So, it looks like it is not just the gigantic cup cakes and chemical-filled fast foods that are causing people in Western cultures to be the fattest on record.
Researchers have known for years that farm animals fatten up when fed antibiotics. It was a chicken ranchers dream. The antibiotics were not used to treat disease, but added to feed to produce more meat, despite the filthy conditions of indoor living. The same for other farm animals. In fact, the use of antibiotics paved the way for the industrial farm for livestock.
In the 1950’s, research was done, using antibiotics on children, and the children also gained more weight than the control groups. And this was before the era of “Super-size me”, so food was quite different. The chemical age of convenience foods was just dawning. Add that in and you have the recipe for the obesity we see all around us today.
To read more about the research go to http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/09/opinion/sunday/the-fat-drug.html?emc=edit_th_20140309&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=26677244&_r=0
The question is, what can you do about it now? If you have been taking antibiotics routinely for non-vital reasons, stop doing so. Natural and herbal medicine can handle most winter illnesses and you may be healthier in the long-run as a result, rather than having a compromised immune system.
You can repair the gut, and replace the organisms lost to over-antibiotic use. In fact, I went to a seminar recently that advised a gut-health program as one of the treatments for weight loss. You may need to detoxify or use supplements that eliminate some of the fungus and parasites that grow when good gut bacteria is killed off by antibiotics. Or you may need a general gut-health program.
Weight gain, skin conditions, auto-immune disease, constipation or diarrhea, IBS, fatigue, sugar cravings, white coated tongue, red-tipped tongue, may all be symptoms of “dysbiosis” which means the wrong bugs growing out of control, or the good bugs missing.
If you have children avoid the over-use of antibiotics for them, as well. We have forgotten how to rest and let the body heal. Homeopathy, herbal medicine and whole food supplements can help. I am going to be using more herbal tonics, for those who prefer not to take “pills”. Book a consultation and we can discuss your antibiotic use and how you can restore the balance-and lose weight, if needed.