How much biology do you know? The sugar in soda is already pretty simple, so what would gut flora actually do to it? What possible byproducts could there be fr

How much biology do you know? The sugar in soda is already pretty simple, so what would gut flora actually do to it? What possible byproducts could there be from microbes processing fructose? If the sugars were entirely processed by the gut flora then that would generate a ton of heat and gas in the gut that would be uncomfortable at best or most likely just kill you. Does gut flora influence how nutrients get absorbed? Almost certainly. Is there a behavioral and/or metabolic component to weight loss? Again, almost certainly. But if you measure how many calories you were eating at maintenance and then eat 500 less per day, you will 100% lose weight. Will you lose a pound a week, the amount predicted by the simple caloric model of weight? You might lose a little less, but you will lose weight for sure.