microbes – Lacto Bacto

Altered Gut Microbiomes In Persons With Pain Conditions

SimaSeptember 4, 2025September 4, 2025Leave a comment

We know that there are microbiomes (communities of bacteria, viruses, fungi) throughout the body, and that there are microbial patterns or "microbial signatures" found in different diseases. But now it appears that there are microbial signatures for a whole list of pain conditions, such as fibromyalgia, complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), arthritis, and migraine.

In other words, the gut microbiome is different between those with a pain condition compared to healthy individuals without the condition. One question is: does chronic pain cause the microbiome to change or do microbial changes or shifts cause chronic pain? Or does the presence of certain bacteria protect against different pain conditions?

It is still unknown whether probiotic supplementation would help these conditions because the studies are not yet done. But researchers do suggest eating an anti-inflammatory diet - which means a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes (includes beans), fish, seeds, nuts, and olive oil. This kind of diet has lots of fiber to feed and support beneficial bacteria.

Also, avoid ultra-processed food as much as possible, including processed meats and soda, because these are associated with harmful bacteria in the gut. Read the ingredient list, and try to avoid foods with ingredients not found in your kitchen (e.g., emulsifiers, colors, natural flavors, artificial flavors, carrageenan, soy lecithin, guar gum)

From Medscape: Gut Microbiome Changes in Chronic Pain — Test and Treat?

A new study adds to what has been emerging in the literature — namely that there appear to be gut microbiome “signatures” for various pain conditions — suggesting that microbiome-based diagnostics and therapeutics may one day be routine for a broad range of pain conditions. ...continue reading "Altered Gut Microbiomes In Persons With Pain Conditions"

The Pesticides We’re Exposed to Disrupt the Gut Microbiome

SimaAugust 20, 2025August 21, 2025Leave a comment

Millions of pounds of pesticides are used each year in the US: on farms, in buildings and homes, on lawns, in pet flea and tick products - basically everywhere. And so the pesticides eventually wind up in us - from the foods we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe (when pesticides drift during applications or when used indoors), and the treated lawns and ground we walk on.

We are continuously exposed to low levels of multiple pesticides, but it is unknown what this does to us. Recently, a study examined the effect of multiple pesticide exposures on gut health and found that they killed off many beneficial (good) bacteria and had harmful alterations on gut bacteria metabolism. Uh-oh.

Bottom line: Many studies show that we can quickly (within 2 weeks) reduce the amount of pesticides (pesticide residues) in our bodies by eating as many organic foods as possible. Also, use nontoxic IPM (Integrated Pest Management) in the home, and reduce pesticide use in and out of the home (on lawns and gardens).

From Beyond Pesticides: Study Maps the Gut Microbiome and Adverse Impacts of Pesticide Residues

Researchers developed a novel tool* in a recent study published in Nature Communications this year that successfully creates a map of the “pesticide-gut microbiota-metabolite network,” identifying “significant alterations in gut bacteria metabolism.”

...continue reading "The Pesticides We’re Exposed to Disrupt the Gut Microbiome"

Exercise Is Beneficial In Cancer

SimaJuly 16, 2025August 1, 2025Leave a comment

Exercise helps fight cancer. Wow! What a headline. But is it true?

Researchers studied exercise, and its effect on gut microbes and the molecules they produce in response to the exercise. They found that certain gut microbes produce a metabolite (formate) that is increased with exercise and which boosts the potency of CD8 T cells in the immune system – which are key to fighting cancer. The initial tests were done in mice, but then the researchers took their results and applied them to humans with melanoma.

They found that in humans with melanoma, high levels of formate had longer progression-free survival (they live with the cancer, but it doesn't get worse). This is big news! Of course, further studies are ongoing.

Bottom line: Exercise is beneficial for all sorts of reasons, but one may be its effects on cancer. Studies find that exercise is known to help prevent cancer and suppress the growth of existing tumors.

From New Scientist: Exercise helps fight cancer – and we may finally know why

Exercise seems to help prevent cancer and reduce the growth of tumours, and that protective effect may be due to the way working out changes the gut microbiome. ...continue reading "Exercise Is Beneficial In Cancer"

Woman Dies After Using Contaminated Water For Nasal Rinses

SimaJune 13, 2025Leave a comment

Saline nasal rinses have become very popular, usually to ease symptoms of nasal congestion during colds, allergies, or sinus infections. It is very important to only use boiled (and cooled), commercially bottled, sterile, or distilled water for nasal rinses to make sure any harmful microbes and organisms in the water are killed. One person in Texas ignored this advice and paid with her life.

The woman used nonboiled water from the RV faucet (in her RV vehicle), which was unfortunately contaminated with the amoeba Naegleria fowleri. This amoeba traveled to her brain and caused primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), also known as Naegleriasis. Which is almost always fatal. In her case, she died within 8 days from the first symptoms.

Authorities were unable to determine if the amoeba was in the RV campsite drinking system or if it was picked up in another site when filling up her RV's water. But, they did point out that drinking water contaminated with Naegleria fowleri does not cause problems. It is only a problem when rinsing contaminated water into the nasal passages and sinuses - the amoeba can then travel to the brain.

As the CDC points out on its web-site (also see page on safe nasal rinsing):

"Germs such as the amebas Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba can grow in public and private water tanks and pipes. They can also grow in the pipes and water heaters in some homes and buildings.

Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba can pose a serious risk to your health if they are in the water you use to rinse your sinuses or nasal passages. If the amebas go up the nose and to the brain, they can cause nearly always fatal brain infections. Although rare, people have died from rinsing their sinuses with tap water containing Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba."

From CIDRAP (The Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the Univ. of Minnesota): Woman dies from brain ameba after flushing nose with RV water

A previously healthy 71-year-old woman in Texas died within 2 weeks of using tap water from a recreational vehicle (RV) for nasal irrigation. She was diagnosed as having primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) a rare, often fatal brain infection caused by the ameba Naegleria fowleri, according to a report yesterday in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. ...continue reading "Woman Dies After Using Contaminated Water For Nasal Rinses"

Recovery From Physical and Mental Symptoms of COVID May Take Months

SimaJune 12, 2025June 13, 2025Leave a comment

Most of us have had at least one COVID infection, with many having had the virus several times. Some recover quickly, but for others recovery is slow. But how long does it usually take to fully recover from symptoms?

A new study reported that it takes about 3 months to recover from COVID-19 physical symptoms, but 9 months for many to return to how they felt mentally before they became ill with the virus.

To repeat, in this study of 1096 persons who had COVID and 371 persons who did not become infected with COVID (as measured by a FDA approved SARS-CoV-2 test) − it took about 3 months to fully recover physically from COVID, but 9 months mentally. The mental symptom recovery showed gradual improvement over time. But even at a year about 1 in 5 had not fully recovered from the mental symptoms, which may be indicative of long COVID.

People participating in the study were surveyed about physical functioning, fatigue, pain, anxiety, depression, cognitive function, and sleep. This was not a long COVID study. It was a look at how persons who had a COVID infection recover from COVID symptoms over time (they were followed for 1 year).

From Discover: Mental Recovery From COVID-19 Symptoms Can Take Up to 9 Months

Some infections are tougher to recover from than others. Take COVID-19 infections, for instance. According to a new study in Open Forum Infectious Diseases, people with COVID and COVID-like symptoms typically take around nine months to recover from their infections mentally, and around three months to recover from their infections physically, suggesting that mental recovery is a particularly lengthy process that requires more study and more medical attention. ...continue reading "Recovery From Physical and Mental Symptoms of COVID May Take Months"

Herpes Simplex Virus and Alzheimer’s Disease

SimaMay 31, 2025June 1, 2025Leave a comment

Over the past decade there has been as increasing amount of research suggesting that the herpes virus (cold sores!) is implicated in the development of Alzheimer's disease. (here, here, here).

A recent study suggests the same possibility - herpes simplex 1 (HSV-1) has a role in the development of Alzheimer's disease. And treating cold sores with antiviral therapy (antiherpetic medications) results in a reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's disease - thus the antivirals are protective.

The researchers found that having herpes virus type 2 (genital herpes) and varicella zoster virus (chicken pox, shingles) also resulted in increased risk of later developing Alzheimer's disease. But infection with cytomegalovirus was not.

From Medical Xpress: Cold sore viral infection implicated in development of Alzheimer's disease

Symptomatic infection with the virus responsible for cold sores around the mouth–herpes simplex 1, or HSV-1 for short—may have a key role in the development of Alzheimer's disease, suggests a large US study published in BMJ Open. ...continue reading "Herpes Simplex Virus and Alzheimer’s Disease"

The Viruses and Fungi Living In Our Gut

SimaMay 9, 2025Leave a comment

It has long been known that fungi and viruses live in the gut microbiome (the bacteria, fungi, viruses living in the gut), but generally the focus has only been on the bacteria living there. The viruses tend to be bacteriophages - viruses that go after bacteria by infecting them and killing them.

Bacteriophages have a large influence on what lives in the gut, as well as having an effect on the immune system. They start living in the human gut (the GI or gastrointestinal tract) shortly after birth. Scientists are now studying phages to see if they can be used against harmful bacteria and as a treatment for chronic diseases that involve the gastrointestinal system. They think that they could be used in place of antibiotics for antibiotic resistant bacteria.

Fungi are considered immune stimulating. They can have beneficial effects (cause immune responses that promote metabolic health and protect against infection). Others (sometimes even the same species!) can have harmful effects, such as promoting inflammation, for example, in intestinal bowel diseases (IBD). Candida albicans is one such fungi - it is found in the gut of most people, and can cause problems or not.

From Medscape: The Extra-Bacterial Gut Ecosystem: The Influence of Phages and Fungi in the Microbiome

Research on the gut microbiome — and clinical attention to it — has focused mainly on bacteria, but bacteriophages and fungi play critical roles as well, with significant influences on health and disease, experts said at the Gut Microbiota for Health (GMFH) World Summit 2025.

Fungi account for < 1% of the total genetic material in the microbiome but 1%-2% of its total biomass. “Despite their relative rarity, they have an important and outsized influence on gut health” — an impact that results from their unique interface with the immune system, said Kyla Ost, PhD, of the Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado, in Denver, whose research focuses on this interface. ...continue reading "The Viruses and Fungi Living In Our Gut"

A Book About the Air We Breathe

SimaMarch 29, 2025March 30, 2025Leave a comment

An interesting in-depth book about the air we breathe and all the microbes in it was recently published. There are multitudes of microbes (viruses, bacteria, fungi) hidden in our air. We can't see them, but they are there. The book Air-borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe is by award winning author Carl Zimmer.

Zimmer discusses a wide range of topics in this book, including how the virus COVID moves through the air (and its origins), the development of biological weapons (e.g., anthrax, smallpox) meant to spread through the air, the history of what humans know about microbes in the air, how air moves globally for thousands of miles, and the movement of a variety of contagious viruses through air. There is also a reference section at the end of the book.

Carl Zimmer - Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe (published by Dutton, 2025).

By the way, every day we all breathe in about two thousand gallons of air, which contains bacteria, fungi, and viruses. This is part of life.

Lactobacillus Name Changes

SimaFebruary 6, 2025February 6, 2025Leave a comment

A group of international researchers got together and proposed reclassifying all the Lactobacillus species into 25 different groups (genera) a few years ago.

This was done because the Lactobacillus group had gotten too large and diverse, with over 250 bacterial species in it. The proposed name changes were then adopted by the leading microbiology society, which is why scientists currently use both new and old bacterial names, or just one or the other.

One bacteria important for sinus health is L. sakei. Lactobacillus sakei has now been reclassified as Latilactobacillus sakei, but both terms are used in research and elsewhere. The abbreviation L. sakei stays the same.

Most of the common Lactobacillus species that are used in probiotics have a name change, but typically either name (new and old) is acceptable. What many companies do to avoid confusion is to just use the abbreviated name (e.g., L. sakei, L. rhamnosus, and L. casei).

Examples of name changes for commonly used probiotic species: Lactobacillus sakei is now Latilactobacillus sakei, Lactobacillus rhamnosus is now Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus plantarum is now Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus brevis is now Levilactobacillus brevis, Lactobacillus salivarius is now Ligilactobacillus salivarius, Lactobacillus fermentum is now Limosilactobacillus fermentum, and Lactobacillus reuteri is now Limosilactobacillus reuteri.

However, the names of some commonly used probiotic species stayed the same, such as Lactobacillus crispatus, Lactobacillus gasseri, and Lactobacillus johnsonii.

Excerpts from ISAPP (International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics): New names for important probiotic Lactobacillus species

The genus Lactobacillus was listed as the fifth most important category of living organism to have influenced the planet throughout its evolutionary history in a 2009 book, What on Earth Evolved?. From their central role in food fermentations around the globe to their ability to benefit health in their human and animal hosts, species of Lactobacillus have great importance in our lives. ...continue reading "Lactobacillus Name Changes"

Fungi and Bacteria In The Sinus Microbiome

SimaJanuary 17, 2025January 17, 2025Leave a comment

The sinus microbiome consists of bacteria, viruses, and fungi all coexisting in the sinuses. Research has long focused on how the bacteria in sinus microbiomes in people with chronic sinusitis is different than in healthy persons without sinusitis (and yes, there are differences). Differences in the mycobiome (the fungi) of the sinuses appear to also play a role in chronic sinusitis.

A few recent studies found that there are differences in the fungi living in the sinuses in those without sinusitis and those with sinusitis (but results varied among the studies). Whether fungi play a role in the development of sinusitis has long been debated. Additionally, when samples are taken with a swab compared to sinus tissue samples during surgery - the results are different.

Sinuses
Credit: Nat. Library of Medicine

In a recent study, researchers found differences in both the fungi (mycobiome), as well as bacteria, in persons with chronic sinusitis compared to healthy persons (the controls). There were differences in bacterial diversity (diminished diversity in those with chronic sinusitis), as well as the composition of the microbes. The researchers thought that fungal alterations can play a part in sinusitis.

By the way, when microbes in the sinuses are out of whack it is called dysbiosis. Researchers point out that the same microbes can be commensal or pathogenic (if numbers increase to high numbers) or have no effect on sinusitis.

Excerpts from The Laryngoscope: Fungal and Bacterial Microbiome in Sinus Mucosa of Patients with and without Chronic Rhinosinusitis

Abstract Objectives - Dysbiosis of the sinonasal microbiome has been implicated in the pathogenesis of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). However, the mycobiome remains largely understudied, and microbial alterations associated with specific CRS subtypes have yet to be delineated. The objective of this study is to investigate the fungal and bacterial microbiome of sinus mucosa in CRS patients with and without nasal polyposis (CRSwNP and CRSsNP) versus healthy controls. ...continue reading "Fungi and Bacteria In The Sinus Microbiome"