces cravings for sugary and fatty foods, and the body’s ability to store fat hormones. 

If you’re looking to lose weight, choosing a probiotic with the correct microbe strains will increase your chances of boosting your weight loss efforts. 

What’s more, probiotics contribute to the overall health including:

• regulating the immune system
• reducing inflammation
• keeping the hormones balanced
• regulating mood
• promoting the proper growth of the nervous system

Selecting a probiotic with the right combination of strains is vital is for losing weight. NATUREAL Probiotic contains all three — L. Rhamnosus, L. Gasseri, L. Fermemtum and L. Amylovorus — in addition to over 40 billion CFUs, making it an optimal probiotic for weight loss.