A tubby bug in your tummy `could be making you fat`

London: Feeling bad about the extra
flab? Don`t blame yourself. A tubby bug in your tummy could be
making you fat, say scientists.

An international team has carried out a study and
found that bacteria in an obese`s stomach could be responsible
for the unwanted pounds, the latest edition of the `Science`
journal reported.

The bugs, which are found in the digestive tract, are
thought to boost appetite. They appear to cause cholesterol
and blood pressure problems and raise the odds of diabetes and
liver disease, the scientists say.

Although the scientists discovered the tummy bug
link in experiments on mice, the results are relevant to human
waistlines, according to the study.

"It has been assumed that the obesity epidemic in the
developed world is driven by an increasing sedentary lifestyle
and the abundance of low-cost high-calorie foods.

"However, our results suggest that intestinal bacteria
contribute to changes in appetite and metabolism," team leader
Andrew Gewirtz of Emory University in Atlanta was quoted by
the `Daily Mail` as saying.

He said cleaner water supplies and the widespread
use of antibiotics may have paved the way for the emergence of
such bugs.

The research focused on mice genetically engineered to
be prone to bacterial infection. They were found to put weight
on more quickly than other creatures.

Fed on high-fat food, they rapidly developed full-
blown diabetes and fatty liver disease. When the scientists
"transplanted" some of the tummy bugs from these mice into
normal, healthy animals, they also piled on the pounds.

PTI

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