Is being overweight and being a Jedi a good thing?

Analysis of gut bacteria can predict obesity at over 90%, so its been said, so don't forget gut flora health!! I've heard simply swapping gut bacteria from skinny mice into obese mice saw the obese mice get skinny, so there seems to be something to it. Actually from where I'm sitting the act of eating should instead be all about feeding the gut bacteria!!! And not about feeding the body - as a new way to approach long term eating habits. I've just started calling it the 'digestive operating system' as it seems so important

As there is good gut bacteria and bad gut bacteria, and it makes a huge difference to the body where that balance lays. It influences and even controls really important systems which can manifest things like depression, obesity and a range of inflammatory conditions.... and worse.

Things like refined sugars drive bad gut bacteria numbers through the roof and cause all sorts of problems to that balance. Also eating too much red meat too often probably slows down the bowel movements which can lead to over-
digestion of what is in effect poop, LOL. I think the trick is to eat clean and light, as a hard rule, so it maintains the best gut health and moves through your system relatively fast. It might be why short term diets and bursts of exercise wear off so thoroughly, because we're still running the same 'digestive operating system' as before.

Easy tips for gut health, from the BBC ;

Eat a wide range of plant-based foods. A healthy gut has a diverse community of microbes, each of which prefer different foods.
Eat more fibre. Most people eat less than they should. Fruit, vegetables, pulses, nuts and wholegrains feed healthy bacteria.
Avoid highly processed foods. They often contain ingredients that either suppress 'good' bacteria or increase 'bad' bacteria.
Probiotic foods, such as live yoghurt, might encourage more microbes to grow. Eat them if you enjoy them.
Choose extra-virgin olive oil over other fats when you can. It contains the highest number of microbe-friendly polyphenols.
Antibiotics kill ‘good’ bacteria as well as ‘bad’. If you need antibiotics, make sure you eat lots of foods that boost your microbes afterwards.
If your diet is low in fibre, a sudden increase can cause wind and bloating. This is less likely if you make gradual changes and drink extra water.

So plenty of water, prebiotics like inulin, probiotics like kefir, and then just vegetables, nuts, eggs and white meat. As mentioned I really minimize red meat, but also I avoid dairy, alcohol and gluten just to be a total killjoy, and because it works for me.