Amish Poop & Bitter Yams

I found this very, very interesting, indeed.

There is a correlation between certain gut bacteria and obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, psoriasis and, yes, even cancer.

All this when scientists began a very detailed study of Amish poop. Um? Well. sorta . . .

Gut Bacteria Linked to Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome Identified

Aug. 15, 2012 — Researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine have identified 26 species of bacteria in the human gut microbiota that appear to be linked to obesity and related metabolic complications. These include insulin resistance, high blood sugar levels, increased blood pressure and high cholesterol, known collectively as "the metabolic syndrome," which significantly increases an individual’s risk of developing diabetes, cardiovascular disease and stroke.

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"We identified 26 species of bacteria that were correlated with obesity and metabolic syndrome traits such as body mass index (BMI), triglycerides, cholesterol, glucose levels and C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation," says the senior author, Claire M. Fraser, Ph.D., professor of medicine and microbiology and immunology and director of the Institute for Genome Sciences (IGS) at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "We can’t infer cause and effect, but it’s an important step forward that we're starting to identify bacteria that are correlated with clinical parameters, which suggests that the gut microbiota could one day be targeted with medication, diet or lifestyle changes."

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Dr. Fraser notes that the research team, led by Margaret L. Zupancic, Ph.D., then a postdoctoral fellow at IGS, also found an apparent link between the gut bacteria and inflammation, which is believed to be a factor in obesity and many other chronic diseases. "This is one of the first studies of obesity in humans to make a link between inflammatory processes and specific organisms that are present in the GI tract," Dr. Fraser says, noting that participants with metabolic syndrome who had elevated serum markers associated with inflammation tended to have the lowest levels of good bacteria that have been reported previously to have anti-inflammatory properties.

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The original article can be found HERE.

And simultaneously in China we have THIS.

Chinese research proves bacteria to blame for causing obesity 

The battle of the bulge can be frustrating, with small victories overshadowed by major losses.

But research may bring some comfort. Bacteria, and not just gluttony or laziness, may be to blame. The bacteria can actually make genes generate fat.

...

A research team led by Zhao Liping, a professor of microbiology and associate dean at the School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, pointed out the precise link between a particular kind of bacteria and obesity.

The paper was published on Dec 13 in the journal of the International Society for Microbial Ecology.

It showed that a pathogen, or infectious agent, isolated from the gut of an obese human induced obesity and insulin resistance in germ-free mice.

In the clinical study, researchers found an excessive growth of endotoxin-producing bacteria, accounting for 35 percent of the gut bacteria, in an obese patient whose initial weight was 175 kg.

After an intervention with specialized nutritional formula, the bacteria decreased to non-detectable amounts and the patient lost 51.4kg.

It provided the key piece of evidence.

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The intestinal bacterium involved was Enterobacter cloacae.

"The endotoxin released by the bacterium can activate a gene that helps generate fat. And it also deactivates a gene that consumes fat," Zhao said at a news briefing on Tuesday in Shanghai.

Zhao's study on the connection between obesity and gut microbiota came from personal experience.

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Again, find the original article HERE.

Read both articles. Learn what can be found by doing a detailed study of Amish poop, and what can happen when eating bitter yams.

~K