Probiotics and your Appendix
 

In yesterday's Daily Sun there was an article about probiotics.

The article didn't recommend getting probiotics from pills. Instead it recommended various dairy products. The article was okay but it didn't make it clear that you don't need to keep consuming dairy. Once you get the probiotics you need in your gut, your gut will take care of itself. The bacteria will keep reproducing, assuming you're living a "normal" lifestyle and not taking antibiotics.

Vegans, for example, don't eat dairy and usually don't need probiotics. If your system is working well, it will maintain itself.

In other news separate from the article: It was recently "discovered" that the appendix serves as a reservoir for good bacteria. Ideally, this is the best way to repopulate the gut with a complete balance of good bacteria.

:popcorn::popcorn::popcorn:

Probiotics and your Appendix
 

[emoji3]opcorn is both an irritant and source of bulk. Fitting for this topic!

Eating Garrett's :popcorn::popcorn:

Enjoy!

If one does not eat healthy ALL the time....usually, but not always.....is a probiotic recommended? If one has autoimmune conditions, will the probiotics help or aggravate?
Are you familiar with lacteferin in supplement form? Good, bad?

If you usually eat healthy, I don't think you need to worry about probiotics. I make exceptions on occasion and I don't feel I need probiotics.

I'm not sure about autoimmune conditions so I don't feel qualified to answer.
And I'm not familiar with lacteferin.

But I will say this: A healthy immune system depends on having healthy and complete gut flora. This is something that has evolved over hundreds of thousands of years. It's a balance of many types of bacteria, each with their own purpose or task. Taking one certain supplement is unlikely to replace everything that nature put there over eons.

Different types of bacteria compete with each other, like our government with it's checks and balances. So I would think twice about taking one certain supplement over and over. That may actually work against balance.

For people who have severe health issues and want to make sure they have the right balance, there is always the possibility of getting a fecal transplant from a healthy relative.

Actually, he's right about fecal transplants. But Ew.

url]http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/30/fecal-transplant-crackdown-fda-regulate-infection-stool-treatment_n_3353345.html[/url]

Dr. Oz is unavailable but Dr. Weil is filling in for him today. :shocked: I'm not sure I would ever believe a doctor who sells products on the internet.

Supplemental probiotics provide the helpful bacteria (usually Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium), which normally inhabit the human digestive tract. Most of these "friendly" bacteria occur naturally in cultured milk products, such as acidophilus milk and yogurt with active cultures.
Taken regularly, probiotics can help keep the digestive system in balance and functioning optimally, restore normal flora, and support immune system function, especially when you're taking antibiotics, which can wipe out intestinal bacteria indiscriminately. I also frequently suggest probiotics as an effective treatment for diarrhea, lactose intolerance, irritable bowel syndrome, vaginal yeast infections, oral thrush, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis. When there's a family history of allergy or eczema, babies receiving probiotics in their first six months of life (and whose mothers took probiotics during the last trimester of pregnancy) are less prone to develop skin problems. Children with autism can also benefit from probiotics, possibly because the beneficial bacteria decrease leakage of large molecules from the gut, a process that can trigger immune reactions that affect brain function.
I recommend taking probiotic supplements whenever you're on antibiotics. Take them twice a day with meals as soon as you start your course of medication and continue for a few days after you finish. Look for brands containing Bacillus coagulans (BC-30) or Lactobacillus GG in liquid or capsule form. The dose is one tablespoon of the liquid culture or one to two capsules unless the label directs otherwise. Always check the expiration date to make sure that the bacteria these products contain are alive and in good condition, and look for brands with "colony forming units" (CFUs) in the billions. Be sure to protect your supplements from heat, moisture, and air.
Yes, you can stay on probiotics indefinitely. The only reason to avoid them is if you have had an allergic reaction to lactobacillus, acidophilus, bifidobacterium, or Streptococcus thermophilus.

Andrew Weil, M.D.

Dr Weil, I'm feeling well. Thank you.

Most people...the vast majority of people eat dairy.

About what percentage would you think?

I love brie warmed with raspberry jelly and good crackers. And a cold glass of O'douls.

Dairy covers a lot of ground. Let's see: milk, cheese, yogurt, ice cream. I would guess 80%.

I love your Brie nosh!

Yes, you can do many things indefinitely. But you have to ask under what conditions; why is it needed? What's optimal? What's happening to the good bacteria in your gut that requires it to be continuously replaced?

If you need it to be continuously replaced, something must be wrong systemically.

As I said, you can do lots of things indefinitely, but where's the proof that it's optimal. Where's the proof that a healthy person needs to do this continuously to maintain good health?

Anyway, if what you're taking is not the full complement of a normal balance, and it's highly doubtful that you'll find it in any product, then what are you promoting?

[QUOTE=Villages PL;1020821]Yes, you can do many things indefinitely. But you have to ask under what conditions; why is it needed? What's optimal? What's happening to the good bacteria in your gut that requires it to be continuously replaced?

If you need it to be continuously replaced, something must be wrong systemically.

As I said, you can do lots of things indefinitely, but where's the proof that it's optimal. Where's the proof that a healthy person needs to do this continuously to maintain good health?

Anyway, if what you're taking is not the full complement of a normal balance, and it's highly doubtful that you'll find it in any product, then what are you promoting?[/QUOTE]

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I always wonder what you want us all to do? What are you promoting???

Most of us DON'T CARE what other people eat.

The notion that good gut flora has to be continuously replaced is inaccurate. Read here; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gut_flora

I'm not promoting a darn thing. I was merely quoting an article by Dr. Andrew Weil.
I was just offering information for consideration, something you often do.
As Gracie said, most of us don't care what other people eat.

That was a rhetorical question. If you're not taking a fully balanced probiotic supplement or eating a fully balanced probiotic product, then you would likely be promoting unbalance rather than balance.

And it's my contention that there's no such thing as a fully balanced probiotic supplement or edible probiotic product. It just doesn't exist.

That has been my point all along. You can stay on probiotics indefinitely (or continuously) but that doesn't mean it's optimal for the average healthy individual.

Of what?

....a fully balanced probiotic supplement etc..(which doesn't exist).....in an attempt to establish good gut flora....(bacteria)

The popcorn issue:
 

Re: :popcorn::popcorn::popcorn:

Is the popcorn genetically modified?

Scientists now understand that gene sharing can take place between different species. So when we eat and digest GM foods, like corn, the newly modified genes transfer into and change the good bacteria in the gut. It's called "gene transfer". [Heritage 2004; Netherwood, et al, 2004]

When you change the good bacteria in the gut, you alter the foundation of the immune system. What will the consequences be, if any? It may be too soon to tell. It's an ongoing experiment.

Probiotics and your Appendix
 

Here is the most recent statement of the World Health Organization regarding Gene Transfer.

"Gene transfer from GM foods to cells of the body or to bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract would cause concern if the transferred genetic material adversely affects human health. This would be particularly relevant if antibiotic resistance genes, used as markers when creating GMOs, were to be transferred. Although the probability of transfer is low, the use of gene transfer technology that does not involve antibiotic resistance genes is encouraged."

More:

5. What are the main issues of concern for human health?

While theoretical discussions have covered a broad range of aspects, the three main issues debated are the potentials to provoke allergic reaction (allergenicity), gene transfer and outcrossing.

Allergenicity
As a matter of principle, the transfer of genes from commonly allergenic organisms to non-allergic organisms is discouraged unless it can be demonstrated that the protein product of the transferred gene is not allergenic. While foods developed using traditional breeding methods are not generally tested for allergenicity, protocols for the testing of GM foods have been evaluated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and WHO. No allergic effects have been found relative to GM foods currently on the market.

Gene transfer
Gene transfer from GM foods to cells of the body or to bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract would cause concern if the transferred genetic material adversely affects human health. This would be particularly relevant if antibiotic resistance genes, used as markers when creating GMOs, were to be transferred. Although the probability of transfer is low, the use of gene transfer technology that does not involve antibiotic resistance genes is encouraged.

Outcrossing
The migration of genes from GM plants into conventional crops or related species in the wild (referred to as “outcrossing”), as well as the mixing of crops derived from conventional seeds with GM crops, may have an indirect effect on food safety and food security. Cases have been reported where GM crops approved for animal feed or industrial use were detected at low levels in the products intended for human consumption. Several countries have adopted strategies to reduce mixing, including a clear separation of the fields within which GM crops and conventional crops are grown.

You can tell it is a rainy day from the sound of all the posts seems a shame that all are posting along this line when most of the people in this world will mostly like go to bed having had nothing to eat

Probiotics and your Appendix
 

This is important work...exploring the benefits of popcorn on (or in) the human body. And whether the popcorn is GMO or not. ::jester::

I kinda know when a point has been scored in a debate with certain folks. The subject changes.

Yes, indeed, the subject now is: Who's winning points?

Actually, the subject is still Probiotics. :ohdear:

If Vegans don't eat dairy, how to they establish and maintain a healthy gut?
I've know many people who were Vegans in the past.
I don't know anyone who still follows a Vegan diet - their doctors have all advised them otherwise.

Good question! I don't do anything except eat a healthy diet and nature does the rest. I did take antibiotics twice when I was young but never noticed any problem. Perhaps, as I suggested, it was my appendix that repopulated my gut. What else could it be? I didn't even know there was such a thing as probiotics back then.

Quote:

I've know many people who were Vegans in the past. I don't know anyone who still follows a Vegan diet - their doctors have all advised them otherwise.

1) It's not for the average person, so I'm not surprised.

2) There may be many people who practice veganism poorly because they were not in it for health in the first place.

3) If they were not in it primarily for health reasons (perhaps they were animal rights activists or anorexic etc.) their doctor may have advised otherwise.

I don't feel I have to defend all vegans anymore than you should have to defend all those who eat animal protein.

Some people say, "Boy howdy" and some people say, "Jiminies."

Jiminies.

Others say bless her/his little heart!

I assume this comment is addressed to me as you referenced my post.
I don't feel you have to defend all vegans either! :sigh:

my son's gastroenterologist recommended he take probiotic capsule every day. go figure.

I say howdy, boy! :jester:

You may be wondering what all the fuss is about. Why spend so much time on probiotics? Well, I just learn recently how important gut-bacteria is to health. I knew that it produced certain vitamins like a little B12 and.... it helps us digest fiber. But I just learned this year that gut-bacteria helps to modulate one's metabolism and immune system. Of course it needs to be complete and well balanced in order to do the best job possible. :)

The book: "Missing Microbes" by Martin J. Blaser, M.D.