Bleary-eyed coders and sleepy gamers are a common sight these days. The digital age has been an eye opener: laptops, phones and tablets stress our visual senses to levels never seen in history. Eye fatigue, pain, blurred vision, dry eyes—all results of our love affair with screens. While the act of staring continuously with reduced blink […]
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Vitafoods Europe 2019: Unlocking the full potential of probiotics
April 2019 Vitafoods Europe 2019: Unlocking the full potential of probiotics Anticipated to reach $83.5 billion by 2022[1], the global digestive market is being fuelled by rising consumers awareness about the benefits of maintaining good gut health, with probiotics in particular, a big contributor. According to a report by market research firm Transparency Market Research […]
The Microbiome and Multiple Sclerosis: Where Are We?
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is not a killer. But this chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease of the central nervous system severely damages the communication between nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord– leading to pain and debilitation. In essence, a protective sheath called myelin is attacked by the body’s own immune system, triggering an inflammatory […]
Probiotics Tested in Marathon Runners
Tales of gut woes for long-distance runners are well-documented. Runners sometimes cross a finish line only to vomit or collapse onto a stretcher. The usual reason? Excess heat—caused either by outside temperatures or the metabolic fire within—stresses the body, blunting performance. Heat-stressed athletes often endure what is termed “leaky gut”, a condition where the intestinal […]
Trendspotting at Natural Products Expo West in California
The Natural Products Expo West keeps getting bigger. More than 3600 companies were showcased this March in Anaheim, California and an estimated 90,000 attended the event. Two of them, IPA’s George Paraskevakos and Elisa Fernandez travelled to the sunny clime to meet up with members and scope out probiotic innovations. They were not disappointed. The […]
Probiotics Reduce Chemotherapy Damages
Cancer is brutal but then so is the treatment. Chemotherapy, often used for late-stage cancers, damages intestinal mucosa causing nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. These side effects may worsen the patient’s nutritional status and immune function—vital for fighting cancers– or sometimes delay the treatment cycle. Under the umbrella of intestinal harms are: epithelial cell apoptosis, barrier dysfunction, […]