As our food supply becomes more consolidated, outbreaks of bacterial contamination may become larger. Some of those outbreaks may involve drug resistant bacteria.
A study by the Oxford Journal along with stories by the LA times may give some a cause for concern regarding the safety of our meat supply.
[Researchers] established that 40% of pork samples were contaminated with such bacteria.
Nearly half of the samples — 47% — contained strains of Staphylococcus aureus, the type of bacteria that most commonly causes staph infections. Of those bacteria, 52% were resistant to at least three classes of antibiotics[…]
While most of these bacteria are killed off with proper cooking & the risk of infection is low if proper handling procedures are followed, it still gives one pause to think about all th stuff going into these animals before they are sent to slaughter for consumption.
Haemochromatosis can mimic symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
South African website Business Today is running a story about Roger Keyte, a 50 year old man who visited doctors after experiencing intermittent digestive problems for months. His symptoms ranged from stomach ache to diarrhea. Instead of being diagnosed with an infection, parasites or a functional disorder like Irritable Bowel Syndrome it turns out he had an often overlooked genetic condition called Haemochromatosis(iron overload). Continue reading “Iron Overload Can Mimic Irritable Bowel Syndrome” »
E. Coli’s impact on digestive health can be good or bad, depending on the strain.
A recent study brought to light some interesting information about how different strains of E. Coli(Escherichia coli) affect those with Inflammatory Bowel Diseases such as Ulcerative Colitis or Crohn’s Disease. The study looked at patients who had Crohn’s Disease & where infected with the “adherent-invasive E.Coli”(AIEC) strain “LF82”. It appears that another strain of E. Coli called “E. Coli Nissle 1917” is an effective way of treating LF82 infection & can improve symptoms considerably. Continue reading “E. Coli’s Relationship With Inflammatory Bowel Diseases” »
Research mapping the digestive system’s bacterial flora seems to suggest that most people fall into one of only three different “gut types”.
A recent study published in Nature has found that our gut’s bacterial flora may not be as diverse or unique as once thought. Researchers deciphered the microbial life within each test subject’s fecal samples. What they found was that the test subjects fell into one of three different “enterotypes” (microbe ecosystems). Factors such as age, weight or nationality did not matter as far as who ended up with what enterotype. Essentially what this means is that it appears the life forms living inside of us aren’t as random as we might have thought in the past. Continue reading “Knowing Your “Gut Type” May Soon Be Like Knowing Your Blood Type” »
Implantable device may help regulate hunger those with severe obesity.
The company Intrapace has come out with a new gastric stimulator device called “abiliti” which is meant to do the opposite of what Medtronic’s Enterra device does. While the Medtronic Enterra device is designed to help reduce nausea & vomiting in those with Gastroparesis so that they can increase food intake, “abiliti” is meant for those who are looking to lose weight and not eat as much. “abiliti” works in a similar fashion but obviously the goal is not to cause patients to experience symptoms similar to Gastroparesis, but instead to stimulate the stomach which causes a feeling of satiety or provides a feeling that the patient interprets as a signal to stop eating. Continue reading “Gastric Pacemaker ‘abiliti’ May Help With Weight Loss” »
A recent study looks at the effectiveness of GoLytley vs MiraLax + 64oz of Gatorade. The main difference between the two products it that GoLytley includes the electrolytes you lose from the diarrhea induced from the bowel prep products. They both use the same active ingredient(Polyethylene glycol 3350). The results showed the GoLytley was a more effective bowel prep than MiraLAX + 64oz of Gatorade. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem like either of these products taste that great, but perhaps they do taste better than Phospho-Soda, which was taken off the market due to kidney damage concerns.
While GoLytley may have cleaned the bowel better, it appears that MiraLAX at least got higher rating as far as the patient experience goes.
I recently received a comment on my blog that at first seemed legit but later revealed itself as nothing more than scammy spam. The poster was explaining their life with Crohn’s Disease & how debilitating it was. There was actually a great deal of content to this comment & what the person talked about sounded rather convincing. The only problem was that near the end of the comment they started talking about how while nothing else worked, they found someone who would cast a spell for them & miraculously they started to heal from their Crohn’s Disease. What modern medicine & alternative therapies couldn’t treat, wiring a random stranger money so they could write a spell for you did.
Yeah right! Continue reading “Beware of Health “Spell” Scams” »
A recent study looking at the the cytokine(signaling protein) IL-23(Interleukin 23), from Tongji University in Shanghai, China has found that those with Crohn’s Disease have higher levels of the IL-23 signaling protein in the inflamed mucosa lining of their bowel. Continue reading “Study Shows Overactive Inflammatory Response For Those With Crohn’s Disease” »
The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the a school(Little Village Academy) in Chicago has banned kids from bring in their own lunches unless they have a medical reason to do so. While the school & the district is spinning this as being about protecting kids from bad food choices many think that the school & it’s food service provider are putting profit over pupils. The principal, Elsa Carmona, says that other schools have a similar policy, though she was unable to name which other schools have such a policy. More worrying is that the school district has no official written policy on bagged lunches, nor do they keep track of which principals have decided to do away with allowing them. Parents don’t have much choice in the matter as the school their child goes to usually depends on where they live. They may not have any recourse to send their child to another school & perhaps many aren’t going to be inclined to do so over something “petty” like the school lunch program. Continue reading “Chicago School Bans Kids From Bringing Their Own Lunches” »
Yahoo! Sports is running a great story on David Loewenstein, a long time dedicated clubhouse attendant for the San Francisco Giants. Loewenstein has been battling Crohn’s Disease since 1978 & over the last few years his Crohn’s has become progressively worse to the point where he can no longer perform his duties for the Giants. Instead of quietly firing Loewenstein, the Giants kept him on the payroll & health insurance plan. Teammates helped pay for some of his operations & visited him at his home. On top of this, he was recently voted a full share from last years San Francisco Giants’ World Series revenues pool. The cash value of that share is over $317,000 dollars. Continue reading “San Francisco Giants Taking Care Of One Of Their Own With Crohn’s” »