Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that affects approximately 600,000 people in the US.[i],[ii] People who have Crohn’s suffer from a serious inflammation or irritation of their digestive tract which can lead to sores or ulcers forming. Crohn’s can attack anywhere along the entire digestive tract, but most commonly affects the end of the [...]
Could one lowly bacterium, Prevotella copri, train the immune system to produce the type of human immune cell (Th17) responsible for inflammation and bone damage in arthritis? According to a new study, also reported on in Wired, the answer could be yes. Based on some provocative early studies in mice, a team lead by Dan [...]
Note: If you haven't read it, you may be interested in this comprehensive article on Crohn's Disease and Diet. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) involves the replacement of the entire population of dysfunctional gut bacteria (gut microbiome) with healthy bacteria from healthy donor stool. The technique has been incredibly successful (90-98%) and safe for treating C [...]
I recently received some interesting and direct questions from T-J on the differences between the Fast Tract Diet and the FODMAP approach. Here are the questions and answers. You might also be interested in my article on SIBO Diets. 2018 Update Mike Sweeney, RD (Registered Dietitian) in UK did an evaluation on the Fast Tract [...]
Thanks to Bruce Miller, who posts on this site, for bringing this article, "Discovery of virus that 'eats' bacteria that causes C.diff could spell the end for hospital superbug", to my attention. Let's take a look at this research. Could treatment with viruses really "spell the end" for C. diff? Dr. Martha Clokie, at Leicester’s [...]
In Dr. Mike Eades' latest blog, GERD Treatment: Nutrition vs Drugs, he highlights a video presentation by a Dr. Johnson, an academic gastroenterologist from a medical school in Virginia who advises other doctors to ignore the risks of PPIs. Mike and I have been on the same page on both the risks of PPIs and the [...]
Looking at the label is the first thing many people do to assess food safety. Most foods carry labels such as “sell by”, “use by”, or “best before”. Many people believe that food is not safe if consumed past these dates. A recent Time Magazine article by Alexandra Sifferlin cites a report from the Natural [...]
The FDA has warned for some time that the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) for heartburn increases the risk of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea. Now, a new review of 33 separate studies shows that prescription strength versions of the less potent heartburn drugs called H2 antagonists such as Pepcid, Tagamet, Zantac, and Axid, carry the [...]
A Swedish team of scientists led by Dr. Karl Mårild, recently reported a link between taking antibiotics and the development of celiac disease[i]. Note: You can download the entire article free. Celiac disease is an autoimmune reaction to gluten proteins contained in wheat, rye and barley. The disease process causes inflammation and villus atrophy (which [...]
A recent study determined that proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), drugs used to treat chronic acid reflux, cause the constriction of blood vessels. The finding raises concern that long term use of PPI drugs such as omeprazole and lansoprazole will lead to high blood pressure and a weakened heart. The drugs set in motion a series [...]
