Food allergy is now a major public health issue, due to its increasing incidence over the past 20 years, particularly in western countries. Recently, alterations in gut microflora composition have been suggested as an explanation for developing food alergies. This is evident in germ-free mice, which tend to develop more-severe allergies, and given that specific probiotic treatment can alleviate food allergy symptoms. Diet, especially consumption of dietary fiber, appears to be a critical determinant for gut bacterial ecology, diversity, and function. Dietary-fiber-derive...
Read more
Compared to bacterial communities, the human gut mycobiome (fungi) is low in diversity and dominated by yeast including Saccharomyces, Malassezia, and Candida.Studies show they also vary substantially over time and even mice in the same or different cages in the same facility receiving the same feed and treatment also varied in their dominant fungal lineage. Similar results have been shown with humans. During the last years, human breast milk has been documented as a potential source of bacteria for the newborn. Recently, we have reported the presence of fungi in breas...
Read more
The incidence of diseases associated with a high-sugar diet has increased in the past years and numerous studies have focused on the effects of high sugar intake on the gut microbiota and its role in obesity, metabolic syndrome, CVD, cancer and other chronic inflammatory diseases.[1] But not all sugars are equal, as a fructose-rich diet appears to be more damaging to the intestinal microbiome than a sucrose-rich diet, which tends to increase weight gain.[2] Fructose is not absorbed into the small intestine but passed through to the large intestine, where it comes into c...
Read more
The human stomach, when healthy, is not a suitable host for micro-organisms, but in pathological conditions such as gastritis, when gastric acid secretion is impaired, microbial overgrowth can be observed. The use of gastric acid suppression drugs has been shown to have profound effects on the microbiome.[1] Acid-blocking drugs, or proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) used for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) to reduce gastric acid secretion, are among the most commonly prescribed medications in the world with approximately 6%–15% of the general population receiving acid ...
Read more
Chronic inflammation is known to play a major role in the development of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and related mortality. Various dietary components also have been implicated in playing a major role in the development of various CVDs and research has shown that whole diet and various dietary components have a direct association with inflammation. Consumption of fruit and vegetables has been shown to reduce levels of inflammation. Increased adherence to healthier dietary patterns characterized by increased intake of plant-based foods such as fruit and vegetables, nuts, a...
Read more
Most people have their own routine and go to the bathroom/toilet the same number of times per day and at around the same time. A person's bowel movement routine is unique to them, and is determined by a number of factors such as diet and what is normal for one person may be abnormal for another. However, stool frequency should be between one and three times a day. If you eat 2 or more times a day you should go at least once a day. The poo should also be soft and easy to pass but not runny. The three major ingredients in your feces are water, fibre and microorganisms....
Read more
We now know that gut health is directly linked with autoimmune conditions. An unrestrained immune system can turn against our body’s own cells, causing autoimmune disorders. Research is now showing a strong link between autoimmunity, inflammation and gut dysbiosis in many autoimmune diseases. At least 80 autoimmune diseases have been identified, including rheumatic disorders, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, type 1 diabetes (T1D), lupus, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis (MS), allergies and asthma. In the field of rheumatology, intestinal dysbiosis has been associated w...
Read more
We now know that gut health is directly linked with autoimmune conditions. An unrestrained immune system can turn against our body’s own cells, causing autoimmune disorders. Research is now showing a strong link between autoimmunity, inflammation and gut dysbiosis in many autoimmune diseases. At least 80 autoimmune diseases have been identified, including rheumatic disorders, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, type 1 diabetes (T1D), lupus, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis (MS), allergies and asthma. In the field of rheumatology, intestinal dysbiosis has been associated w...
Read more
When the media or friendly conversation comes up over the gut and gut health everyone talks about the gut microbiome. That is, the microorganisms in the large intestine. Unfortunately, there is a lot more to the gut, as you will see later on, that pretty well gets ignored but is just as important. What happens in the stomach and small intestine seems to be ignored despite the fact that what happens in these places will impact gut health all the way down including the microbiome. Reflux seems to be our societies real silent epidemic and linked with so many other health condi...
Read more
The different compartments of the gastrointestinal tract are inhabited by diverse populations of microorganisms often governed by the pH of that environment. By far the most important predominant populations are in the colon, primarily the large intestine. It was originally believed that the composition of the intestinal microbiota was relatively stable from early childhood; however, overwhelming evidence now shows that diet, environmental and lifestyle factors have a large influence on your gut microbes. Some bacteria such as Escherichia coli (E. coli) can double their ...
Read more
