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compared with women who slept seven hours a night.” These results have been reinforced by other studies. For example, researchers at the University of Warwick reviewed data from more than 28,000 children and more han 15,000 adults and found that sleep deprivation almost doubled the risk of obesity for children and adults.” Brain scans of people who have fewer than seven ours of sleep a night show lower activity in the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain that is involved in impulse control, planning, judgement and follow- hough. Decreased activity in this part of the brain eads to greater impulsivity and more self-defeating decisions. It also means it's much more difficult to stick o any plan successfully, especially a weight loss To support deep and regenerative sleep, the following supplements and natural approaches are helpful: melatonin, chamomile, valerian, kava, passionflower, hops, L-theanine, GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid), 5- HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan), vitamin B complex, phosphatidylserine and magnesium. If you're taking prescription sleep medications, be cautious: all of them have serious side effects. r= ~e i prefrontal cortex, the ‘atea of the brain that is invo Ived Some Gut Flora Can Make You Fat in impulse control, planning, judgement and follow- It was once thought that we are what we eat. But, to hough. Decreased activity in this part of the brain be more accurate, we are what we digest and assimilate. eads to greater impulsivity and more self-defeating The latest research now tells us that, to be even more decisions. It also means it's much more difficult to stick correct, we are what digests and assimilates our food. It o any plan successfully, especially a weight loss all has to do with the thriving population of the 100 program. trillion life-promoting bacteria that take up residence The relationship between obesity and sleep is not just within our digestive tract from the moment of birth. an adult problem. Since 1992, More than 99 per cent of 3 studies of more than 45,000 microbes living in our children have supported the intestinal tract comprise a very inverse relationship between There is a strong diverse group of bacteria, ours of sleep and risk o . numberin etween 500 to obesity. If children sleep less, connection between 1,000 di ferent species. Ina wey are more ar risk of what we eat, how much healthy person, these bacteria ecoming obese. ort sleep . ive in the gut in a balance duration at age 30 months is we eat, and the species ecosystem, with each species predictive of obesity at the age of bacteria that inhabit inhabiting its appropriate or seven years.” 3 3 place. owever, wi e Less than seven hours of sleep the intestinal tract. introduction of antibiotics, steroids and birth-control pills, that delicate balance is radically altered—and so is per night may permanently impair the part of the brain called the hypothalamus, which regulates both appetite and energy expenditure. one's health. Fn a RS FS CS 1 in our what we eat, how much we eat, and the species of bacteria that inhabit ee es one's health, And now, one more adverse health condition, caused by an overgrowth of harmful gut flora, can be added to he list: obesity. There is a distinctive change in the intestinal microbial populations found in obese and ean humans and mice. Obese mice have different microbes in their gut than do lean mice. Obese humans have different gut microbes than do lean (or even dieting) humans. There is a strong connection between what we eat, how much we eat, and the species of bacteria that inhabit the intestinal tract. The bacteria in the gut of obese mice are more efficient in processing carbohydrates. Thus, obese mice get a bigger "bang for the chow", ingesting calories from ood that in lean mice would normally go unprocessed. So, fat mice get even fatter.* Obese people have a distinctive mix of bacteria in heir digestive system that also seem to make them prone to gaining weight. They have more digestive microbes that are especially efficient at extracting calories from food. Also, the greater the proportion of hese super-digesting organisms, the more that people gain weight. When scientists transplanted these bacteria from obese mice into lean mice, the thin animals started to get fatter. A Word about the Hypothalamus The hypothalamus is located at the centre of the brain and is the interface between the central nervous system and the endocrine system. It controls many automatic functions and coordinates metabolic activity throughout the 20 trillion cells that make up the human body. In addition, it organises and controls moods, cravings, sleep, endocrine function, hunger, appetite and food intake. Most importantly, the hypothalamus is the part of the brain that controls fat-burning and energy expenditure. In the 1940s, the brilliant English endocrinologist Dr A. T. W. Simeons developed a revolutionary protocol to address the cause of the obesity problem (see my article in NEXUS 17/04). This new paradigm focused on re- establishing homoeostasis to the hypothalamus, which he believed was dysfunctional in all overweight people. He created a unique protocol that re-established a properly functioning hypothalamus and also helped people safely lose up to 0.5 kilograms a day of toxic fat. (To learn more about the Simeons protocol, visit the websites www.fatlossaustralia.com.au or www.myultimatefatloss.com.) or JUNE - JULY 2011 NEXUS ¢ 21 There is a strong connection between the intestinal tract. www.nexusmagazine.com