From lfljvenaura at gmail.com Tue Mar 12 14:59:43 2019 From: lfljvenaura at gmail.com (Lawrence London) Date: Tue, 12 Mar 2019 14:59:43 -0400 Subject: [pchealth] 8 of the top 10 countries that live the longest are also all near the top 10 in Fish consumption. (Interesting observation) : nutrition Message-ID: 8 of the top 10 countries that live the longest are also all near the top 10 in Fish consumption. (Interesting observation) : nutrition https://www.reddit.com/r/nutrition/comments/b0a137/8_of_the_top_10_countries_that_live_the_longest/?st=jt63b9gx&sh=bb46571f Comment: "So I was looking at The World Health Organization list of countries with the highest life expectancies. I was trying to figure out if there was a common trend among the countries in the top 10 (nutrition wise). I came to realise that most of these countries were also in the top 10 for total fish consumption per capita. Japan, Spain, Iceland, Italy, South Korea, France, Sweden, Hong Kong, Australia were all countries that were in the top 10 (or very close) of life expectancy and fish consumption per capita. Here is the life expectancy ranking- https://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2016/EN_WHS2016_AnnexB.pdf?ua=1 Here are some rankings of fish consumption- https://www.helgilibrary.com/indicators/fish-consumption-per-capita/ Now obviously i'm sure many other factors come into play that contribute to a higher life expectancy. I'm not here to promote eating fish or anything I just thought it was something interesting." " the lower in the food chain is the animal the less heavy metals it will have build up. And sardines are actually the safest fish to eat in that regard as they only have concentration of mercury of 0.013 ppm. Compare it to canned tuna that has concentration of 0.354 ppm." https://www.fda.gov/food/foodborneillnesscontaminants/metals/ucm115644.htm https://www.usgs.gov/news/comprehensive-study-finds-widespread-mercury-contamination-across-western-north-america?qt-news_science_products=3#qt-news_science_products -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lindaray at att.net Tue Mar 12 17:37:58 2019 From: lindaray at att.net (Linda Ray) Date: Tue, 12 Mar 2019 21:37:58 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [pchealth] 8 of the top 10 countries that live the longest are also all near the top 10 in Fish consumption. (Interesting observation) : nutrition In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1993646394.3826923.1552426678491@mail.yahoo.com> Hi Larry, Thanks for posting :-). IMHO almost all, if not all, of the chronic diseases and disabilities we are seeing today (In the US) results from a combination of longterm nutrient/micronutrient deficiencies, and chemical poisoning. Namaste, Linda On Tuesday, March 12, 2019, 11:59:56 AM PDT, Lawrence London wrote: 8 of the top 10 countries that live the longest are also all near the top 10 in Fish consumption. (Interesting observation) : nutrition https://www.reddit.com/r/nutrition/comments/b0a137/8_of_the_top_10_countries_that_live_the_longest/?st=jt63b9gx&sh=bb46571f Comment: "So I was looking at The World Health Organization list of countries with the highest life expectancies. I was trying to figure out if there was a common trend among the countries in the top 10 (nutrition wise). I came to realise that most of these countries were also in the top 10 for total fish consumption per capita. Japan, Spain, Iceland, Italy, South Korea, France, Sweden, Hong Kong, Australia were all countries that were in the top 10 (or very close) of life expectancy and fish consumption per capita. Here is the life expectancy ranking- https://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2016/EN_WHS2016_AnnexB.pdf?ua=1 Here are some rankings of fish consumption-https://www.helgilibrary.com/indicators/fish-consumption-per-capita/ Now obviously i'm sure many other factors come into play that contribute to a higher life expectancy. I'm not here to promote eating fish or anything I just thought it was something interesting." " the lower in the food chain is the animal the less heavy metals it will have build up. And sardines are actually the safest fish to eat in that regard as they only have concentration of mercury of 0.013 ppm. Compare it to canned tuna that has concentration of 0.354 ppm." https://www.fda.gov/food/foodborneillnesscontaminants/metals/ucm115644.htm https://www.usgs.gov/news/comprehensive-study-finds-widespread-mercury-contamination-across-western-north-america?qt-news_science_products=3#qt-news_science_products _______________________________________________ pchealth mailing list pchealth at lists.ibiblio.org https://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/pchealth -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lfljvenaura at gmail.com Fri Mar 15 15:11:22 2019 From: lfljvenaura at gmail.com (Lawrence London) Date: Fri, 15 Mar 2019 15:11:22 -0400 Subject: [pchealth] Risks from free radicals and value of antioxidants (from Ocasio-Cortez's research) Message-ID: Intel ISEF alumna headed to Capitol Hill | Society for Science & the Public https://www.societyforscience.org/content/ssp-blog/intel-isef-alumna-headed-capitol-hill >From Alexandria's research this valuable information: "When organisms are under oxidative stress, there are more free radicals (chemicals with unpaired electrons) than antioxidants in the body to neutralize them. Those free radicals react quickly with many other chemicals, and without antioxidants to neutralize them, create cellular chaos. Such an unstable cellular environment has been hypothesized to be responsible for wrinkles, neurological diseases and even cancer. Alexandria chose compounds with the highest cited number of antioxidant capabilities and observed how they impacted longevity of the roundworms. In some cases, lifespan was prolonged for as many as 33 days, almost doubling the nematode?s normal lifespan. Her findings indicated that antioxidants could potentially help prevent degenerative illnesses induced by oxidative stress." The total antioxidant content of more than 3100 foods, beverages, spices, herbs and supplements used worldwide https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2841576/ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lfljvenaura at gmail.com Fri Mar 15 18:59:47 2019 From: lfljvenaura at gmail.com (Lawrence London) Date: Fri, 15 Mar 2019 18:59:47 -0400 Subject: [pchealth] Harvard University uncovers DNA switch that controls genes for whole-body regeneration Message-ID: https://sg.news.yahoo.com/harvard-university-uncovers-dna-switch-180000109.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZHJ1ZGdlcmVwb3J0LmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAH5faCkzMJMG1PGyJkrZ3HRLzSjYfbsyTA33GmVm7c8Xi8SEznX1gOIaBFPuCXCJ6jxjCuTjOZWWhVd71mdMBcf6y_joE9VzB3rAB_Xo2Qbl9AEgshvIxouoXYfn_QhZEEHzqqx28iPZEYw-Nh8Y09nCLirYytTTTb1Q8HO4hU8G Harvard University uncovers DNA switch that controls genes for whole-body regeneration Humans may one day have the ability to regrow limbs after scientists at Harvard University uncovered the DNA switch that controls genes for whole-body regeneration. Some animals can achieve extraordinary feats of repair, such as salamanders which grow back legs, or geckos which can shed their tails to escape predators and then form new ones in just two months. Planarian worms, jellyfish, and sea anemones go even further, actually regenerating their entire bodies after being cut in half. Now scientists have discovered that that in worms, a section of non-coding or ?junk? DNA controls the activation of a ?master control gene? called early growth response (EGR) which acts like a power switch, turning regeneration on or off. ?We were able to decrease the activity of this gene and we found that if you don't have EGR, nothing happens," said Dr Mansi Srivastava, Assistant Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. ?The animals just can't regenerate. All those downstream genes won't turn on, so the other switches don't work, and the whole house goes dark, basically.? The studies were done in three-banded panther worms. Scientists found that during regeneration the tightly-packed DNA in their cells, starts to unfold, allowing new areas to activate. But crucially humans also carry EGR, and produce it when cells are stressed and in need of repair, yet it does not seem to trigger large scale regeneration. Scientists now think that it master gene is wired differently in humans to animals and are now trying to find a way to tweak its circuitry to reap its regenerative benefits. Post doctoral student Andrew Gehrke of Harvard believes the answer lies in the area of non-coding DNA controlling the gene. Non-coding or junk DNA was once believed to do nothing, but in recent years scientists have realised is having a major impact. ?Only about two percent of the genome makes things like proteins," added Mr Gehrke said. ?We wanted to know: What is the other 98 percent of the genome doing during whole-body regeneration? ?I think we've only just scratched the surface. We've looked at some of these switches, but there's a whole other aspect of how the genome is interacting on a larger scale, and all of that is important for turning genes on and off.? Marine animals, such as the moon jellyfish, are masters of regeneration and some have been found to clone themselves after death. In 2016, a Japanese scientist reported that three months after the death of his pet jellyfish, a sea anemone-like polyp rose out of the degraded body, and then astonishingly aged backwards, reverting to a younger state. In the 1990s, scientists in Italy discovered that the Turritopsis dohrnii jellyfish switches back and forth from being a baby to an adult, resulting in its nickname, the immortal jellyfish. Dr Srivastava added: ?The question is: If humans can turn on EGR, and not only turn it on, but do it when our cells are injured, why can't we regenerate?" added Dr Srivastava. "It's a very natural question to look at the natural world and think, if a gecko can do this why can't I? ?The answer may be that if EGR is the power switch, we think the wiring is different. What EGR is talking to in human cells may be different than what it is talking to in the three-banded panther worm.? The research was published in the journal Science . A master regulator of regeneration 1. Michael Alonge1 , 2. Michael C. Schatz1 ,2 ,3 See all authors and affiliations Science 15 Mar 2019: Vol. 363, Issue 6432, pp. 1152-1153 DOI: 10.1126/science.aaw6258 http://science.sciencemag.org/content/363/6432/1152 Summary *Hofstenia miamia*, commonly called the three-banded panther worm, is a small flatworm that can be found along the shores of the Caribbean and other warm waters. It is known for its impressive regenerative capabilities, including the ability to regenerate any body part within a few days of amputation. Previous reports identified some of the molecular signals used to coordinate regeneration (*1*), although the specific genes and gene networks that regulate this response were unknown. On page 1191 of this issue, Gehrke *et al.* (*2*) developed an impressive collection of genomic resources for the species, including extensive DNA, RNA, and chromatin accessibility data to promote *H. miamia* as a new model system for studying regeneration. Using these data, they identify early growth response (*Egr*), which encodes a candidate pioneer transcription factor responsible for regulating the molecular regenerating response to wounding. http://www.sciencemag.org/about/science-licenses-journal-article-reuse This is an article distributed under the terms of the Science Journals Default License . -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lfljvenaura at gmail.com Sat Mar 16 02:08:12 2019 From: lfljvenaura at gmail.com (Lawrence London) Date: Sat, 16 Mar 2019 02:08:12 -0400 Subject: [pchealth] Diet and the human digestive tract microbiota and health. Message-ID: 1) Overall, dietary changes could explain 57% of the total structural variation in gut microbiota whereas changes in genetics accounted for no more than 12%. This indicates that diet has a dominating role in shaping gut microbiota : nutrition https://www.reddit.com/r/nutrition/comments/b1npoy/overall_dietary_changes_could_explain_57_of_the/?st=jtb2yqco&sh=d78effe2 Really great roundup of various studies re: microbiome here https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3448089/ The influence of diet on the composition of the microbiota has been shown during the initial colonization phase: breast fed infants have higher levels of Bifidobacteria spp. while formula fed infants have higher levels of Bacteroides spp., as well as increased Clostridium coccoides and Lactobacillus spp. [44]. Beyond the postnatal period, the microbiota was suspected to be relatively stable throughout life. However, several recent studies have shown that dietary factors alter the microbial community resulting in biological changes to the host (Table 1). In fact, the composition of the gut microbiota strongly correlates with diet as demonstrated by a study assessing the relative contributions of host genetics and diet in shaping the gut microbiota and modulating metabolic syndrome phenotypes in mice. In mice fed a diet high in fat, there are many key gut population changes, such as the absence of gut barrier-protecting Bifidobacteria spp. Overall, dietary changes could explain 57% of the total structural variation in gut microbiota whereas changes in genetics accounted for no more than 12% [45]. *This indicates that diet has a dominating role in shaping gut microbiota* and changing key populations may transform healthy gut microbiota into a disease-inducing entity. For example, the ?Western? diet, which is high in sugar and fat, causes dysbiosis which affects both host GI tract metabolism and immune homeostasis [46]. This was modeled in a humanized mouse model where adult human fecal microbiota was transplanted into GF mice. The mice were fed a low-fat, plant polysaccharide-rich diet and when switched to a ?Western? diet, the microbiota composition shifted to an overgrowth of Firmicutes including Clostridium innocuum, Eubacterium dolichum, Catenibacterium mitsuokai and Enterococcus spp., as well as a significant reduction in several Bacteroides spp. [18]. In mice, carbohydrate-reduced diets result in enriched populations of bacteria from the Bacteroidetes phyla, [47] and calorie-restricted diets prevent the growth of Clostridium coccoides, Lactobacillus spp. and Bifidobacteria spp., which are all major butyrate producers required for colonocyte homeostasis [48]. Diets rich in complex carbohydrates show less pathogenic species such as Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis and Enterobacteriaceae [49] than diets higher in fat or protein [48,50,51,52]. Complex carbohydrates also increase levels of beneficial Bifidobacteria spp. such as B. longum subspecies longum, B. breve and B. thetaiotaomicron [53]. *Refined sugars, on the other hand, mediate the overgrowth of opportunistic bacteria like C. difficile [54] and C. perfringens by increasing bile output* [55]. Vegetarianism alters intestinal microbiota in humans because high amounts of fiber result in increased short chain fatty acid production by microbes which decrease the intestinal pH. This prevents the growth of potentially pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli and other members of Enterobacteriaceae [56]. Interestingly, it has been found that European children have a microbiota depleted of Bacteroidetes and enriched in Enterobacteriaceae compared to rural African children which the authors attributed to low dietary fiber intake by Europeans 2) Brain Maker: The Power of Gut Microbes to Heal and Protect Your Brain--for Life https://www.reddit.com/r/HumanMicrobiome/comments/b1gi4j/brain_maker_the_power_of_gut_microbes_to_heal_and/?st=jtb35ryi&sh=5286e7ed I have finished reading *Brain Maker: The Power of Gut Microbes to Heal and Protect Your Brain--for Life*. I give it three out of five stars for being entertaining and accessible science writing. I give it four out of five stars for actionable, take-home points of probiotics in relation to cognition. I rate it highly because I am already a believer in the probiotic enema, and this book gives instructions for and a medical case study of probiotic enemas. This book was published in 2015, so the research is already dated. I will walk through the book with you. Page six says "We as neurologists are trained to focus on what goes on in the nervous system, and specifically in the brain, in a myopic way. We automatically end up viewing other bodily systems, such as the gastrointestinal tract, as discrete entities that have no bearing whatsoever on what goes on in the brain. After all, when you have a stomachache you don't call a cardiologist or a neurologist. ... This perspective is grossly out of touch with current science. The digestive system is intimately connected to what goes on in the brain." Page 15 says "Although microbial testing kits are starting to emerge on the market, I don't think the research is there yet in terms of knowing what the results truly mean (healthy vs. unhealthy) and which risk factors you bear. In the future I have no doubt we'll be able to establish evidence-based parameters and defined correlations between certain microbial signatures and conditions. But for now this is tricky terrain; it's still too early ... That said, these kits can be useful for gauging the diversity and general composition of your microbiome." Page 55 says "Dr. Alessio Fasano of Harvard ... [identified] the now-established relationship among gluten consumption, increased gut permeability, and widespread inflammation throughout the body. .... [New] science is telling us that the inflammation brought on by a loss of gut integrity can lead to leaky brains. ... You've probably heard about the highly protective, fortified portal keeping bad things out of the brain: the blood-brain barrier. ... It has just recently become clear, however, that many substances can threaten the integrity of the blood-brain barrier, letting inside various molecules that may spell trouble, including proteins, viruses, and even bacteria that would normally have been excluded. ... What's even more alarming is Dr. Fasano's recent discovery that not only is there increased gut permeability when the gut is exposed to gliadin, a protein found in gluten, but in fact the blood-brain barrier also becomes more permeable in response to gliadin exposure. It's as if one door mistakenly opened leads to the opening of another door. Intruders galore." Page 56 says "How can you test for a leaky gut? Every day I perform simple blood tests on patients to help me get a sense of their gut lining's integrity. I use what's called the Cyrex Array 2, which offers the most sophisticated screening tests on the market today. The array, by Cyrex Labs (www.CyrexLabs.com), measures antibodies produced by the immune system when it is confronted by a molecule called LPS, short for *lipopolysaccharide*. No conversation about the microbiome, inflammation, and brain health can exclude the impact of this molecule." Pages 72-74 say "Depression is now the leading cause of disability worldwide, impacting more than 350 million people (according to the World Health Organization, depression will displace heart disease in terms of cost of caring for patients by the year 2020.) ... Whether it's Prozac, Cymbalta, Zoloft, Elavil, Lexapro, Wellbutrin, or any of the other commonly prescribed antidepressants, these medicines simply treat the symptoms, and only minimally so. ... I am saddened by the fact that the billion-dollar psychotropic pharmaceutical industry is predicated on the idea that people will take a pill to treat symptoms, while the underlying disorder is ignored. ... And you know where I am going with this[.] The research exploring the connection between the gut and psychiatric issues is now narrowing in on the microbiome. ... [G]round zero for all things mood-related is the gut." Page 76 says "Today, much of the focus is on studies that show a link between gut dysfunction and the brain, and, more specifically, the link between the presence of inflammatory markers in the blood (indicating that the body's immune system is on high alert) and risk for depression. Higher levels of inflammation dramatically increase the risk of developing depression. And the higher the levels of inflammatory markers, the worse the depression. ... Some of the studies have been downright eye-opening. For example, when scientists give healthy people with no signs of depression an infusion of a substance to trigger inflammation, ... classic depressive symptoms arose almost instantly. Similarly, it's been shown that when people are given interferon for the treatment of hepatitis C, which increases inflammatory cytokines, a quart of those individuals develop major depression. ... What's even more compelling is new research demonstrating that antidepressant medications may work in some people by virtue of their ability to decrease inflammatory chemicals. Put another way, the actual mechanism for modern antidepressants may have nothing at all to do with their effect on serotonin and everything to do with decreasing inflammation." Page 81 says "Although the studies showing the gut-brain axis and the relationship between the intestinal microbiome and mental health do go back many years, it seems that only recently have scientists really begun to dig deep into studying this connection and how one can manipulate gut bacteria to improve mental health. ... In another study, this one published in *Gastroenterology*, the researchers showed that they could switch a mouse's gut bacteria with that of another and significantly alter behavior. They transplanted microbes from a timid group of mice into the guts of risk-taking mice and watched their personalities change. The shy mice became outgoing; the brazen mice become apprehensive. In the words of the study's lead author, Jane Foster: 'It's good evidence that the microbiota houses these behaviors.'" Page 82 says "A team of UCLA researchers conducted a nifty little experiment published in 2013[.] ... Thirty-six women were split into three groups: Group 1 consumed, twice daily for four weeks, a yogurt mixture containing several probiotics; Group 2 ate a dairy product that looked and tasted like yogurt but didn't have any probiotics; and Group 3 ate no specific product at all. ... At the four-week point, participants were shown images designed to induce an emotional response. Specifically, they viewed a series of pictures of angry of frightened people and matched them to other faces showing the same emotions. ... What scientists found was remarkable. The women who ate the yogurt that contained the probiotics showed decreased activity in both the insula and the somatosensory cortex during the emotional reaction task. ... These women also had less activity, or excitability, in the brain's widespread network related to emotion, cognition, and sensory processing. The women in the other two groups, on the other hand, exhibited stable or increased activity in this network, indicating that they were emotionally impacted and disturbed by the images." Pages 143-44 read "In a beautifully written and well-cited review of what we know so far about he complex diet-gut-microbes-health equation, Canadian researchers stated the following: "Overall, dietary changes could explain 57% of the total structural variation in gut microbiota whereas changes in the genetics accounted for no more than 12%. This indicates that diet has a dominating role in shaping gut microbiota and changing key populations may transform healthy gut microbiota into a disease-inducing entity. ... Let me repeat: *Diet has the dominant role in shaping gut microbiota, and changing key populations may transform healthy gut microbiota into a disease-inducing entity.*" Page 145 reads "Fructose has long-term effects when it's consumed in large quantities from unnatural sources. Numerous studies have shown that fructose is associated with impaired glucose tolerance, insulin resistance, high blood fats, and hypertension. ... [N]ew research shows that obesity might be a reflection of changes in the microbiome *brought on by fructose exposure*." Page 146-47 read "Professor Eran Segal, a computational biologist at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, led his team on a series of experiments to answer one question: Do artificial sweeteners affect healthy gut bacteria? Segal and his colleagues started by adding the fake sugars saccharin, sucralose, or aspartame to the drinking water of different groups of mice. They gave other mouse groups the real sugars glucose or sucrose ... in their water. Their control group drank plain, unsweetened water. Eleven weeks later, the mice that received the artificial sweeteners exhibited signs that they weren't able to process real sugar well, as measured by higher levels of glucose intolerance compared with the others. To see whether gut bacteria had anything to do with the link between drinking fake sugar and developing glucose intolerance, the researchers gave the mice antibiotics for four weeks to essentially exterminate their gut bacteria. Lo and behold, after the annihilation all the mouse groups were able to metabolize sugar equally well. ... Next, the researchers transplanted gut bacteria from mice that had consumed saccharin into germ-free mice with no gut bacteria of their own. Within just six days, the tainted mice had lost some of their ability to process sugar. The genetic analyses of the gut colonies spoke for themselves, revealing a shift in composition of the gut bacteria upon exposure to the artificial sweetener. ... Research is now underway on humans, and so far preliminary results indeed show that ... gut bacteria of people who regularly consume artificial sweeteners look different from gut bacteria of people who do not." Page 149 reads "[W]hile a small percentage of the population is highly sensitive to gluten and suffers from celiac disease, it's possible for virtually everyone to have a negative, albeit undetected, reaction. Gluten sensitivity--with or without the presence of celiac--increases the production of inflammatory cytokines, which are pivotal players in neurodegenerative conditions. And as I've been implying, the brain is one of the most susceptible organs to the deleterious effects of inflammation." Pages 150-51 read "Gluten is made up of two main groups of proteins the *glutenins* and the *gliadins*. You can be sensitive to either of these proteins or to one of the twelve different, smaller units that make up gliadin. ... It's quite possible that the entire cascade of adverse effects that take place when the body is exposed to gluten starts with a change in the microbiome--ground zero. Before I explain this cascade, let me remind you of a few important facts. ... Gluten's 'sticky' attribute interferes with the breakdown and absorption of nutrients, which leads to poorly digested food that can then sound the alarm in the immune system, eventually resulting in an assault on the lining of the small intestine. ... This process can damage tissues, leaving the walls of the intestine compromised,a condition that you know by now is called 'leaky gut.' According to Harvard's Dr. Alessio Fasano, exposure to the gliadin protein in particular increases gut permeability *in all of us*. ... In fact, the same company--Cyrex Labs--that does the blood screening tests for LPS also performs high-tech tests for gluten sensitivity (go to www.DrPerlmutter.com/Resources for more about these important tests." Page 153 reads "[R]esearchers also noted a measurable impact of the gluten on the bacterial flora of the mice, leading the scientists to conclude that 'the presence of gluten is directly responsible for the pro-diabetogenic effects of the diets and it determines the gut microflora. Our novel study thus suggests that dietary gluten could modulate the incidence of [type 1 diabetes] by changing the gut microbiome." Page 153 also reads "Research shows that modern wheat is capable of producing more than 23,000 different proteins, any one of which could trigger a potentially damaging inflammatory response. While we know the harmful effects that gluten can have, I predict that all future research will reveal more injurious proteins that travel with gluten in modern grains that have equally, if not more, deleterious effects on the body and brain." Page 155 reads "Let's get a little closer to the science of what else threatens your gut's community from the perspective of drugs and environmental chemicals:" antibiotics, the birth control pill, NSAIDs, environmental chemicals, and herbicide-laden GMO foods. Antibiotics - the studies cited seemed commonsense about the long-term deleterious effects of antibiotics on gut flora. The birth control pill - This does not apply to me NSAIDs - Page 168 reads "In the past, multiple studies dating as far back as the 1990s have shown that people who have taken non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications such as Advil ... and Aleve ... for two or more years may have a 40% reduced risk for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. This makes sense when you consider that these are principally inflammatory diseases, so when you control inflammation you control risk. ... But newer studies are now emerging to reveal a twist in the story. It's been shown that these medications can increase the risk of damage to the gut lining, especially in the presence of gluten." Environmental Chemicals - Pages 169-70 read "For example, take the ubiquitous compound bisphenol-A (BPA). More than 93 percent of us carry traces of this chemical in our bodies. ... The BPA found in plastic food containers has been shown to generate hormonal imbalances in both women and men." Page 171 reads "Chemicals found in our water supply, principally residual chlorine, can also be destructive to the microbiome. Chlorine is bactericidal; it effectively kills a large variety of microbial waterborne pathogens." Herbicide-laden GMO foods - Page 173 reads "The two top GMO crops in the U.S. are corn and soy (and, by extension, all the products that contain these ingredients; it's estimated that GMOs are in as much as 80 percent of conventional processed food.) ... America's farmers now spray a weed-killing chemical, glyphosate (RoundUp), on their crops. The harvested crop is prevented from also being targeted by the herbicide because the seeds used are genetically modified to be resistant to the herbicide's effects. It the world of agriculture, these seeds are known as 'RoundUp ready.' ... It is estimated that by 2017 farmers will apply an astonishing 1.35 metric tons of glyphosate to their crops. But here's the problem: Glyphosate residues represent a threat to human health. In the wheat industry in particular, farmers saturate the fields with RoundUp a few days before harvest to generate bigger and better yield. This suggests a new perspective on gluten sensitivity: It just may be that the rise in gluten intolerance and celiac disease is largely due to the increased use of RoundUp. When you chart the incidence of celiac and the levels of glyphosate applied to wheat over the last 25 years, a stunning parallel pattern emerges." On page 174 there is a chart mapping Celiac incidence nearly 1:1 with glyphosate on wheat. Feeding Your Microbiome: Six Essential Keys to Boosting Your Brain by Boosting Your Gut Key #1: Choose Foods Rich in Probiotics Key #2: Go Low-Carb, Embrace High-Quality Fat Key #3: Enjoy Wine, Tea, Coffee, and Chocolate Key #4: Choose Foods Rich in Prebiotics Key #5: Drink Filtered Water Key #6: Fast Every Season Key #1: Choose Foods Rich in Probiotics - Pages 179-80 read "For much of the world, fermented foods provide probiotic bacteria in the diet. ... Civilizations didn't understand the mechanism behind the fermentation process for centuries, but the health benefits associated with fermented foods were well recognized. ... Kimchi, a popular and traditional Korean side dish, is considered the national dish of Korea. ... Sauerkraut, another form of fermented cabbage, remains popular throughout Central Europe. Then there are fermented milk products like yogurt that have been consumed for centuries around the world." Pages 181-82 - read "Elie Mechnikov ... [recognized] a correlation between the longevity of Bulgarian peasants and their consumption of fermented milk products. ... He was a prolific writer, authoring three groundbreaking books [including *The Prolongation of Life: Optimistic Studies*], ... which documented in detail the unusually lengthy life spans of several populations that regularly ate fermented foods and bacterial cultures called kefirs. He made numerous observational records of centenarians who were still leading active and healthy lives. And it was he who coined the term 'probiotic' to describe beneficial bacteria." Page 182 lists foods rich in probiotics: live-cultured yogurt; kefir; kombucha tea; tempeh; kimchi; sauerkraut; pickles; pickled fruits and vegetables; cultured condiments; fermented meat, fish, and eggs. Pages 182-83 also read "Kefir. This fermented dairy product is very similar to yogurt. It is a unique combination of kefir 'grains' (a combination of yeast and bacteria) and goat's milk that's high in lactobacilli and bifidobacteria. It is also rich in antioxidants. For those who are sensitive to dairy or lactose intolerant, coconut kefir, a non-dairy version, is also delicious and equally beneficial. Kombucha tea. This is a form of fermented black tea that has been used for centuries. Fizzy and often served chilled, it's also believed to help increase energy, and even help you lose weight. Tempeh. Many people, especially vegetarians, eat tempeh as a substitute for meat. Tempeh is fermented soybeans is a complete protein, with all of the amino acids. Overall, I'm not a big fan of soy products for a number of reasons, but small amounts of tempeh are acceptable." The rest of the list of probiotic foods is common sense commentary. Key #2: Go low-carb, embrace high-quality fat. Page 188 reads "If you haven't been able to connect the dots between low-carb, high-fat, high-fiber, and the microbiome, let me spell it out for you. This particular diet supplies the ingredients to nourish not only healthy biology (and thus a healthy microbiome) but also a healthy brain. A diet that keeps blood sugar balanced keeps gut bacteria balanced. A diet high in sources of fiber, which you'll get from whole fruits and vegetables [Editor's Note: Tablespoons chia seed are high in fiber, at times too much. It, too, shall pass.], feeds the good gut bacteria and produces the right balance of those short-chain fatty acids to keep gut lining in check. A diet devoid of injurious gluten with further tip the scales in favor of healthy gut ecology as well as healthy brain physiology. And a diet that's intrinsically anti-inflammatory is good for the gut and brain." Page 189 lists "Brain Maker foods:" vegetables, low-sugar fruit, fermented foods, healthy fat, protein, and herbs, seasons, and condiments. The commentary seemed to be very common sense. Key #3: Enjoy Wine, Tea, Coffee, and Chocolate. Page 191 reads "In multiple studies, adding polyphenols to the diet has been shown to significantly reduce markers of oxidative stress, which in turn reduces the risk of neurological ailments. The main dietary sources of polyphenols are fruits and vegetables; plant-derived beverages, including coffee, red wine, and tea; and chocolate. ... In one one particularly prominent four-week study, subjects received either a high or low dose of flavonoids from the cocoa plant. ... The group that consumed high doses of flavonoids had striking increases in bifidobacteria as well as lactobacilli species, along with pronounced decreases in Clostridia counts. These changes in gut bacteria were accompanied by an unmistakable reduction in C-reactive protein, that famous marker of inflammation associated with risk for disease." Key #4: Choose foods rich in prebiotics. Page 194-96 read "It has been estimated that for every 100 grams of consumed carbohydrates that qualify as prebiotics, a full 30 grams of bacteria are produced. ... Below is the list of top food sources of natural prebiotics. Acacia gum (or gum arabic), raw chicory root, raw Jerusalem artichoke, raw dandelion greens, raw garlic, raw leek, raw onion, cooked onion, raw asparagus." Key #5: Drink filtered water. Page 196 reads "To avoid the gut-busting chemicals like chlorine that are found in tap water, I recommend buying a household water filter." Key #6: Fast every season. Page 198 reads "One critical mechanism of the human body is its ability to convert fat into vital fuel during times of starvation. We can break down fat into specialized molecules called ketones, and one in particular -- beta-hydroxybutyrate (beta-HBA) -- is a superior fuel for the brain. ... Researchers have determined that beta-HBA, which is easily obtainable just by adding coconut oil to your diet, improves antioxidant function, increases the number of mitochondria, and stimulates the growth of new cells." Pages 199-200 read "But intermittent fasting--a complete restriction of food for twenty-four to seventy-two hours at regular intervals throughout the year-- is more manageable and can achieve the same results as calorie restriction. ... My fasting protocol is simple: No food but lots of water (avoid caffeine) for a twenty-four-hour period. If you take any medications, by all means take them. ([P]lease consult your physician first.) When you've established this Brain Maker diet for life and want to fast for increased benefits, you can try a seventy-two hour fast. ... I recommend fasting at least four times a year; fasting during the seasonal changes (for example, the last week of September, December, March, and June) is an excellent practice to keep." Page 202-06 read "Go Pro - The Guide to Supplements" "Before I get to the details of shopping for supplemental probiotics, let me share a story drawn from my own patient files. ... Christopher came to se me when he was thirteen years old. He had been diagnosed with Tourette syndrome at age 6 ... [I]ssues commonly seen in Tourette patients include the following: ADHD 63 percent, depression in 25 percent, autistic spectrum disorder in 35 percent, and anxiety in 48 percent. There's also a profoundly increased risk of Tourette syndrome in children with allergies. And allergies are a hallmark of an imbalance in the gut bacteria and an increased risk of leaky gut." "Back to Christopher." He had been put on antibiotics several times as a child, in addition to being allergic to certain foods. A diet to eliminate those foods seemed to make progress at first, but the promise quickly faded. "I recommended to Christopher and his mother that instead of taking probiotics orally, that they consider using a simple drug-store enema enriched with six capsules of a probiotics supplement. ... She told me that they did administer the enema and that within hours 'his body had become calm.' She immediately asked me if they could increase the dosage. I gave her the go-ahead, and she began administering 1200 billion units of the probiotics daily by enema. Christopher's Tourette symptoms virtually disappeared. ... I present this story not to offer up a 'cure' for the disorder, for every individual's case is different. Rather, I use it to illustrate the fundamental role of gut bacteria and the intricate connections between a mysterious brain disorder -- in this case, Tourette syndrome -- and the immune system." Pages 206-07 read "Probiotics: Five Core Species" "To make the task of finding and purchasing the right formulas as easy as possible, I've simplified my recommendations to just five core probiotic species that are widely available: *Lactobacillus plantarum*, *Lactobacillus acidophilus*, *Lactobacillus brevis*, *Bifidobacterium lactis*, and *Bifidobacterium lognum*. Different strains provide different benefits, but these are the ones that will, as we've been discussing since the beginning of the book, best support brain health in these ways: -Fortifying the intestinal lining and reducing gut permeability -Reducing LPS, the inflammatory molecule that can be dangerous if it reaches the bloodstream -Increasing BDNF, the brain's growth hormone -Sustaining and overall balance to crowd out any potentially rogue bacterial colonies" Page 208 reads "It's critical to take probiotics with filtered water, otherwise you'll defeat their purpose. Chemicals, such as chlorine, that are added to many sources of water to kill bad bacteria will also kill good, probiotic bacteria." Pages 211-12 read "Try a probiotic enema, with permission." "This won't be for everyone, but I can't tell you how many patients have benefited from this at-home procedure. It's the best way to introduce the probiotic bacteria directly into the bowel. Enemas, one of the oldest remedies on the planet and dating back to the ancient Egyptians and Mayans, are used to flush out the lower bowel by injecting fluid into the rectum. (The word enema is Greek for '*inject*.') They are also used to administer certain medicinal therapies directly into the colon. It's imperative that you get clearance from you doctor before using an enema so that you don't harm yourself. Once you've gotten the go-ahead, here's what you'll need: -enema bag -3-6 probiotic capsules or 1/8 teaspoon powdered probiotic (Make sure they include bifidiobacteria, as these are the dominant flora in the colon, whereas acidophilus prefer the small intestine.) -filtered (chlorine-free) water -Lubricant (optional) -Privacy Plan to perform your enema in the morning after having a bowel movement. Fill a large cup with 12 ounces of lukewarm, filtered water. Break open the probiotic capsules and empty the probiotics into the water, stirring to dissolve. Fill the enema bag with probiotic mixture, and close the bag using the clap that comes with the device. Lie down flat on your side (either side is fine) on a towel or in the bathtub. Instet the nozzle tip into your recutm (use a lubricant if that helps). Holding the bag higher than the nozzle, release the clamp so that the water flows into the colon. Try to hold the enema for 30 minutes if possible. How often I recommend this procedure depends on the specific needs of the patient. In someone who has had aggressive antibiotic therapy, for example, I'd prescribe probiotic enemas as often as three times weekly for 4 to 6 weeks and then reassess the situation. Your personal treatment plan will depend on your own situation; ask your healthcare provider for a recommendation." Pages 214-15 read "Additional Supplements to Consider" They list DHA, turmeric, coconut oil, alpha-lipoic acid, and vitamin D. Except for vitamin D, none of their commentary is especially insightful when compared to Google as an encyclopedia. I am already on all of them except for turmeric. The exegesis on vitamin D stands out as exceptional, however: We "know there are receptors for vitamin D throughout the entire central nervous system; we also know that vitamin D helps regulate enzymes in the brain and cerebrospinal fluid that are involved in manufacturing neurotransmitters and stimulating nerve growth. Both animal and human studies have indicated that vitamin D protects neurons from the damaging effects of free radicals and reduces inflammation. And here's a most important fact: vitamin D performs all of these tasks through its regulation of the gut bacteria. Only in 2010 did we find out that gut bacteria interact with our vitamin D receptors, controlling them to either increase their activity or turn it down." Page 217 is the Brain Maker 7-Day Meal Plan with recipes. It is a reason to purchase the book. Editor's conclusion: I started out to study /r/nootropics for clarity of mind. What I needed was a total health program of action. I ran the gauntlet of complementary healthcare. If you will please pardon my soapbox, it would be my privilege to share with you the best of what I learned: https://docdro.id/yEo9oWY -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lfljvenaura at gmail.com Thu Mar 21 02:44:19 2019 From: lfljvenaura at gmail.com (Lawrence London) Date: Thu, 21 Mar 2019 02:44:19 -0400 Subject: [pchealth] what does a perfect day of eating look like to you? : nutrition Message-ID: what does a perfect day of eating look like to you? : nutrition https://www.reddit.com/r/nutrition/comments/b3jdrq/what_does_a_perfect_day_of_eating_look_like_to_you/?st=jti9jrh1&sh=0eb26140 Breakfast- savory oats with okra, black beans, tumeric, cilantro, and scallion. Black coffee and water. Snack - pineapple and mango Lunch - corn tortilla cheese free "quesadillas" with mashed pinto beans, butternut squash, flax, cumin, and chili powder. Romaine lettuce tossed in lime juice on the side Snack - almonds, dried cherries, flax Dinner - "Cream of broccoli soup" - broccoli, pureed white beans and tofu, nutritional yeast, onion, garlic, tumeric. Spring green salad on the side. Snack - sliced avocado on whole grain bread <> Breakfast: big smoothie with bananas, berries, protein powder, greens and almond milk OR a big bowl of rolled oats with cinnamon, fruit and nuts (preferably walnuts but that?s just me!) Lunch: huge salad with spring mix, spinach and kale (or romaine) with roasted sweet potatoes, roasted broccoli, mushrooms, any other veggies I have on hand, seasoned tofu, beans, quinoa, the possibilities are endless! Dinner: usually any combination of whole grain, veggie and protein. I like to do Asian stir fry dishes with brown rice, broccoli, bell peppers and tofu with orange sauce or peanut sauce. I also really love roasted Yukon gold potatoes, saut?ed green beans with garlic and a lentil loaf or bbq tempeh. Dessert: fruit with natural peanut butter, handful of walnuts, a few squares of dark chocolate, or some non-dairy halo top ? Lately, this isn?t what my diet has looked like at all. Picture tofu scramble breakfast burritos with Diaya cheese, pizza, Gardein burgers and Ben & Jerry?s. But alas, this is what I would like to strive to get back to! -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lfljvenaura at gmail.com Mon Mar 25 23:55:50 2019 From: lfljvenaura at gmail.com (Lawrence London) Date: Mon, 25 Mar 2019 23:55:50 -0400 Subject: [pchealth] Humans can make new brain cells into their 90s, scientists discover | Science | The Guardian Message-ID: Humans can make new brain cells into their 90s, scientists discover | Science | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/mar/25/humans-can-make-new-brain-cells-into-their-90s-scientists-discover Humans can make new brain cells into their 90s, scientists discover Study may help diagnose and identify people at risk of developing Alzheimer?s much earlier Ian Sample Science editor @iansample Mon 25 Mar 2019 12.19 EDT Last modified on Mon 25 Mar 2019 16.35 EDT - - - Shares 2,675 [image: Brain tissue.] This microscopic view shows tissue from the dentate gyrus, part of the hippocampus, of a man who died at 68. He had a healthy brain at time of death. On the picture, fresh brain cells are in red and mature ones in blue. Photograph: CSIC via Nature Humans can make fresh brain cells until they are well into their 90s, but the production of new neurons falls in those with Alzheimer?s, even when the disease has recently taken hold, scientists have found. The findings may help doctors to diagnose Alzheimer?s at an earlier stage, and identify those most at risk who may benefit from exercise and other interventions that could boost the production of new brain cells. The work is the latest on an issue that has divided neuroscientists for decades, with some arguing humans have their full quota of brain cells by the time they reach adulthood , and others claiming fresh neurons continue to be made into old age . In research that may help settle the matter, scientists in Spain ran a battery of tests on brain tissue donated by 13 individuals who died aged 43 to 87. All were neurologically healthy before their deaths. New drug raises hopes of reversing memory loss in old age Read more Mar?a Llorens-Mart?n, a neuroscientist at the Autonomous University of Madrid and the senior scientist on the study, found while the healthy brains contained newborn neurons, the number declined steadily with age. Between the ages of 40 and 70, the number of fresh neurons spotted in the part of the brain studied fell from about 40,000 to 30,000 per cubic millimetre. The new cells were born in the part of the brain called the dentate gyrus. It is a part of the hippocampus which plays a central role in learning, memory, mood and emotion. The gradual reduction in new brain cells appeared to go hand-in-hand with the cognitive decline that comes with old age. It suggests that in middle age about 300 fewer neurons per cubic millimetre are made in the dentate gyrus with each advancing year. The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine , suggests that part of the reason scientists disagree on whether or not adult brains make fresh neurons is that different tests and tissue processing give different results. ?In the same brains we can detect lots of immature neurons or no immature neurons depending on the processing of the tissue,? said Llorens-Martin. [image: A brain scan of a patient with Alzheimer?s disease.] Facebook Twitter Pinterest A brain scan of a patient with Alzheimer?s disease. Photograph: BSIP/UIG via Getty Images Having studied healthy brain tissue, the scientists went on to look at the brains of people who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer?s before death. This time, the researchers analysed brain tissue from 45 patients aged 52 to 97. All had fresh brain cells in the dentate gyrus, including the 97-year old, the oldest person in which ?neurogenesis? has yet been seen. But while the Alzheimer?s patients showed evidence of new brain cell formation, there were stark differences with the healthy brains. Even in the earliest stages of the disease, their brains only had between half and three quarters as many fresh neurons as the healthy ones. ?This is very important for the Alzheimer?s disease field because the number of cells you detect in healthy subjects is always higher than the number detected in Alzheimer?s disease patients, regardless of their age,? Llorens-Mart?n said. ?It suggests that some independent mechanism, different from physiological ageing, might drive this decreasing number of new neurons.? She said the research was only possible because of the generosity of the individuals who donated their brains to science. Humans produce new brain cells throughout their lives, say researchers Read more She said brain scans might one day be able to detect newly-formed brain cells and so diagnose Alzheimer?s in its earliest stages. If studies on rodents are any guide, people most at risk of the disease could potentially benefit from exercise, socialising and cognitive stimulation. Sandrine Thuret, the head of the neurogenesis and mental health laboratory at King?s College London, said the paper was ?extremely timely? and provided ?another strong piece of evidence that neurogenesis is occurring in the adult human hippocampus?. Thuret said Alzheimer?s disease would not be cured by restoring neurogenesis once it had already been affected and diagnosed. But she added there was potential in using neurogenesis as a marker for Alzheimer?s before it took hold. ?If you could just prevent or delay onset of cognitive symptoms of Alzheimer?s for a few years by maintaining neurogenesis, it would be fantastic,? she said. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From lindaray at att.net Tue Mar 26 05:47:52 2019 From: lindaray at att.net (Linda Ray) Date: Tue, 26 Mar 2019 09:47:52 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [pchealth] Humans can make new brain cells into their 90s, scientists discover | Science | The Guardian In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <1354834726.11117833.1553593672337@mail.yahoo.com> What a great article! Thanks Larry, first time I've seen anyone admit the generation of new brain cells, even though that's the only thing that makes sense.. Namaste, Linda :-) On Monday, March 25, 2019, 8:56:04 PM PDT, Lawrence London wrote: Humans can make new brain cells into their 90s, scientists discover | Science | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/mar/25/humans-can-make-new-brain-cells-into-their-90s-scientists-discover Humans can make new brain cells into their 90s, scientists discover Study may help diagnose and identify people at risk of developing Alzheimer?s much earlier Ian Sample Science editor @iansample Mon 25 Mar 2019 12.19?EDTLast modified on Mon 25 Mar 2019 16.35?EDT - - - Shares2,675This microscopic view shows tissue from the dentate gyrus, part of the hippocampus, of a man who died at 68. He had a healthy brain at time of death. On the picture, fresh brain cells are in red and mature ones in blue.Photograph: CSIC via Nature Humans can make fresh brain cells until they are well into their 90s, but the production of new neurons falls in those with Alzheimer?s, even when the disease has recently taken hold, scientists have found. The findings may help doctors to diagnose Alzheimer?s at an earlier stage, and identify those most at risk who may benefit from exercise and other interventions that could boost the production of new brain cells. The work is the latest on an issue that has divided neuroscientists for decades, with some arguing humans have their full quota of brain cells by the time they reach adulthood, and others claiming fresh neurons continue to be made into old age. In research that may help settle the matter, scientists in Spain ran a battery of tests on brain tissue donated by 13 individuals who died aged 43 to 87. All were neurologically healthy before their deaths. New drug raises hopes of reversing memory loss in old age Read more Mar?a Llorens-Mart?n, a neuroscientist at the Autonomous University of Madrid and the senior scientist on the study, found while the healthy brains contained newborn neurons, the number declined steadily with age. Between the ages of 40 and 70, the number of fresh neurons spotted in the part of the brain studied fell from about 40,000 to 30,000 per cubic millimetre. The new cells were born in the part of the brain called the dentate gyrus. It is a part of the hippocampus which plays a central role in learning, memory, mood and emotion. The gradual reduction in new brain cells appeared to go hand-in-hand with the cognitive decline that comes with old age. It suggests that in middle age about 300 fewer neurons per cubic millimetre are made in the dentate gyrus with each advancing year. The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine, suggests that part of the reason scientists disagree on whether or not adult brains make fresh neurons is that different tests and tissue processing give different results. ?In the same brains we can detect lots of immature neurons or no immature neurons depending on the processing of the tissue,? said Llorens-Martin. Facebook Twitter Pinterest A brain scan of a patient with Alzheimer?s disease. Photograph: BSIP/UIG via Getty Images Having studied healthy brain tissue, the scientists went on to look at the brains of people who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer?s before death. This time, the researchers analysed brain tissue from 45 patients aged 52 to 97. All had fresh brain cells in the dentate gyrus, including the 97-year old, the oldest person in which ?neurogenesis? has yet been seen. But while the Alzheimer?s patients showed evidence of new brain cell formation, there were stark differences with the healthy brains. Even in the earliest stages of the disease, their brains only had between half and three quarters as many fresh neurons as the healthy ones. ?This is very important for the Alzheimer?s disease field because the number of cells you detect in healthy subjects is always higher than the number detected in Alzheimer?s disease patients, regardless of their age,? Llorens-Mart?n said. ?It suggests that some independent mechanism, different from physiological ageing, might drive this decreasing number of new neurons.? She said the research was only possible because of the generosity of the individuals who donated their brains to science. Humans produce new brain cells throughout their lives, say researchers Read more She said brain scans might one day be able to detect newly-formed brain cells and so diagnose Alzheimer?s in its earliest stages. If studies on rodents are any guide, people most at risk of the disease could potentially benefit from exercise, socialising and cognitive stimulation. Sandrine Thuret, the head of the neurogenesis and mental health laboratory at King?s College London, said the paper was ?extremely timely? and provided ?another strong piece of evidence that neurogenesis is occurring in the adult human hippocampus?. Thuret said Alzheimer?s disease would not be cured by restoring neurogenesis once it had already been affected and diagnosed. But she added there was potential in using neurogenesis as a marker for Alzheimer?s before it took hold. ?If you could just prevent or delay onset of cognitive symptoms of Alzheimer?s for a few years by maintaining neurogenesis, it would be fantastic,? she said. _______________________________________________ pchealth mailing list pchealth at lists.ibiblio.org https://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/pchealth -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: