Consuming
probiotics, so-called 'good bacteria', can reduce body weight and body mass
index (BMI) according to a new meta-analysis published in the International
Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition.
The
digestive health benefits of probiotics have been widely debated. Probiotic supplements,
often added to yoghurts, may support general wellbeing in addition to improving
immunity. However, evidence for the beneficial effects of probiotics has been
lacking.
Researchers
from the Department of Cardiology, Taizhou People's Hospital, Taizhou, China
combined the findings of 25 randomized human trials investigating the impact of
probiotic consumption on body weight and BMI in over 1,900 healthy adults. They
found taking probiotics reduced BMI and body weight with the greatest reduction
in BMI occurring in overweight adults. Interestingly, ingesting more than one
type of probiotic and taking probiotics for 8 weeks or more resulted in
increased weight loss.
"To
date, quite a few researchers have investigated the effects of probiotics on
body weight and BMI, without a consistent result," lead author Qingqing
Zhang notes. What is significant about this study is, that based on findings
from the 25 included trials, the researchers found that consumption of
probiotics did lead to a modest decrease in body weight and BMI.
Although
the amount of weight loss documented in this study was minimal, even a small
reduction can have enormous public health benefits by reducing weight-related
diseases such as Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.
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