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Category: healthy living

Published on Leave a comment on Dairy Foods Benefit Our Gut Microbes

It's good to eat and drink dairy foods! Consuming dairy foods is beneficial for the gut microbiome, but each dairy food - whether milk, cheese, or yogurt - appears to have  different effects on the composition of the gut microbiome (the community of bacteria, viruses, fungi).

A recent small study found that consuming higher amounts of dairy foods is beneficial for the gut microbiome, and resulted in a greater variety of bacterial species (this is considered good for health). There was more abundance of the beneficial bacteria Bifidobacterium, a bacteria associated with digestive health and immune support.

Consumption of milk was especially beneficial in boosting a variety of beneficial bacteria (Faecalibacterium) known for their anti-inflammatory properties.

Higher amounts of total dairy foods consumed was associated with lower levels of Bacteroides, which are linked to inflammatory conditions and colorectal cancer.

Excerpts from news-medical.net: Milk boosts gut-friendly bacteria while cheese alters microbiome balance, study reveals

In a recent study published in the journal Nutrients, researchers in the United States explored the influence of dairy consumption on colonic mucosa-associated gut microbiota. By investigating specific bacterial composition changes linked to dairy intake, they highlighted its implications for individual and public health. ...continue reading "Dairy Foods Benefit Our Gut Microbes"

Published on Leave a comment on Study Finds Common Pesticide Has Effect On Pregnancies and Babies

The US uses massive amounts of the pesticide glyphosate (commonly known as Roundup) on farms, the sides of roads, and even by homeowners on their properties. More than 127,000 tons of this weed-killer (herbicide) is used just on US farm fields! But studies, including this recent study, find that glyphosate is also linked to health harms, including lower weights and earlier birth of babies.

The recent research found that increased glyphosate applications on farm fields in the last two decades (especially due to genetically modified crops and preharvest use) has especially impacted pregnancies and babies born in rural areas of the United States. That is, pregnant women in farm areas are the most impacted by glyphosate - it's not just used on the fields nearby (they get exposed from pesticide drift), but also in the non-organic foods that they eat. Lower birthweights are generally considered a predictor of health problems (and higher health care costs).

Evidence for health harms from glyphosate are increasing each year, such as an increased risk of cancer (e.g., non-Hodgkin lymphoma), premature births, endocrine disruption, and even disruptions of the gut microbiome (it kills beneficial microbes in the gut, including such important keystone bacteria as Faecalibacterium prausnitzii.) The percentage of people with glyphosate detected in their urine, and the amount (concentration) has been rising over time. It can now be detected in almost all of us, including children.

By the way, the US allows much higher levels of glyphosate residue on foods than countries in other parts of the world, including Europe. But in Brazil it's even worse with levels much higher than in the US, and with higher rates of childhood cancer and infant mortality.

Organic food production does not allow the use of glyphosate. To lower glyphosate levels in your body - increase the amount  of organic foods that you eat.

Excerpts from Science: Common weed killer may be harming infants

Babies in rural counties of the United States that use a common weed killer are born slightly earlier and underweight, a large study finds. These changes, although small on average, could result in learning disabilities and an increased risk of infection, researchers reported last week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, resulting in more than $1 billion in health care costs nationwide each year. ...continue reading "Study Finds Common Pesticide Has Effect On Pregnancies and Babies"

Published on Leave a comment on A Juice Only Diet Is Not Good For the Gut Microbiome
Carrot juice Credit: Wikipedia

A few days of a juice only diet is viewed by many as healthy, and a good way to cleanse the body. But... a recent study found that this is not true for the gut microbiome (the community of fungi, bacteria, and viruses), which is so important to our health. A vegetable and fruit juice only diet, even if it's only for three days, is unhealthier than juice plus whole foods, or only whole-plant foods diet.

The juice only diet promoted the growth of bacterial species in the gut that are linked to gut permeability, inflammation, and cognitive decline. The juice only diet also resulted in changes in the saliva and cheek microbiota (microbiome), especially an increase in pro-inflammatory bacteria. The researchers thought these changes were due to the low fiber intake of the juice only diet.

This is because fiber feeds the beneficial bacteria (linked to good health) in the gut. Juices are low in fiber, but whole fruits and vegetables are high in fiber (as are whole grains, seeds, nuts, legumes).

Participants in the study were divide into 3 groups. Each group followed one diet (juice only, juice + food, or whole plant based foods only) for three days. Bacteria in the mouth (saliva and cheek swabs) and gut (through stool samples) were analyzed before, during, and after.

Before participants followed one of the 3 diets, they first followed an elimination diet for 3 days: organic fresh fruits, vegetables, gluten-free whole grains, eggs, and 8 glasses of water a day. No alcohol, caffeine, sugar, processed foods, dairy, red meat, and gluten (e.g., wheat, rye, barley, spelt). This diet also had beneficial changes in the gut microbiome with increased numbers of bacteria linked to good health, for example, an increase in the gut bacteria Faecalibacterium prausnitzii.

From Medical Xpress: Juicing may harm your health in just 3 days, study finds

Think your juice cleanse is making you healthier? A new Northwestern University study suggests it might be doing the opposite. The study, recently published in Nutrients, found that a vegetable and fruit juice-only diet—even for just three days—can trigger shifts in gut and oral bacteria linked to inflammation and cognitive decline. ...continue reading "A Juice Only Diet Is Not Good For the Gut Microbiome"

Published on Leave a comment on Hair Stylists Are Exposed to High Levels of Harmful Airborne Chemicals
Hair salon Credit: Wikipedia

Hairdressers are exposed to lots of harmful airborne chemicals in the products they and others use in hair salons. And it's every day they work, all day. A recent study found that the chemical exposure is especially high for hair stylists serving Black and Latina clients.

The airborne chemicals from the products hairdressers use (e.g., straighteners, relaxers, chemicals in permanents, hair dyes, sprays) are called volatile organic compounds (VOCs). They are air pollutants. These chemicals can pose health risks, such as reproductive effects, respiratory problems, cardiovascular effects, cancer, and skin and respiratory irritation. One common VOC hairdressers are exposed to is formaldehyde.

The study found that the level of VOCs in the air was much, much lower in office spaces not connected to the hair salons. Of course.

From Medical Xpress: Hairstylists serving Black and Latina clients exposed to high concentrations of airborne toxins

Hairstylists, especially those providing services to Black and Latina women, are exposed to high concentrations of harmful airborne chemicals in their workplace, a team of Johns Hopkins researchers has found.

The study, published in the Journal of Environmental Exposure Assessment, is the first to report indoor air concentrations of several volatile organic compounds or VOCs in U.S. hair salons serving this group of women. This builds on previous Johns Hopkins research that found Black and Hispanic hairdressers had higher levels of chemicals from hair relaxers, dyes, and other salon products in their bodies compared to office workers but did not specifically measure air concentrations of the chemicals. ...continue reading "Hair Stylists Are Exposed to High Levels of Harmful Airborne Chemicals"

Published on Leave a comment on When Will Our Government Protect Us From Endocrine Disruptors and Harmful Pesticides?

Over the course of the past decade, while reading many, many studies and articles about the FDA and EPA (you know, the government agencies meant to protect us) I have become cynical. And depressed. The agencies are not doing a good job protecting ordinary people (us), especially from endocrine disruptors and pesticides. There is too much corruption and too much money involved, with the bottom line being that Big Business is protected and does as it wants.

One example is why paraquat is still used in the US. This pesticide is a weed-killer that researchers link to a wide variety of diseases, including Parkinson's disease. It is widely used in the US, but banned in more than 70 countries. The EPA won't take action, and keeps saying the evidence for harms is "weak" and "insufficient", and they'll have to reassess the pesticide. But neuroscientists say:

“We know from animal work—and this is convincing and consistent—that paraquat isn’t safe,” says Bas Bloem, a neurologist at Radboud University Medical Center. The compound can pass from the bloodstream to the brain, he notes, and kills dopaminergic neurons, the loss of which drives Parkinson’s; indeed, paraquat is used to create laboratory animals with Parkinson-like disease. It also enhances the buildup of a misfolded, toxic version of the protein alpha-synuclein that’s a hallmark of the disease."

This relationship between Big Business (Big $$) was summed up by Dr. Theo Colborn back in 2014: “Our government operates via the stakeholder approach,” says (Theo) Colborn, “where those who are creating the problem are invited to solve the problem.”  Yup.

Plastic duck containing endocrine disruptors

Theo Colborn was an absolutely amazing person. She is the main reason that endocrine disruptors are even being discussed these days. [Go read Our Stolen Future, published in 1997]. And, of course, Big Business (Big $$) went after her. But she (and others) persisted, and nowadays endocrine disruptors are taken very seriously by researchers and the general public.

Some good resources for up-to-date information about endocrine disruptors and pesticides: Collaborative About Health and the Environment (CHE) (up-to-date research, including research webinars), Silent Spring Institute, Environmental Working Group (EWG), PFAS Central, Beyond Pesticides (including their Daily News Blog), and Environmental Health News (EHN). ...continue reading "When Will Our Government Protect Us From Endocrine Disruptors and Harmful Pesticides?"

Published on Leave a comment on Last Year Was the Warmest Year Since Global Records Began in 1850

Well, well... this is not a surprise. 2024 was the hottest year since temperature records began in 1850. And the second hottest year on record was 2023.

Unfortunately, this also means that we exceeded the goal of limiting temperature increases to 1.5 degrees C that was agreed to at the Paris Agreement in 2016. Remember that agreement? The goal was to keep temperature increases to no more than 1.5 degrees C over pre-industrial temperatures (as defined by the 1850 - 1900 average). But last year was 1.6 degrees C over pre-industrial levels.

It's been 48 years since the last time the world had a cooler year than average year. You can thank rising greenhouse emissions for the overall upward trend in heat.

Sooo....what will 2025 be like? Stay tuned.

Excerpts from Ars Technica: Everyone agrees: 2024 the hottest year since the thermometer was invented

Over the last 24 hours or so, the major organizations that keep track of global temperatures have released figures for 2024, and all of them agree: 2024 was the warmest year yet recorded, joining 2023 as an unusual outlier in terms of how rapidly things heated up. At least two of the organizations, the European Union's Copernicus and Berkeley Earth, place the year at about 1.6° C above pre-industrial temperatures, marking the first time that the Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to 1.5° has been exceeded. ...continue reading "Last Year Was the Warmest Year Since Global Records Began in 1850"

Published on Leave a comment on Hospital Foods Can Be Very Unhealthy
Vanilla pudding

Well, well, well...it was a rocky holiday season. Lots of people got Covid, including myself. It hit everyone I know harder than expected, with symptoms much worse than with a flu virus.

Anyway, while visiting someone in a hospital I happened to be there when dinner was served. I was absolutely shocked that much of the hospital meal contained ultra-processed foods with absolutely garbage ingredients.  Artificial colors, high fructose corn syrup (e.g., ginger ale), etc.

This is what sick people are given? Food ingredients linked to gut inflammation and a number of health problems? Perhaps they're making sure they get lots of repeat business.

Vanilla pudding ingredients: Water, nonfat milk, sugar, modified corn starch, palm oil, salt, sodium stearoyl lactylate, disodium phosphate, natural and artificial flavors, yellow 5, yellow 6. (This was dessert.)

The Lemon Tea ingredients: Water, citric acid, instant tea powder, sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate, caramel color, acesulfame-K, sucralose, natural flavors.

Published on Leave a comment on Bacteria In The Kidney Microbiome Can Prevent Or Promote Kidney Stones
Kidney stones Credit: Wikipedia

Finally, a study was done examining whether the kidneys have a microbiome (community of fungi, viruses, and bacteria). The answer is yes, the kidneys have a microbiome and the composition of the microbes plays a role in kidney health and whether a person develops kidney stones or not. This makes sense - all our other organs have microbiomes.

This multi-part study showed that the urinary tract is not sterile, and that low levels of bacteria are normal. Additionally, they found that the presence of the beneficial bacteria L. crispatus is found in the absence of kidney stones, while E.coli is associated with the development of kidney stones. (Interestingly, L. crispatus is also found in the healthy vagina and can treat bacterial vaginosis.) 

The researchers found that the L. crispatus somehow blocked E.coli's ability to form kidney stones.

Antibiotic use was associated with bacteria that promoted the development of kidney stones because antibiotics kill off Lactobacillus species and promote the growth of kidney stone forming species (e.g., E. coli). Other studies also find that bacteria such as E.coli (as well as Proteus and Klebsiella) are frequently associated with UTIs, kidney stone formation, and kidney infection (pyelonephritis). 

From Medical Xpress: First full characterization of kidney microbiome unlocks potential to prevent kidney stones

Cleveland Clinic researchers have found definitive proof of a kidney microbiome that influences renal health and kidney stone formation, demonstrating that the urinary tract is not sterile and low levels of bacteria are normal. ...continue reading "Bacteria In The Kidney Microbiome Can Prevent Or Promote Kidney Stones"

Published on Leave a comment on Some Food Ingredients Were Developed to Deal With Industrial Waste
Crisco can Credit: Wikipedia

Americans now consume all sorts of ultra-processed foods daily. In fact, they now are the majority of the daily diet of Americans. What many people don't really understand is that ultra-processed foods involve all sorts of laboratory derived chemicals and ingredients. In fact, some (Crisco, saccharine, etc.) were developed to deal with industrial waste!

A good short video (6 minutes) about this from The Guardian: How We Created Ultra-processed Food From Industrial Waste

In the UK and US, more than half the average diet consists of ultra-processed foods. For some people, especially those who are younger, poorer or from disadvantaged areas, a diet comprising as much as 80% UPFs is typical, and this has been linked to a myriad of harmful effects to health.

Neelam Tailor traces the surprising journey of ultra-processed foods from their origins in industrial waste to today's complex ingredient lists and the regulatory loopholes that paved the way.

Published on Leave a comment on Another Reason to Avoid High-Fructose Corn Syrup
Soda Credit: Wikipedia

More worrisome news about high-fructose corn syrup. Researchers found that high fructose corn syrup actually speeds up and fuels the growth of cancer tumors in animals who already have cancer.

While this study was done in mice (with either breast cancer, melanoma, or cervical cancer), it is actually a scary finding because so many foods that Americans ingest daily contain high-fructose corn syrup. It is a sugar derived from corn starch and found in many foods: baked goods, soda, fast food, cereals, ice cream, etc. If you see it in an ingredient list, it means it is an ultra-processed food.

Bottom line: Read food ingredient lists and try to avoid eating foods with high-fructose corn syrup.

Excerpts from US Right To Know: High-fructose corn syrup fuels tumor growth in animals with cancer, a new study shows

High-fructose corn syrup, a sweetener commonly used in soda and ultra-processed foods, accelerates cancer tumor growth via the liver, according to research published last week [Dec. 4, 2024] in Nature.

High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a sugar derived from corn starch. High fructose intake has been shown to contribute to the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and obesity, both of which are associated with systemic inflammation and altered lipid metabolism (the way the body processes fats). It has also been linked to diabetes, heart disease, and colorectal cancer. ...continue reading "Another Reason to Avoid High-Fructose Corn Syrup"