Tag: microbiome

  • It’s In Your Gut

    America is an increasingly overweight country and the problem seems to be getting worse. Already over one-half of Americans are considered overweight and each year more and more people tip the scales into the overweight category. Many factors likely contribute to this trend, but ultimately if we consume more calories than we burn each day…

  • Artificial Sweeteners and the Microbiome

    Obesity, hyperglycemia (high blood sugar), and type 2 diabetes are major medical concerns whose prevalence among adults and children has risen in recent decades, at least in part due to our sugar-rich diets. To reduce sugar intake, a variety of artificial sweeteners have been developed and marketed, including saccharin (e.g. Sweet’N Low), sucralose (e.g. Splenda),…

  • Microbes and Aging

    The human digestive tract, primarily the colon, typically contains between 300 to 1000 different bacterial species, collectively known as our gut microbiome. Studies from the last 20 years have repeatedly shown important connections between the composition of our gut microbiome (i.e. the number of different species and the relative quantities of each species) and various…

  • Bioengineered Yeast Combat Clostridium difficile

    Clostridium difficile (C. diff for short) is an environmental bacterium that has become increasingly common as an opportunistic pathogen. Like its relatives, Clostridium botulinum (the cause of botulism) and Clostridium tetani (the cause of tetanus), C. diff is a spore-forming organism. Spores are dormant forms of bacteria that are very stable and resistant structures. Their…

  • The Gut-Brain Connection

    Our gastrointestinal system is teeming with diverse bacteria that collectively comprise our gut microbiome. These bacteria contribute to our digestive capability as well as more broadly influencing our overall health and wellbeing. As the bacteria in our gut digest our food they produce and excrete their own biomolecules that we call metabolites. Bacterial metabolites can…

  • On a Hot Summer Night ….

    It’s August, and if you live in Texas like I do it’s the season to sweat. Unfortunately, along with sweat comes odor, particularly in the armpit (the axilla region). Certain hairy regions of the body, such as the armpit and groin, contain apocrine glands whose physiological function in humans remains poorly understood. The apocrine glands…

  • Ginger As A Microbiome Modulator

    Derived from the root of the flowering Zingiber officinale plant, ginger is a common spice that also has a long history as a medicinal botanical. Much of its medicinal effect has been attributed to a natural oil called gingerol that has both anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Inflammation and oxidation are risk factors that promote many…

  • Go Mediterranean with Your Microbiome

    The list of mental and physical attributes that decline with aging is long and well-known. Collectively our diminishing bodily functions contribute to increased frailty and more general inflammation. In the medical context, frailty includes not just weaker muscles and bones, but also reduced organ functions, decreased immunity, and cognitive decline. The combined negative changes can…

  • Red Wine is Fine for Your Microbiome

    The role of the human microbiome in health and disease is under massive investigation by scientists world-wide, especially the gut microbiome. There are great individual differences in the composition of the gut microbiome, which is defined as the number of different types of bacteria present and the relative quantities of each type.  Certain difference in…