Obesity vaccine could make us immune to gaining weight from a high-fat, high-sugar diet

What if you could eat whatever you want and never worry about your waistline? It may not be as far-fetched as it sounds. Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder may have found the mechanisms for a groundbreaking vaccine that could help people keep their weight in check by tapping into the power of healthy bacteria.In a study published this week in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity, mice injected with a micro-organism found in cow’s milk and soil were essentially immune to the weight gain typically caused by a high-fat, high-sugar diet.“What is so striking about this study is that we saw a complete prevention of diet-related weight gain in these animals,” said senior author Christopher Lowry, professor of integrative physiology.“This suggests that exposure to beneficial bacteria can protect us against some of the negative health outcomes of the typical Western diet.”Lowry didn’t set out to create a weight loss vaccine. In earlier studies, he discovered that Mycobacterium vaccae (M.

vaccae), a microorganism found in soil and cow’s milk, could reduce stress-induced inflammation in mice.This led him to explore the idea of a “stress vaccine” made from dirt-dwelling bacteria.For the new study, Lowry and his team tested whether M.

vaccae could also help counter the brain inflammation and anxiety that often accompany a poor diet.One group of adolescent mice was fed a healthy diet, while the other indulged in the rodent equivalent of Big Macs and fries for 10 weeks.Half of each group also received weekly injections of M.

vaccae.By the end of the study, the untreated junk-food-only group had gained 16% more weight than the healthy eaters.They had also accumulated significantly more visceral fat, the “bad” fat that wraps around organs and raises the risk of heart disease and diabetes.But here’s the real kicker: The junk food group that received the M.

vaccae injections didn’t gain extra weight.In fact, they even had less visce...