Lifestyle modifications result in alterations in the gut microbiota in obese children

Abstract

Background The association between the gut microbiota and pediatric obesity was analyzed in a cross-sectional study. A prospective study of obese children was conducted to assess the gut microbial alterations after a weight change. We collected fecal samples from obese children before and after a 2-month weight reduction program that consisted of individual counseling for nutritional education and physical activity, and we performed 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing using an Illumina MiSeq platform. Results Thirty-six participants, aged 7 to 18 years, were classified into the fat loss (n = 17) and the fat gain (n = 19) groups according to the change in total body fat (%) after the intervention. The baseline analysis of the gut microbiota in the preintervention stages showed dysbiotic features of both groups compared with those of normal-weight children. In the fat loss group, significantly decreased proportions of Bacteroidetes phylum, Bacteroidia class, Bacteroidales order, Bacteroidaceae family, and Bacteroides genus, along with increased proportions of Firmicutes phylum, Clostridia class, and Clostridiales order, were observed after intervention. The microbial richness was significantly reduced, without a change in beta diversity in the fat loss group. The fat gain group showed significantly deceased proportions of Firmicutes phylum, Clostridia class, Clostridiales order, Lachnospiraceae family, and Eubacterium hallii group genus, without a change in diversity after the intervention. According to the functional metabolic analysis by the Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States 2, the “Nitrate Reduction VI” and “Aspartate Superpathway” pathways were predicted to increase significantly in the fat loss group. The cooccurring networks of genera were constructed and showed the different microbes that drove the changes between the pre- and postintervention stages in the fat loss and fat gain groups. Conclusions This study demonstrated that lifestyle modifications can impact the composition, richness, and predicted functional profiles of the gut microbiota in obese children after weight changes. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.govNCT03812497, registration date January 23, 2019, retrospectively registered.

Early life Western diet-induced memory impairments and gut microbiome changes in female rats are long-lasting despite healthy dietary intervention

“…Our data show that gut microbial richness, as measured with the Shannon Index, is significantly reduced following early life CAF, but not SUG, diet, an outcome that was actually exacerbated following the healthy dietary intervention. This outcome is consistent with other studies in which microbial richness was reduced after the removal of high-fat, high-sugar diets (Fülling et al, 2020;McNamara et al, 2021) or reduced adiposity following lifestyle modifications (eating breakfast, avoiding sugar-sweetened beverages, decreasing processed foods rich in animal fat or lengthening meal duration, and implementing more exercise) (Cho, 2021). Composition of the gut microbiota was significantly distinct from controls immediately after either the adolescent CAF or SUG exposure period analyzed with PERMANOVA tests.…”

Early life Western diet-induced memory impairments and gut microbiome changes in female rats are long-lasting despite healthy dietary intervention

“…Our data show that gut microbial richness, as measured with the Shannon Index, is significantly reduced following early life CAF, but not SUG, diet, and that this effect was actually greater in animals that underwent the healthy dietary intervention compared to those that did not. This outcome is consistent with other studies in which microbial richness was reduced after the removal of high-fat, high-sugar diets [52,53] or reduced adiposity following lifestyle modifications (eating breakfast, avoiding sugar-sweetened beverages, decreasing processed foods rich in animal fat or lengthening meal duration, and implementing more exercise) [54]. Composition of the gut microbiota was significantly distinct from chow-fed rats immediately after either the adolescent CAF or SUG exposure period analyzed with PERMANOVA tests.…”

Fecal microbiota relationships with childhood obesity: A scoping comprehensive review

“…Thus, Olivares et al observed differences in gut microbiome of adults depending on weight status, finding a rise in the genus Bifidobacterium and a decrease in Prevotellaceae, Faecalibacterium, and Eubacteriumrectale in participants with normal weight compared to those who had overweight or obesity. 29 In addition, the phylum Bacteroidetes 24,25,28,30 and the genus Bifidobacterium 27 are underrepresented in gut microbiota of children with overweight or obesity compared to the microbiota of children with normal-weight (Table 1), where lifestyle changes (diet/physical activity) may affect fecal microbiota. 30 In this context, a multicenter prospective cohort trial called TEDDY study was designed, with the objective of identifying those environmental factors that triggered or protected against type 1 diabetes.…”