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Ginseng & Ginger are two healthy TCMs during stressful times

May

30

Source: getty images

A May 17 2020 article by Yahoo News suggests you might consider incorporating some traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) ideas into your daily practice. There's much to choose from- qi gong, acupressure/ acupuncture, teas and tonics, and food. Yahoo News recommended these TCM remedies in this order.

Given that food and teas are more prevalent and widely used, let's look at it from the opposite order. Beginning with the universally accepted herb ginger, which contains Gingerol. Regular consumption of it couldn't hurt. Gingerol is the main bioactive compound in ginger that is anti-inflammatory and a digestive aid. This is based on studies referenced by the Healthline article below.

Ginseng has also been tested and proven to boost the immune system with its bioactive compounds, ginsenosides and gintonin, according to WebMD. Regarding both ginger and ginseng, there have been broad but varying unproven claims that these food based herbs provide other benefits such as lowering blood sugar and treating cancer. However, consuming them in moderation can help and is recommended.

For more information see: https://news.yahoo.com/amphtml/try-traditional-chinese-medicine-practices-214001491.html ; and
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/ginseng-benefits#section1

#ai #bacteria #datascience #diet #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #mentalhealth #plantnutrition #probiotics #psychobiotics

Connection found between anti-obesity statin drugs & gut Bacteroides 2

May

27

According to a May 06 2020 Nature article, statin drugs, a common medication for lowering cholesterol, also known as HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, are a class of lipid-lowering medications that lower risk of cardiovascular disease. They are the most common cholesterol-lowering drugs, able to reduce illness and mortality, according to Wikipedia.

The study referenced in the Nature article analyses human faecal samples, and classifies them into one of four groups called enterotypes, depending on the abundance of particular microbial species. These groupings are termed Bacteroides 1 (Bact1), Bacteroides 2 (Bact2), Ruminococcaceae (Rum) and Prevotella (Prev). Bacteroides 2 are associated with inflammation, and more Bacteroides bacteria than Faecalibacterium microbes.

The authors unexpectedly discovered that there were significantly fewer of the Bact2 enterotype than expected in obese individuals who were taking cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins. The authors found a connection between these gut microbes and the statin drugs, but further research is needed to determine the nature of that connection. According to the article, "molecules such as trimethylamine oxide, which are made by gut bacteria, might accelerate atherosclerosis, and their presence is associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes, including death."

And study in the European Union called the MetaCardis project (http://www.metacardis.net) including nearly 900 participants whose data they analysed, also found a higher prevalence of the Bact2 enterotype with a higher body-mass index and obesity.

See article, https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-01281-0 .

#ai #bacteria #cardiovasculardisease #datascience #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #obesity

eJIM and CAM - Japan's role in east-west relations; why not medicine too?

May

16

It is not by any means anything unique for Japan to play a role in East- West integration and collaboration. From the opening up of Japan in 1848 when American Commodore Perry reached its shores to promote trade to the introduction of western Christianity at the arrival of the Jesuits led by Francis Xavier in 1549, Japan has always played an integral role in East- West relations.

Fast forward to this century, in his final interview with Asia Pacific Economic Review writer Steve Barth, Edward Demming reached the pinnacle of Japan's role in integrating western management principles into Japan, which in turn reversed by way of the likes of UCLA professor William Ouchi and his bestselling book on Japanese management style, "Theory Z". Japan has always been a synergistic doorway to the west, and arguably the west's most valuable portal to the east.

So why not in health care? Japan is one of the world’s most technologically advanced health care systems while at the same time still holds onto traditional medicine or Kampo. Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare created acronyms for its role in integrative medicine, and published it in cooperation with Shimane University Medical School. It believes the Japanese health care system is uniquely placed in facilitating the integration of evidence- based Japanese integrative medicine or eJim. The more common term used today is "complementary and alternative medicine" or CAM which Japan seeks to bring into the mainstream core of its healthcare offerings. And it claims to be doing it backed by science, the aforementioned "evidence- based Japanese integrative medicine", or e-Jim (see https://www.ejim.ncgg.go.jp/en/index.html for more information).

When we talk about eJIM however, it inevitably leads back to the origins of healthcare in Japan over a thousand years ago, traditional Japanese medicine or Kampo, and beyond the island's shores to China and TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) (see https://en.bloguru.com/healthtech/356171/japanese-health-care-offers-private ). So how has Japan integrated traditional Kampo and alternative medicine into its modern western health care system?

The integration has become seamless, including widespread insurance coverage for Kampo. Today, Japan is taking it a step further, and -- a step deeper with proven, "evidence- based Japanese integrative medicine" or eJIM. Japan and other Asian countries like Singapore, India and China, are studying the chemical properties of herbs and foods, and making key connections to their influence on everything from our gut microbiome to our immune system.

#CAM #ai #alternativemedicine #bacteria #datascience #diet #eJIM #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #integrativemedicine #plantnutrition #spices

Holobiome & Viome - "Microbiomes Intimate Role in Every Human Disease”

May

9

In a May 07, 2020 Science Magazine article, Holobiome announced it seeks to produce new treatments for depression and other disorders of the brain and nervous system beginning with isolating and culturing bacteria to benefit humans through our gut microbiome. The focus of the startup will be psychobiotics, those that address brain - related ailments, says company CEO, Phil Strandwitz. It seems the creation of startups like these are a sign of the times.

In an early interview by Herbsprout writer Chris Kenji Beer, Viome's CEO Naveen Jain takes us into a deeper understanding of the role of microbiomes to our health. “Every single chronic disease that we know of -- from Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, autism, depression, anxiety, obesity, autoimmune diseases, cancer-- every single one of these diseases have one thing in common, chronic inflammation. Every one of them is caused by microbiome. Think about this. Every one of these diseases is caused by microbiomes. And every time we take antibiotics we are killing those microbiomes.”
“A lot of people are saying ‘I know about microbiomes, what is so unique about it?’ The change is we not only know what is inside our gut, we are able to know exactly what they are doing.”

THE RNA - TRANSCRIPTOME TESTING

How do we know? “The latest wave (of Microbiome testing) is transcriptome. The transcriptome testing approach looks at the RNA and analyzes what the RNA of microbiomes are doing. The popular ‘16S sequencing’ of microbiomes testing is a twenty year old technology and is not able to do this.”
“What if you can find out exactly what is going on (inside the RNA of microbiomes)? What if you know what vitamins they are producing? What if you knew which specific compounds they are producing that cause inflammation? And from this data, what if you were able to figure out which specific content and combinations of food can actually address these inflammations more effectively than any prescription drugs we have available today?” asserts Jain.

Given the lag in treatments particularly for mental health treatments, Holobiome proposes to source and find microbe -based solutions to these ailments, or "psychobiotics". What if Holobiome and Viome are at the beginning of a new trend in health care where startups like Holobiome are among hundreds of companies focused on finding and deploying microbe- based solutions, gut bacteria treatments for different human diseases?

See article on Holobiome, https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/05/meet-psychobiome-gut-bacteria-may-alter-how-you-think-feel-and-act ; and Viome http://Viome.com .

#ai #bacteria #datascience #diet #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #mentalhealth #plantnutrition #probiotics #psychobiotics

EJim, Evidence- based medicine and Japan's place in modern medicine

Apr

19

On reflection of the challenges facing innovation and the importance of establishing credibility in a relatively young sector of the medical industry, a key party to this process is evidence based herbs and foods in our health, particularly as it relates to our gut microbiome. In my view this brings Japanese and Japanese medicine to the forefront of bridging the gap between the idea of herbs and food as medicine and the mainstream medical community. In Japan they call it eJim, or "evidence- based Japanese integrative medicine".

Without credible integration, the whole idea of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and Indian Ayurvedic medicine face an almost insurmountable uphill climb in order to gain acceptance in the American mainstream medical community. Some of the highest rated institutions in these Asian health care approaches such as Bastyr University, have long been perceived by the mainstream medical community as advocating "quack" medicine.

How does one bridge this gap? The solution has to be a demonstrated effort in the naturopathic medicine communities to back their claims with scientific evidence. The evidence points toward how herbs and food influence our gut microbiome. This is where the integration starts and occurs. This is a rapidly growing sector of research and medicine. It is an opportunity to scientifically verify, give credence to the premises offired by eastern and naturopathic medicine (particularly those of India, China, and Japan). More information about Japan's eJim program is available here, https://www.ejim.ncgg.go.jp/en/pro/about/background.html .

#bacteria #datascience #diet #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #mentalhealth #plantnutrition #probiotics

Gut bacteria strains found to prevent onset of Parkinson's

Apr

12

Parkinson’s News Today reported on April 08, 2020 that several strains of a bacteria Bacillus subtilis "inhibits, delays, and reverses" the buildup of the protein alpha-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease patients. The study, “Probiotic Bacillus subtilis Protects against α-Synuclein Aggregation in C. elegans,” was originally published in the journal Cell Reports. The building up of the protein alpha-synuclein, or Lewy bodies, is known to create the degeneration of brain cells in Parkinson’s disease (see source: https://parkinsonsnewstoday.com/2020/04/10/probiotic-strain-of-b-subtilis-halts-alpha-synuclein-aggregation-in-round-worms/ ).

Last September. Herbsprout reported that scientists found evidence that Parkinson's disease may originate in the gut. Building on that discovery, scientists found the strains of gut microbes that may prevent Parkinson's, each finding building on the next.

It is not yet conclusive whether or not the a-synuclein build up occurs first in our gut, and before or after it reaches the brain. This study was tested in round worms, and is proven as a preventive measure. It is not able to treat Parkinson's disease but prevent it's growth. While further studies are required , it poses the possibility of a preventive dietary supplement, according to scientists involved in this study (see article https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/home).

Other articles by Herbsprout include microbial treatments for Parkinson's, https://en.bloguru.com/healthtech/360989/microbial-treatments-for-parkinsons ; and Parkinson's disease may originate in the gut, https://en.bloguru.com/healthtech/357162/parkinsons-may-originate-in-the-gut .

#ai #bacteria #datascience #diet #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #mentalhealth #plantnutrition #probiotics #psychobiotics

Skin, our body's largest organ shows bidirectional relationship between gut and skin

Apr

4

source: vectorstock.com

As pointed out by a January 2020 article by Amy Myers MD, "your skin is the largest organ in your body, your first defense against the outside world." Since we know that 70 to 80% of your immune system is located in your gut, there must be a connection between the gut and skin, right? Researchers in fact have found such connections. Dr. Myers begins backing this assertion by saying that our gut's 300 to 500 species defend our body against pathogens as do the healthy bacteria covering our skin. Both our gut and skin need to be covered in beneficial bacteria when in a healthy state (see https://www.amymyersmd.com/2019/02/gut-skin-connection/ ).

Researchers found evidence that Dr. Myers assertions are in fact true. They demonstrate an intimate, bidirectional connection between the gut and skin, gastrointestinal (GI) health to skin, according to an NIH report.

This includes microbiome’s contribution to three common skin disorders – acne, atopic dermatitis (AD), and psoriasis, and probiotic supplementation as a therapeutic remedies.

The study found that short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), products of dietary fibers fermented by components of the gut microbiome, demonstrate a protective role against the development of inflammatory disorders including arthritis and allergies.

"SCFAs resulting from fiber fermentation in the gut – propionate, acetate, and butyrate – are believed to play a pivotal role in determining the predominance of certain skin microbiomic profiles." Propionibacterium, for example, is a genus capable of producing SCFAs, predominantly acetate and propionic acid are one of a number of gut microbes that influence our immune defense system.

Another study found that lactobacillus brevis in rats resulted in decreased cutaneous arterial sympathetic nerve. (Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6048199/ ).

#acne #ai #bacteria #datascience #diet #eczema #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #plantnutrition #probiotics #skinhealth #spices

Facts behind health remedies of Cannabis- DeepCell Industries CEO Kelly Ogilvie

Mar

15

How Cannabis saved his sister and inspired Ogilvie's deep dive into "non-intoxicating cannabis R&D, product dev. Deepcell success now hinges b2b technology licensing to food products industry.

Herbsprout.com discusses the state of the Cannabis industry with DeepCell Industries CEO Kelly Ogilvie. He invites us to look behind the curtain and learn about the science behind Cannabis as a health remedy, and what's in store for the industry's future. -- blogger and podcaster Chris Kenji Beer

#CBD #THC #ai #artificialintelligence #bacteria #cannabis #datascience #diet #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #machinelearning #marijuana #mindbody #plantnutrition #spices

Links between gut health and mania/ bi-polar disorder

Feb

16

A September 04, 2019 article in the New Scientist suggests that eating a proper amount of psychobiotics, a derivation of probiotics, can improve one's mental health. (see
https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24332460-500-how-what-you-eat-directly-influences-your-mental-health/ ). Probiotics may help improve a variety of mental health conditions, in part due to an anti-inflammatory effect, including those suffering from manic depression and bi-polar (BP) disorders. Psychobiotics are believed to mitigate chemical imbalance in the brain, and offer an alternative to drug treatment, claims the article.

Lithium has become the most accepted remedy used for treating BP. Studies such as the 2020 Neuropsychobiology report have found little connection between lithium intake and Escherichia coli or Lactobacillus rhamnosus, except that it appears to support a stronger richness and diversity of these species. However, they found a noticeable increase in Clostridium, Peptoclostridium, Intestinibacter, and Christenellaceae following lithium treatment (see https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/504496 ). These results suggest a connection between our gut microbiota and BP treatment using lithium.

SAMPLE HUMAN TRIALS:

Researchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine did a study to determine if probiotics could help recently discharged manic patients, according to a Harvard Health Publishing blog of June 25, 2018. Two groups of 33 patients were given Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species to one group and a placebo to the second group over a 24 week period.

The results for the rates of rehospitalization were 51.1% in the placebo group and 24.2% in the group who took probiotics. On average, the reduction in readmission was 74% lower in the probiotic group, and a 90% reduction of hospitalization in the group with the highest inflammation score. Additionally, patients who took probiotics and were rehospitalized stayed in the hospital on average 2.8 days, compared with 8.3 days for those taking placebo.

A Nature article in February 2019 referenced human trials that found connections between coprococcus and dialister bacteria, with lower levels contributing to mental health issues and specifically depression (see article, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-018-0337-x ).

While tests on mice are less reliable than human trials, they can effectively make connections between similar human functions. For example, The Scientist article reported that study coauthor Julio Licinio, a psychiatrist at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse made fecal transplants of schizophrenic mice that verified lower glutamate, glutamine, and GABA in their hippocampi. These are key amino acid neurotransmitters that are essential for brain function (see https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/gut-microbes-may-play-a-role-in-mental-health-disorders-66039/amp ).

What scientists can say with some accuracy is that there is a link between our gut bacteria and mental health. One step further, they've identified specific species of bacteria, keystone species such as bifidobacteria and lesser known species such as coprococcus and dialister bacteria. The next steps will be to prove efficacy and FDA approval as a form of treatment in mental health patients. When this might be achieved is still to be determined, but scientists are getting closer.

#ai #bacteria #datascience #diet #gutmicrobiome #health #healthinnovation #healthtech #herbalmedicine #herbs #mentalhealth #plantnutrition #probiotics #psychobiotics #spices

Stress and "The Gut-Brain Connection”

Feb

10

The Gut- Brain axis (source: deposit photos).

An October 2019 abstract published by the National Institute of Health (NIH) suggests that managing our stress levels in all phases of our lives from childhood to old age is key to a healthy microbiota gut-brain axis. As we grow up other factors affect our gut microbiome health such as infections, use of antibiotics, nutrition, stress, among others. Stress can particularly impact our latter years as our microbial diversity goes way down over time (see https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31460832 ).

The way we look at the brain and brain research has completely flipped on its head since a few decades ago when scientists first discovered that “messenger molecules” for the brain were circulating throughout the body in the bloodstream. None are more pervasive and penetrating than what scientists have found in the activities of microbiomes in the gut. Our bodies have more microbiome DNA than human DNA. The total human genome comprises around 20,000 genes, while the total microbiome DNA in our bodies total two to 20 million genes.

“Every cell is eavesdropping on the brain’s activity, sending and receiving messages identical to those that the brain processes,” says Deepak Chopra and contributing author Naveen Jain in their Huffington Post article “Will the Gut-Brain Connection Revolutionize Wellness?” (September 11, 2017; see http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/will-the-gut-brain-connection-revolutionize-wellness_us_59b6b598e4b0e4419674c375 ). In this article, Chopra goes so far as to say that all the common experiences we have are indicators of the brain’s connection to the gut -- “getting butterflies in your stomach when you feel nervous, overeating when you feel anxious, feeling dull and sluggish after taking an antibiotic, contracting stomach cramps before a competitive challenge, experiencing nausea or stomach upset from taking antidepressants.” Every major organ in the body from the heart to the stomach and liver combine to possess hundreds of millions of neurons with corresponding DNA, which again collectively makes up the “enteric nervous system”.

The bacteria inside our guts, microbiomes, include unlimited numbers of species and strains. They differ from person to person with limited or no relationship from person to person.” The known “messenger molecules” associated with the brain that circulate throughout the body in the bloodstream even produce neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters are the chemicals our brain uses to communicate with the rest of the body. Every cell is eavesdropping on the brain’s activity, sending and receiving messages identical to those that the brain processes. For example, 90% of the well-known serotonin neurotransmitter is made in the body’s digestive tract, according to a 2015 report by CalTech (“Microbes Help Produce Serotonin in Gut”, April 09, 2015; http://m.caltech.edu/news/microbes-help-produce-serotonin-gut-46495 ). Serotonin is the chemical often referred to as the “happy chemical” and the balance of serotonin in our body influences our mood. A deficiency of serotonin can lead to depression.

Research is being administered about the influence of gut microbiomes on everything from autism, multiple sclerosis, PTSD, Parkinson’s Disease and brain health to cancer, obesity, diabetes and weight loss. It has become widespread as major research institutions and universities are conducting studies on the subject.

Scientists have found that differences in a person’s gut can be a clue to our specific health propensities, to cancers, but also something as immediate as our daily mood, behaviors, even happiness.

#bacteria #brainresearch #datascience #gutmicrobiome #healthinnovation #healthtech #mindbody #neuroscience

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Ginseng & Ginger are two healthy TCMs during stressful times

Connection found between anti-obesity statin drugs & gut Bacteroides 2

eJIM and CAM - Japan's role in east-west relations; why not medicine too?

Holobiome & Viome - "Microbiomes Intimate Role in Every Human Disease”

EJim, Evidence- based medicine and Japan's place in modern medicine

Gut bacteria strains found to prevent onset of Parkinson's

Skin, our body's largest organ shows bidirectional relationship between gut and skin

Facts behind health remedies of Cannabis- DeepCell Industries CEO Kelly Ogilvie

Links between gut health and mania/ bi-polar disorder

Stress and "The Gut-Brain Connection”

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