Research

Mixed

Obesity is associated with significantly lower gut microbiota diversity and distinct taxonomic shifts, including decreased Akkermansia and increased Acidaminococcus, independent of dietary intake.

Your gut bacteria differ between normal weight and obese states, with obese individuals showing less diversity and specific bacterial shifts (like lower Akkermansia). This suggests that microbiota composition is a biological factor in obesity, independent of just what you eat. While this doesn't prescribe a specific treatment, it highlights that gut health is a key area of interest in obesity research.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
We confirmed differences between 16Sr RNA gene sequencing data of each BMI group, with decreasing diversity in the obese compared with the normal group... signature bacteria were not influenced by nutrients in the obese compared with the overweight group.
Yeojun Yun et al. · BMC Microbiology · 2017

Why this rating

Large sample size (n=1274-1463) and rigorous statistical adjustment for diet and covariates.

Source

Comparative analysis of gut microbiota associated with body mass index in a large Korean cohort

Yeojun Yun et al. · BMC Microbiology · 2017

DOI 10.1186/s12866-017-1052-0

cross_sectional · n=1274Cited 180×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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