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Published on Leave a comment on Five Year Olds Have Similar Gut Microbes, No Matter the Type of Birth

The millions of bacteria, fungi, viruses (human microbiome) that live on and within us are extremely important for our health in all sorts of ways. The birth experience (as the baby travels down the birth canal) is one way that a mother's microbes get transmitted to the baby ("seeds" the baby's microbiome). But babies born by Cesarean delivery start out picking up different species of microbes - from dust in the operating room.

Thus there has been concern with the possibility that a baby born by C-section, as compared to a vaginal delivery, will have life long microbiome differences. Swedish researchers studied this issue in 471 children and determined that by 5 years of age that the microbiome differences at birth and first year of life have generally disappeared. The differences in microbial composition had decreased to less than 2% in the 2 groups. This is good news!

Over the 5 years everyone had a great increase in the number of microbial species that live in the gut. The gut microbiome became more "adult-like", but it wasn't yet like that of adults. A conclusion was that not only does it take years to develop adult microbial complexity, but there is also individual variation in how long this takes. A person's diet, especially the introduction of solid foods, and environment all have an effect on species diversity and composition.

By the way, another way mothers transmit hundreds of species of microbes to their babies is during nursing in the breast milk (this is great!), and these species change over time. This is a good reason to breast feed - it's not just the nutrition, but also the microbes.

From Science  Daily: Gut microbiota in Cesarean-born babies catches up

Infants born by cesarean section have a relatively meager array of bacteria in the gut. But by the age of three to five years they are broadly in line with their peers. This is shown by a study that also shows that it takes a remarkably long time for the mature intestinal microbiota to get established.  ...continue reading "Five Year Olds Have Similar Gut Microbes, No Matter the Type of Birth"

Published on Leave a comment on Encouraging Results For A Vaccine Targeting Brain Tumors

The possibility of a vaccine for helping the body fight cancer just got one step closer. A vaccine that targets a specific type of usually incurable brain cancer called "diffuse glioma" has had very good results in a trial of the vaccine. This is great news for a brain cancer that, even with treatment, keeps spreading throughout the brain, and only has a general 5-year survival rate of 48.9%.

The most important findings of the vaccine trial: the 3 year survival rate after being fully vaccinated was 84%, and in this group of 30 patients - 63% did not have any progression in tumor growth. And 82% of one subgroup of patients whose immune system showed a specific response to the vaccines had no tumor progression within the 3 year study period. This is amazing news for a cancer that typically has such a bleak prognosis.

brain cancer, diffuse glioma
Diffuse glioma in the brain. Credit: NCI

In a follow-up to this trial the researchers are combining the vaccine with checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy (which give the immune system a boost), and which they think (are hoping) may produce even better results. Think of it this way - these treatments have the potential for you (your body's immune system) to effectively fight a cancer. The future is looking bright!

From Medical Xpress: First-ever vaccine for malignant brain tumors reported safe, effective in early trial

Tumor vaccines can help the body fight cancer. Mutations in the tumor genome often lead to protein changes that are typical of cancer. A vaccine can alert the patient's immune system to these mutated proteins. For the first time, physicians and cancer researchers from Heidelberg and Mannheim have now carried out a clinical trial to test a mutation-specific vaccine against malignant brain tumors. The vaccine proved to be safe and triggered the desired immune response in the tumor tissue, as the team now reports in the journal Nature.  ...continue reading "Encouraging Results For A Vaccine Targeting Brain Tumors"

Published on Leave a comment on Some Get Large Rash On Arm After Moderna Vaccine
Syringe. Credit: Wikipedia

Some people get a large red rash on their arm after the first Moderna vaccine dose, and it is being called "COVID arm". It generally appears a few days after the shot, generally occurs in the arm that received the shot, and it goes away in less than a week. It occurs rarely - in under 1% of the people getting the first dose, and even less frequently (0.2%) after the second dose.

It is considered harmless - a hypersensitivity rash. Someone getting the rash after the first dose should get the second dose. In other words - everything is OK, and you can definitely proceed with the second vaccine shot.

You can take antihistamines if needed (if the rash is itchy).

The New England Journal of Medicine recently published a letter and photos about this rash - Delayed Large Local Reactions to mRNA-1273 Vaccine against SARS-CoV-2. Some patient photos of the rash:

Credit: New England Journal of Medicine

From the CDC page: If you get a rash where you got the shot

CDC has learned of reports that some people have experienced a red, itchy, swollen, or painful rash where they got the shot. These rashes can start a few days to more than a week after the first shot and are sometimes quite large. These rashes are also known as “COVID arm.” If you experience “COVID arm” after getting the first shot, you should still get the second shot at the recommended interval if the vaccine you got needs a second shot. Tell your vaccination provider that you experienced a rash or “COVID arm” after the first shot. Your vaccination provider may recommend that you get the second shot in the opposite arm.

If the rash is itchy, you can take an antihistamine. If it is painful, you can take a pain medication like acetaminophen or a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID).

Published on Leave a comment on High Flame Retardant Levels During Pregnancy Linked to Preterm Birth

Pregnant women now have another reason to try to limit exposure to flame retardants while pregnant - having higher levels of flame retardants in their blood during pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of preterm birth.

Nearly 100% of North American women have flame retardants  such as poly-brominated ethers (PBDEs) in their bodies, which can be measured in their blood. Unfortunately they are  hormone (endocrine ) disruptors, and they are also very similar in structure to thyroid hormones. Flame retardants have a number of harmful health effects during pregnancy.

A team of NY and California researchers checked the level of one type of PBDE in the blood of 3,529 pregnant women in the first trimester of pregnancy. They found that those with the highest levels (above 4 nanograms per milliliter of blood) had a higher incidence of preterm birth. But if they had levels below that there wasn't an increased risk of preterm birth.

Flame retardants are all around us (e.g. synthetic carpeting, upholstered furniture), but they migrate out of the product, and so get into us. Yes, they are in our household dust. There are ways to minimize exposures - for example, check carpeting, sofa, and upholstered furniture labels, and only buy those products free of flame retardants. See tips on how to lower your exposure to harmful chemicals.

From Medical Xpress: Exposure to flame retardants early in pregnancy linked to premature birth

Expectant women are more likely to give birth early if they have high blood levels of a chemical used in flame retardants compared with those who have limited exposure, a new study finds. ...continue reading "High Flame Retardant Levels During Pregnancy Linked to Preterm Birth"

Published on Leave a comment on Main Difference Between Male and Female Brains Is Size

Finally, a huge review of decades of studies answers the question of whether there are actual structural differences between male and female brains. And the answer is...(drumroll)... No - they are very similar. There aren't male brains and female brains with 2 different brain shapes or features. The main difference is a size difference in brain volume.

Women tend to have a little smaller brain (about 11% in adults) because they are smaller than men. (Similarly, smaller men also have smaller brains.) The Chicago Medical School researchers found that any sex/gender differences in the human brain are extremely subtle and inconsistent, and maybe account for 1% of variation between males and females. Note: Brain size is not correlated with or indicative of intelligence! 

They found that the size of the structures in the brain (e.g cerebellum, hippocampus) change along with the volume - it's a matter of proportion. The researchers summarized it: "Males’ brains are larger than females’ from birth, stabilizing around 11% in adults. This size difference accounts for other reproducible findings: higher white/gray matter ratio, intra- versus interhemispheric connectivity, and regional cortical and subcortical volumes in males."

By the way, the researchers also point out that large studies find that human males and females are far more similar than different in most measures of cognition, personality and attitudes.

From Medical Xpress: Massive study reveals few differences between men and women's brains

How different are men and women's brains? The question has been explored for decades, but a new study led by Rosalind Franklin University neuroscientist Lise Eliot is the first to coalesce this wide-ranging research into a single mega-synthesis. And the answer is: hardly at all. ...continue reading "Main Difference Between Male and Female Brains Is Size"

Published on Leave a comment on A New Book Discusses Falling Sperm Counts and The Chemicals Around Us
Human sperm. Credit: Wikipedia

Back in 2017 the world was shocked by a major study that focused on dropping sperm counts in men living in Western countries - a drop of over 50% in 4 decades, or about 1% per year. Along with an increase in infertility. If the drop in sperm counts continues at its current pace, it ultimately means that humans soon will not be able to reproduce. Worse case scenario: extinction of humans.

Dr. Shanna Swan, who an author of the study, has a just published an excellent eye-opening book about this topic. The cause for these sperm count drops and increasing infertility are the hormone (endocrine) disrupting chemicals in everyday products all around us. In plastics, in many pesticides, in personal care products, in our foods (from the packaging)... Yes, all around us. It turns out these chemicals have all sorts of harmful health effects, not just lowering of sperm counts and increasing infertility. [see below]

Good news: we can't escape all the harmful chemicals around us, but we can really decrease our exposures and so decrease the levels of these chemicals in our bodies. And it's better for our health! For tips on ways to reduce your exposures and the levels of harmful chemicals in your body - see Avoiding Harmful Chemicals.

The highly recommended book is written by Shanna Swan, PhD and Stacey Colino: Count Down: How Our Modern World Is Threatening Sperm Counts, Altering Male and Female Reproductive Development, and Imperiling the Future of the Human Race. Scribner, 2020. With many pages of references at the end.

An interesting short interview with Dr. Shanna Swan. From The Intercept: TOXIC CHEMICALS THREATEN HUMANITY’S ABILITY TO REPRODUCE

..a book that ties industrial chemicals in everyday products to a wide range of changes taking place in recent years, including increasing numbers of babies born with smaller penises; higher rates of erectile dysfunction; declining fertility; eroding sex differences in some animal species; and potentially even behaviors that are thought of as gender-typical.

Excerpts by Shanna Swan and Stacey Colino's piece from Scientific American: Reproductive Problems in Both Men and Women Are Rising at an Alarming Rate

When you see or hear a reference to “the 1 percent,” most people think of socioeconomic status—the people with the top 1 percent of wealth or income in the United States, which is how the term is commonly used in our culture.

Not us, though.  ...continue reading "A New Book Discusses Falling Sperm Counts and The Chemicals Around Us"

Published on Leave a comment on Avoid Caffeine During Pregnancy

Evidence is building that caffeine should be avoided during pregnancy because it harms the developing baby. A recent study found when caffeine (coffee!) is consumed during pregnancy, then structural changes occur in the brain of the developing baby. These changes can be seen years later in brain scans, and these appear to result in behavioral changes in the children. The minimal, but noticeable behavioral changes were behavioral issues, attention difficulties, and hyperactivity.

The Univ. of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry researchers  found subtle changes in brain pathways ("alteration of the microstructure of critical fiber tracts") between brain regions that could be seen in the children at age 9 to 10 years. They analyzed brain scans (from MRIs) of 9157 children, of which 4,135 had mothers that reported consuming caffeine more than once a week.

Other studies find that health problems associated with caffeine (coffee) intake during pregnancy are miscarriage, stillbirth, low birth weight and/or small for gestational age, and childhood leukemia. There is a dose-response effect - the more caffeine is ingested, the more negative health effects.

Other human studies looking at this issue are observational, but negative health effects are supported by animal research going back more than four decades. Caffeine crosses the placenta and goes to the baby. Negative health effects occur because the fetus can not clear the caffeine well because it lacks an enzyme that metabolizes caffeine.

Unfortunately, medical guidelines in both the US and Europe are that moderate (up to 200 mg) ingestion of caffeine during pregnancy is OK, which means about 2 cups of regular coffee a day. Since studies show it's not OK, it's time to revise the guidelines!

From Science Daily: Brain changed by caffeine in utero

New research finds caffeine consumed during pregnancy can change important brain pathways that could lead to behavioral problems later in life. Researchers in the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) analyzed thousands of brain scans of nine and ten-year-olds, and revealed changes in the brain structure in children who were exposed to caffeine in utero.  ...continue reading "Avoid Caffeine During Pregnancy"

Published on Leave a comment on The Bacteria In Breast Milk Change Over Time
Breastfeeding
Credit: Wikimedia Commons/ Anton Nosik

For years it has been known that breast milk transfers hundreds of microbial species to the baby -  which is very important and beneficial for the baby's microbiome (community of fungi, viruses, bacteria, and other microbes) and health. A recent study found that the bacteria in breast milk varies over time, which is a good reason to breastfeed for at least 6 months - the baby ingests all these beneficial species in the breast milk.

Breast milk samples were collected from 76 breastfeeding (lactating) mothers living in 8 villages in the remote Western Highlands of Guatemala during "early lactation" (6–46 days postpartum) or after months of breastfeeding or "late lactation" (109 to184 days postpartum). Modern technologies (genetic sequencing) were used to analyze the breast milk.

The researchers found a bacterial or microbiome shift from Staphylococcus and several Streptococcus species in early lactation to Sphingobium and Pseudomonas species in late lactation, along with other bacterial shifts. The changing bacterial species have different roles in the body. There were even species never before reported in breast milk, such as: Janthinobacterium agaricidamnosum, Novosphingobium clariflavumm, Ottowia beijingensis, and Flavobacterium cucumis.

Of course much is still unknown about the breastmilk microbiome, and even what is a "core" breast milk microbiome - that is, what species are the core species in all breast milk. But it's clear what the baby gets from the breast milk changes over time.  It's still early days in this research!

Note that all these hundreds of species are not those found in probiotic supplements or formula - a baby must breastfeed to get them. Unfortunately, it is estimated that only 26% of North American mothers breastfeed their babies for at least 6 months (Unicef data).

From Futurity: Breast Milk Offers Different Bacteria Over Time

This bacterial cocktail could act like a daily booster shot for infant immunity and metabolism. ...continue reading "The Bacteria In Breast Milk Change Over Time"

Published on Leave a comment on Diet Rich In Plant-based Foods Associated With a Lower Risk of Stroke

Once again a study found health benefits from eating a diet rich in plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, beans, nuts, and seeds This time the health benefit was a lower incidence of stroke.

Researchers from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health looked at the data from two large studies and found that a diet high in quality plant-based foods may reduce the risk of having a stroke by about 10%. The lower risk was for ischemic stroke, in which a blood clot blocks artery to brain. There was no difference in risk for hemorrhagic stroke.

Interestingly, researchers found no association between a vegetarian diet and risk of stroke, but the number of cases was small.

From Medical Xpress: Diet high in healthful plant-based food may reduce risk of stroke by 10%

Eating a healthy, plant-based diet that includes foods like vegetables, whole grains and beans, and decreasing intakes of less healthy foods like refined grains or added sugars may reduce your risk of having a stroke by up to 10%, according to a study published in the March 10, 2021, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study found a diet high in quality plant-based foods may reduce your risk of having an ischemic stroke.  ...continue reading "Diet Rich In Plant-based Foods Associated With a Lower Risk of Stroke"

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Published on 4 Comments on Years of Treating Sinusitis Successfully Without Antibiotics

This is now the 9th year of successfully using only probiotics to treat sinusitis - both chronic sinusitis and regular sinus infections. This means no antibiotics or any other antibacterial has been used in more than 8 years! This is amazing – ten years ago I didn't believe this to be possible.

We (myself and family members) have accomplished this by using the amazing probiotic (beneficial bacteria) Lactobacillus sakei. This bacteria occurs naturally (in tiny amounts) in healthy sinuses, but is depleted or missing in those with sinusitis. I started using kimchi back in 2013 after reading research. The last few years I've used the refrigerated product Lanto Sinus, which contains a kimchi-derived strain of Lactobacillus sakei. 

I have heard from hundreds of people since the blog started, and the majority agree - Lactobacillus sakei works great as a sinusitis treatment! (Other probiotic species just don't work.) [See Best Probiotics For Sinusitis for details on results and products used.]

What I've learned about Lactobacillus sakei:

  1. Only use it when needed, when there are some sinus symptoms or you're sliding towards sinusitis. Just like with antibiotics, you shouldn't take it daily and routinely.
  2. Swishing a product like Lanto Sinus in the mouth alone is a gentle and cautious way to use the product. Using it in the nostrils is a stronger way to use the product.
  3. Don't overdo it. Using a little bit in the nostrils (as described in Sinusitis Treatment Summary) is sufficient. Let the little buggers travel on their own throughout the sinuses!
  4. Use for a few days and evaluate whether you can stop or whether you need to keep using it longer. Frequently the sinuses keep improving even after stopping Lactobacillus sakei. One can always use more if needed.
  5. If Lactobacillus sakei works for a person, it can feel miraculous as sinusitis symptoms disappear, frequently within a few days. Others have slower improvement. Unfortunately, it doesn't work for everyone and only self-experimentation determines whether it does - after all, everyone's sinus microbiome is different.
  6. Lactobacillus sakei alone is enough to treat sinusitis. Don't need fancy concoctions or fancy protocols when using it. Using it should take under 1 minute a day!
  7. The sinus microbiome slowly improves, so we are using less and less of Lanto Sinus over time. There have been improvements in the sinuses – for example, this past year my snot is like it used to be decades ago before sinus problems. We are also getting fewer upper respiratory infections.
  8. My sense is that Lactobacillus sakei is colonizing in the sinuses, at least in the short term (weeks or months).

Hopefully this offers hope to sinus infection sufferers.

I also want to mention that I'm a consultant for Lanto Health, but that's because I really like the product and use it whenever needed.

Good health!