There’s nothing like a poop story to get the juvenile juices flowing. Crowding a Twitter and RSS feed recently were numerous alerts to a diaper pail full of baby poop headlines: Kardashian-like catnip for the health-minded. A PubMed search (not all blogs had links) led to an interesting piece of research from Wake Forest School […]
Microbiome Environment
Aging Microbiomes: A New Wrinkle for the Elderly
Expect to live at least a few decades longer than your ancestors born a century ago. That’s the good news. Unfortunately, not all of those bonus years promise the joys of good health. Aging bodies and minds are much more susceptible to disease. Aging changes are inevitable and built into the DNA of every cell. The […]
Microbes Need Care in the ICU
While often life-saving, hospitals can be dangerous to your health. Exposed to infections, lack of sleep and poor nutrition, patients may spiral down into the intensive care unit (ICU) where two critical illnesses are common: sepsis and acute respiratory failure. A role for microbes Microbes are emerging as key players in the genesis, advance and […]
Age of Anxiety Calls for Probiotic Research
With soaring numbers of people taking anxiety-reducing drugs, it is good to remember that anxiety is a highly-valuable defense mechanism evolved over many thousands of years of evolution. Anxiety triggers cortisol release in essential fight-or-flight responses. Ergo, a calm demeanor in the face of real threats may cost life or limb. These days, the mounting stress […]
Vegan Alternatives to Yogurt: So Simple to Make at Home
If you want to taste a new yogurt every single day of the year, your supermarket can meet the challenge. Most of this abundance is of the cow’s milk variety. If you prefer a vegan option—for health or personal reasons—yogurt alternatives made from soy milk are available but a bit harder to find. Note that labelling […]
Do Microbes Drive Metabolic Improvement after Bariatric Surgery?
Bariatric surgery for severe and morbidly obese (Body Mass Index (BMI) >35–40) brings swift results: dramatically reducing cardiovascular risks and diabetes. Current thinking credits immediate changes in the gut microbiome for the metabolic improvements observed after bariatric surgery. Indeed, research has painted a picture of gut microbes in those suffering from overweight or obesity […]