We live in a country in which there are fast food restaurants on every corner. Our grocery shelves are lined with plenty of processed foods filled with refined sugars and harmful trans fats. And in the past decade, the convenience of curbside pick-up has become more popular than cooking our own meals.

That such a reality has led to an alarming number of overweight and obese people may not come as a surprise. But it might startle you to know that even if you abstain from such temptations and consider yourself a healthy eater, you may be prone to gaining weight simply by the nature of your ? well, nature.

As soon as you are born, trillions of microorganisms begin to take up residence in your gut. And by the time you've reached your terrible twos, this flourishing community is essentially complete, performing countless functions that include everything from digestion to vitamin production. So what do these microscopic masses have to do with whether or not your daily diet is packing on the pounds? Consider the following.

The microbes in your gut consist mainly of two different types of bacteria?bacteroidetes and firmicutes?and included among the many jobs they perform is that of extracting calories from the food you eat. This is particularly interesting to researchers analyzing in why some people as opposed to others tend to gain weight more easily.

Recent studies on mice and humans have shown that those with more firmicutes in their gut extracted significantly more calories from the same amount of food than those with more bacteroidetes. Basically, this means that two different people of relatively similar weight can eat the same exact portion of a certain food, but the dieter with more firmicutes in his or her gut would consume a higher number of calories.

One study in particular tracked a dozen obese people for one year as they followed a predetermined diet. Before embarking on the diet, their gut bacteria levels consisted primarily of firmicutes. But as they progressed and lost more weight, scientists noticed that their bacterial levels changed and began to resemble those of leaner people. That is, they contained a higher concentration of bacteroidetes. These and other studies are prompting researchers to look beyond traditional theories about why some people are more prone to weight gain while others are not.

Although still new, the science behind whether or not our gut bacteria play a role in our body weight holds promise for many Americans who struggle daily with being overweight. If indeed shedding pounds could be as simple as manipulating the balance of bacteria in our intestines, it would undoubtedly revolutionize the way we think about dieting. For now though, it is simply too soon to tell, and when it comes to losing weight, a good old-fashioned healthy diet and regular exercise remain the most effective solution.