Here’s What Happened to the Microbiome After Eating Plant-Based for 21 days.

Looking and feeling our best is always a priority. The key to that starts from within. When we make our gut microbes happy, they can work their magic, making us glow (from the inside-out!) To supercharge our gut bugs into action, we completed a 21-day plant-based, prebiotic-rich challenge. Here, we give you a full overview of the program, as well as the results! 

By Sofia Popov

At the end of 2019, we launched a 21-day challenge: GUTXY GLOW. Designed to boost gut health and ignite weight loss, this is something we’d recommend to anyone looking to recharge in the New Year.

THE PLAN

GLOW is focused on fuelling your good gut microbes, by enjoying many prebiotic-rich plant foods. Moreover, during GLOW, we completely abstain from eating salt, sugar, and oil. This gives your tastebuds the chance to recharge, such that you can become more attuned to the natural sweetness and savory elements in whole foods.

This program is designed to enhance your levels of certain gut boosters, such as Akkermansia muciniphila, Bifidobacteria, and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii.

Ultimately, the challenge includes:

Eating an abundance of: 

  • Vegetables (cooked and raw)
  • Beans, legumes, tofu – according to how much your gut can handle
  • Fruits (at least 4 daily)

Supplementing with the following daily: 

  • Ground flaxseeds (1 tablespoon)
  • Probiotics (optional)

Enjoying the following in limited quantities: 

  • Cooked starchy vegetables or whole grains (1 cup daily)
  • Raw nuts and seeds (28g max. daily)
  • Pure cocoa powder (1 tablespoon max. daily)
  • Avocado (1/3 of a medium avocado max. daily)
  • Dried fruit (1/4 cup max. daily)

Off-limits:

  • Processed foods
  • All animal products (dairy, meat, and fish)
  • Fruit juice
  • Oil

THE RESULTS (INCLUDING MINE!)

In only 21 days, participants saw great improvement and noted feeling much more energetic, leaner, and happier. Overall, there was an average weight loss of 4kg (8.8lb!) 

Overall, there was an average weight loss of 4kg (8.8lb!) 

I actually ended up doing the program for a total of 6 weeks. I was feeling so good, I didn’t want to stop! And it was the perfect time to end the year on a high. I decided to test my microbiome status before and after (in my own RESET) to see what would happen.

Even though I already eat healthy (for the most part,) and have no adverse gut symptoms, I saw some really positive changes in my own microbiome profile. 

Namely, my levels of these bacterial powerhouses improved: 

  • Akkermansia muciniphila +1.68%

  • Faecalibacterium prausnitzii +0.70%

We’ve previously covered why they’re such good gut boosters. Nevertheless, here are some key points you oughta know. Particularly, A. muciniphila is known to increase mucus thickness and gut barrier function and plays an active role in regulating our immune system1. It also supports weight loss, by being “positively correlated with a lean phenotype, reduced body weight gain.1” Meanwhile, F. prausnitzii is noted to be decreased in cases of Irritable Bowel Disease and has been suggested to help ameliorate it in higher levels2. Like A. muciniphila, it is also widely regarded as a marker for obesity risk, and can help fuel weight loss3

USE YOUR GUT MICROBIOME FOR WEIGHT LOSS

We’ve taken all we’ve learned, from GLOW to our RESET+ dietary interventions, and applied it to a new workshop: Microbiome-Friendly Weight Loss.

In this interactive workshop, we’ll guide you on how to feed your gut what it needs so that your good gut bugs can actually help you lose weight.

If you’re done with diets that don’t work, tired of going through yo-yo cycles, and are confused about how to finally reach your optimal weight, this workshop is for you.

Train your tastebuds into appreciating the nuance of the whole, healthy foods – the perfect recipe for long-term leanness! 

Entirely remote, this is an interactive programme you can follow from anywhere. 


References:

  1. Macchione, I.G et al. Akkermansia muciniphila: key player in metabolic and gastrointestinal disorders. Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci 2019; 23 (18): 8075-8083.
  2. Zhang, Sai-Long et al. “Influence of Microbiota on Intestinal Immune System in Ulcerative Colitis and Its Intervention.” Frontiers in immunology vol. 8 1674. 28 Nov. 2017, doi:10.3389/fimmu.2017.01674.
  3. Lukovac, Sabina et al. “Differential modulation by Akkermansia muciniphila and Faecalibacterium prausnitzii of host peripheral lipid metabolism and histone acetylation in mouse gut organoids.” mBio vol. 5,4 e01438-14. 12 Aug. 2014, doi:10.1128/mBio.01438-14.

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