Sugary drinks help bad microbes grow in the human gut, according to a study published in the journal Obesity Reviews. This increase leads to many health complications like obesity and metabolic syndrome, raising risk of diseases associated with metabolic syndrome like diabetes.

The study says western diet containing sugars, especially fructose, nudge the growth of "westernized microbiome" and this has significant effect on how the food is digested in the gut. Also, presence of these microbes in the gut increases immune response that leads to inflammation.

Earlier research has shown that poor quality diet increases the number of bad bacteria in the gut. This, apart from a weakened immune system (due to low nutrition) starts targeting the body causing inflammation, and subsequent death.

In the study, authors Amanda N. Payne, Ph.D., of the Institute of Food, Nutrition, and Health in Zurich, and colleagues suggest that "obesity treatment and prevention could be effectively achieved by promoting intestinal homeostasis through reintroduction of a balanced and diverse diet," HealthDay reports.

Medical Daily had earlier reported that bacteria in gut define how well people age and that controlling the types of microbes present in the gut can help people manage weight.

According to previous research, when good microbes grow in the gut, they produce various by-products that are beneficial to the host and aid digestion. A good way to grow beneficial bacteria in the guts is to include fiber in the diet.

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