The Role of Gut Microbiota in the Development and Treatment of Obesity and Overweight: A Literature Review.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative literature review without systematic review methodology or meta-analysis.
PubMed 40725626 · doi:10.3390/jcm14144933
What was done
The authors conducted a narrative literature review to summarize existing knowledge on the relationship between gut microbiota dysbiosis and the pathogenesis and treatment of overweight and obesity, focusing on interventions including probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), dietary patterns, and aerobic exercise.
What was found
The abstract reports no quantitative values or effect sizes. Qualitatively, it notes that an increased Firmicutes-to-Bacteroidetes ratio is linked to enhanced energy harvest, appetite dysregulation, and inflammation. Probiotic supplementation, particularly when paired with prebiotics, showed the most consistent improvements in weight and BMI, though outcomes depended heavily on strain type, dosage, and duration. FMT yielded limited and inconsistent outcomes in human clinical studies despite positive preclinical data. Dietary fiber, plant proteins, omega-3 fatty acids, and aerobic exercise enhanced microbial diversity, although microbiota alterations did not consistently translate into immediate weight loss.
Why it matters
This review outlines current mechanisms linking gut dysbiosis to metabolic dysfunction and summarizes the relative clinical readiness of microbiome-targeted therapies for obesity management.
Limits
The abstract describes a narrative review without systematic search protocols, risk of bias assessment, or quantitative data synthesis. Specific study numbers, sample sizes, and effect magnitudes are entirely omitted.
Cited by
- supports The normal human gut microbiome is predominantly composed of four main bacterial groups or phyla.