gut

A new animal study has demonstrated one way sugar can contribute to metabolic diseases such as diabetes is by causing disruptions to the gut microbiome. The novel findings home in on exactly how certain gut bacteria can protect against the harmful effects of a high-fat diet, and how dietary sugar can disrupt those protective mechanisms.It’s certainly not breaking news to suggest a high-fat, high-sugar diet can lead to a variety of health problems. But as scientists learn more about the ways trillions of bacteria in our…

As Diet Coke and its sweetener aspartame wrap up 40 years or so on American store shelves, the decades-long controversy around the safety of sugar substitutes continues. Ever since diet drinks hit the stores in the 1950s, rumors have swirled that such sweeteners—which today also include saccharin, sucralose and stevia—do more than satisfy a sweet tooth without the calories of sugar. But whether that “more” exists hasn’t been easy to establish. In a new study of four sugar substitutes, researchers found that these…

Gut bacteria may be able to evolve over time to live outside of the intestine, a new study finds – and that might make them more dangerous, possibly bringing chronic inflammation and related health risks to other organs in the body.There's plenty of research explaining the positive and negative effects that gut microbes can have on our health, but scientists still don't understand much about how these various biological mechanisms and chain reactions work.Some health issues are put down to what's known as a 'leaky gut',…

The composition of our gut microbiome is known to influence many elements of the human body, and new lines of research are uncovering some fascinating insights around how this extends to athletic performance. The latest findings in this space suggest that more stable communities of gut bacteria can boost performance among endurance runners, and suggest that diet may play a pivotal role.Previous research has demonstrated that exercise can directly influence the makeup of our gut bacteria, and more recently, studies have…

A team of Yale scientists explains how gut bacteria can evolve over time, becoming more pathogenic by gaining the ability to migrate across the gut barrier and persist in organs outside of the intestine, thereby driving chronic inflammation and associated illnesses.Gut microbes are linked to both good health and the promotion of diseases such as autoimmune disorders, metabolic syndrome, inflammatory bowel diseases, and even neuropsychiatric disorders.The “leaky gut” hypothesis is one popular explanation for these bad…

Research continues to demonstrate the many ways the gut microbiome can influence human health, and an active area within this field centers on its role in Alzheimer's disease (AD). A new study has furthered our knowledge of this relationship by demonstrating what's described as a clear genetic link between the two, while also pointing to the potential for new treatments.Carried out by scientists at Australia's Edith Cowan University, the study is described as the first of its kind in that it makes a comprehensive…

PICASSO’S RULE: PUT MORE WORK OUT THERE TO LET LUCK FIND YOU In a now-legendary study, Dean Simonton, distinguished professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, found a fascinating connection. Artists who produce more work tend to have more hits. Simonton found that the relationship between quantity of art produced and greatness, measured in various ways, exists in a variety of fields. Many of the most famous artists of all time, those with the most pieces considered masterpieces, created a shocking…

COVID-19 pandemic and its subsequent stay-at-home scenario forced people to renew focus on themselves and choose healthy options over a sedentary lifestyle. Some people achieved great success in losing that extra flab but others were a little less successful. What could be the reason behind this discrepancy? While there could be several variables — including diet and workout patterns — a new study says the genetic capacity of the gut microbiome is also a significant factor that influences how much weight a person is…

A new anti-hangover supplement has just gone on sale in the UK. It is marketed by Swedish firm Myrkl as "the pre-drinking pill that works".The pill is said to break down up to 70 percent of alcohol after 60 minutes. This means that if someone drinks 50 ml of 40 percent spirits, which contains 20 ml of pure alcohol, as little as 6 ml of the alcohol will enter the bloodstream. This is the same as the person only drinking 15 ml of spirits.  This reduction in the amount of alcohol absorbed by the body is mirrored by a…

Deep in the human gut, myriad “good” bacteria and other microbes help us digest our food, as well as keep us healthy by affecting our immune, metabolic, and nervous systems. Some of these humble microbial assistants have been in our guts since before humans became human—certain gut microbes are found in almost all primates, suggesting they first colonized a common ancestor. But humans have also lost many of these helpers found in other primates and may be losing even more as…