Which Probiotics Help You Lose More Belly Fat?

Probiotics are tiny, living organisms that inhabit your digestive system. And having the right kind of probiotics in your gut may actually be able to help regulate weight and metabolism. Several studies show that certain types of probiotics might be able to help you lose weight–especially belly fat.

Which probiotics are the most effective for weight loss? And how does gut bacteria actually influence weight and metabolism? Keep reading to learn why probiotics are a healthy gut’s best friend, and why that’s crucial for healthy weight loss.

How Probiotics Influence Weight

Your digestive system is a busy factory of trillions of bacteria. Some of these bacteria are friendly, helping you digest food and absorb nutrients–while others can be harmful. When your gut is functioning optimally, there’s a healthy balance that helps good bacteria keep the bad ones in check.

If something throws this complex system out of balance, such as an illness, poor diet, stress, or medication, the bacteria in your gut can shift in the wrong direction.

Research shows that a change in the amount or type of bacteria in your gut can affect your health, and contribute to weight gain, increased fat storage, and sometimes make it harder to lose weight (1).

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Some bacteria trigger weight gain

Changes in gut bacteria may play a role in weight gain. For example, people with obesity tend to have fewer or less diverse gut bacteria than lean people (2).

Some animal studies also show that when gut bacteria from mice with obesity were transplanted into the guts of lean mice, the lean mice developed obesity.

How does this happen? It might be due to how your gut bacteria interact with the cells involved in the digestive process. One study even found that overeating can trigger an increase in obesity-causing bacteria.

How Gut Bacteria Help You Lose Weight

Many of the bacteria that live in your digestive system help your body perform functions it could necessarily carry out on its own, including producing certain B vitamins and certain fatty acids.

They also help break down fiber, which your body can’t digest, turning it into beneficial short-chain fatty acids like butyrate

Probiotics seem to influence appetite and energy usage via the production of short-chain fatty acids like butyrate. When the good bacteria digest starches, they produce butyrate. This decreases insulin resistance and regulates the hormones that control appetite (3).

So, if you don’t have enough of these bacteria, then you might not get the signal that you are full, prompting you to consume more calories which contribute to weight gain.

It’s also thought that certain probiotics may inhibit the absorption of dietary fat, increasing the amount of fat excreted with feces. In other words, some bacteria extract fewer calories from the foods you eat. Certain bacteria, such as those from the Lactobacillus family, have been found to function in this way.

Probiotics may help you lose weight, especially belly fat

Basically, a healthy balance of gut bacteria helps promote a healthy weight in three main ways (3):

Reduced appetite – Good bacteria trigger the production of appetite-lowering hormones that communicate to your brain that you’ve had enough to eat.
Regulate fat storage – Bacteria manufacture short-chain fatty acids like butyrate, which have been shown to alleviate insulin resistance and a high-fat diet induced obesity (4).
Absorb fewer calories – Some bacteria extract less energy from the food you eat, resulting in more calories being eliminated in your stool instead of absorbed in your gut.

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Losing Belly Fat

Several studies have demonstrated reduced BMI, body fat percentage, and visceral fat (the fat that accumulates around the stomach and abdomen) in participants taking a probiotic (5).

However, it’s important to note that researchers concluded taking a probiotic for a longer period of time–even at a low dose–was more likely to be beneficial for reducing belly fat.

In a study of 90 overweight and obese adults, they found that taking a probiotic supplement for 12 weeks had a positive effect on participants’ visceral fat, which is a main indicator of chronic disease (6).

The Best Probiotics for Weight Loss

There are thousands of strains of bacteria that make up your microbiome–some that we haven’t even identified yet! Scientists usually identify these strains with their genus and species name (like Lactobacillus rhamnosus), followed by a series of letters and numbers. It’s not always the most consumer-friendly system, but it let’s researchers know exactly which strain they’re looking at.

In a probiotic supplement, you’ll likely only see the genus and species name, though some will include the specific letters and numbers for that strain. There’s still a lot of research going on about specific strains and dosages of probiotics that may best support your weight loss efforts, but there are a few that show some positive impact, such as:

Bifidobacterium lactis B420
Lactobacillus fermentum
Lactobacillus amylovorus
Bifidobacterium breve
Lactobacillus rhamnosus CGMCC1.3724
Lactobacillus gasseri SBT2055

Lactobacillus gasseri for weight loss

Lactobacillus gasseri is naturally found in the digestive system of humans, but studies have shown that lean people have more of this type of bacteria than people with obesity.

In participants who consumed Lactobacillus gasseri SBT2055 for 12 weeks, they experienced reduced belly fat and overall body weight than participants in the control group. This suggests that Lactobacillus gasseri has a positive effect on weight loss efforts and metabolic health (7).

Other types of Lactobacillus bacteria may also help reduce body fat (8).

L. rhamnosus for weight loss

Another type of Lactobacillus bacteria that shows promise for helping to lose weight–especially for women–is Lactobacillus rhamnosus.

In a study, female participants who consumed L. rhamnosus for 24 weeks lost more weight, and showed sustainable weight loss, than those in the placebo group. Interestingly, there was little difference in weight or body fat percentage among the men in either group. This suggests that L. rhamnosus may be especially beneficial for weight loss in women (9).

How to tighten your stomach without exercise

Probiotics may be one way you can reduce belly fat and bloating without sweating it out in the gym.

While staying active is an important part of maintaining a healthy weight, belly bloating may have an underlying cause–imbalanced gut bacteria. If that’s the case, a probiotic may be able to help you lose excess belly fat.

Some probiotics have been shown to reduce belly fat, such as Lactobacillus rhamnosus and L. gasseri.
Probiotics support healthy digestive function, which can reduce bloating in your belly.
A healthy gut lowers inflammation in the body, which can make it easier to lose weight.

What happens when you take probiotics?

Taking a probiotic doesn’t change the way your body works, but probiotics do help promote the natural process of digestion, and the way your body breaks down and absorbs nutrients from food.

It’s likely there won’t be any noticeable changes right away when you begin taking a probiotic. After several weeks, you may notice increased energy, less belly bloat, or a trimmer waistline.

Most studies examining probiotics for weight loss take place over 12-24 weeks (or longer), so it’s important not to expect overnight weight loss.

What’s the downside to taking probiotics?

If you’re beginning a probiotic supplement for the first time, some people report a temporary increase in gas or bloating. This usually subsides in a couple days, and then results in better digestion overall.

Taking a high dose of probiotics (~50 billion CFU) may result in side effects like gas, bloating or nausea. People who have immune dysfunction or other illness may be more susceptible to these side effects (10).

You can find probiotics in certain foods (though in smaller amounts) in fermented foods such as yogurt, kefir, kimchi, or any fermented vegetable. Many people choose to boost their gut bacteria from foods instead of a probiotic supplement.

Do probiotics make you poop more?

Taking a probiotic shouldn’t increase the frequency of bowel movements. Some people may notice a slight change in digestive function, such as better regularity or more comfortable bowel movements.

Using Probiotics for More Weight Loss

There’s a vast amount of research still being done on the ways probiotics influence weight loss, metabolic function, and obesity. But many initial findings show that probiotics for weight loss are beneficial, especially to lose belly fat.

Scientists have identified several strains that can support a healthy weight, such as many types of Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus gasseri, and L. rhamnosus. If you want to get started with a probiotic to help you lose weight, it’s always good practice to let your doctor know so he or she can best advise you. You can also incorporate more fermented foods into your diet like yogurt or sauerkraut.

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