tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post5044882867269853112..comments2024-03-28T06:11:20.882-06:00Comments on Cooling Inflammation: Necrotising Enterocolitis, Low Birth Weight and FormulaDr. Art Ayershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comBlogger66125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-88702970368185409972010-11-05T09:16:58.345-06:002010-11-05T09:16:58.345-06:00Dr. Ayers,
thanks for the reply. The bacteria is L...Dr. Ayers,<br />thanks for the reply. The bacteria is Lactobacillus reuteri, not sure if that makes a difference. What are the 5 s's? <br /><br />WandaWandanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-68653871642160063532010-11-03T17:51:43.668-06:002010-11-03T17:51:43.668-06:00Wanda,
I would not recommend prebiotics for infant...Wanda,<br />I would not recommend prebiotics for infants that are breastfed, because they are not appropriate for infants and promote the development of bacteria that could potentially disrupt the normal bifidusbacteria of an exclusively breastfed infant. Only the bifidus factor (elongated oligosaccharides starting with lactose) derived from human breast milk would be appropriate and that isn't normally available. Prebiotics are not natural for human babies.<br /><br />I think that the problem of cholic starts with the mother's immune system and its response to cow antigens. (Although there are probably several types of cholic.) If your baby is already primed by your response to cow/meat antigens, then avoiding dairy would be the first step. Breastfeeding until your baby's immune system starts to function independently is a wonderful beginning.<br /><br />I spent numerous endless nights rocking, walking and otherwise trying to pacify my babies and I didn't have breasts for complete nurturing, so I can understand some of your frustration. It is very harsh, but baby necks still smell nice and my arms still miss them decades after I have forgotten the exhaustion.<br /><br />I hope that you are familiar with the 5 S's.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-19742498117097872462010-11-03T13:27:34.660-06:002010-11-03T13:27:34.660-06:00Hi Dr. Art,
I have a 4 week baby who seems to hav...Hi Dr. Art, <br />I have a 4 week baby who seems to have colic. My midwife is suggesting the use of a prebiotic supplement in drop form to help relieve the colic. Do you typically advise against pre (pro?) biotics in infants? Have you heard if it is harmful to the flora formation? I should mention that my baby is breastfed only, no formula at all.Wandanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-71424687999833854052010-07-05T17:21:15.084-06:002010-07-05T17:21:15.084-06:00Dr Art
Do you have an email I can reach you at.
R...Dr Art<br />Do you have an email I can reach you at. <br />Regards Kimkimhttp://kruger_kim@hotmail.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-70499215954668857142010-06-18T09:38:59.238-06:002010-06-18T09:38:59.238-06:00Steve,
The rule of thumb that my wife and I found ...Steve,<br />The rule of thumb that my wife and I found to be true was to start supplementing breastmilk with solid food when our daughters had some top and bottom teeth for chewing. It takes about six months for the growth factors in breastmilk to close the infants GI tract and start the development of the immune system. Formula or other forms of modified cow's milk disrupt the normal infant gut flora and cause inflammation. A recent study of gene expression in exclusively breastfed vs. formula fed infants demonstrated that the intestines developed differently with hundreds of differences in the activity of individual genes.<br /><br />I think that any form of dairy or grain products during the first year is probably not a good idea. The dairy is discouraged because of the content of non-human sialic acid (Neu5Gc) and the grain because of the prevalence of gluten intolerance and mineral leaching of bran. I also think that infants probably lack the capacity to detoxify most phytochemicals in plants and should avoid leafy veggies and seeds.<br /><br />It seems that the world is a dangerous place and nothing is free of fangs or thorns. Under the best of circumstances an infant would progress from exclusive breastfeeding to home-crushed meat and starchy fruits and vegetables to avoid the perils of any use of formula or processed baby foods. That's what we did with our three daughters. It was easy, cheap and healthy.<br /><br />Thanks for the questions.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-90333769965013080702010-06-16T19:30:54.136-06:002010-06-16T19:30:54.136-06:00Dr Ayers,
At what stage does a child generally mo...Dr Ayers,<br /><br />At what stage does a child generally move towards a more 'adult' type gut flora? While dairy is obviously a bad choice for infants, when would you consider it "least bad" or even benificial to add some high quality dairy (greek yoghurt, artesian cheese, some milk; biodynamic, grass-fed, raw if possible) to the diet.<br />I encourage real 'adult' food (meat/vege/fat) to any infant/child not being breast fed (albeit in a different form) and wanted to make sure I (or the parent) wasn't sabotaging my own work by adding dairy to early.<br /><br />cheers,<br /><br />SteveStevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01451155550683882522noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-62807584288276078342010-06-16T11:20:27.480-06:002010-06-16T11:20:27.480-06:00Jack C,
Milk is highly adapted to provide nutritio...Jack C,<br />Milk is highly adapted to provide nutrition, development and defense to neonate GI tracts. Proteins, lipids and carbohydrates, as well as maternal cells contribute to those activities. In addition, the milk components interact with cells of the intestinal lining to produce still more complex reactions. Many of these interactions are species specific and inactivated by increased temperature, e.g. pasteurization.<br /><br />Pasteurization of milk compromises the healthful properties of milk and may actually make it contribute to some health problems. The same can be said for using milk from different species and that is why cow's milk is unhealthy for infants. Cow's milk is nutritionally unbalanced and stimulates inappropriate gut flora for human infants. Formula attempts to minimize the unhealthy aspects of cow's milk, but still has many severe problems. The proteins, lipids and carbohydrates (particularly oligosaccharides) are very different between human and cow's milk. Cow's milk also has a form of sialic acid (Neu5Gc) that is not tolerated well.<br /><br />Pasteurization of human milk is necessary to make it acceptable as a commodity (to avoid fear of pathogens), but is probably no more appropriate than pasteurization of blood. After all, both milk and blood contain living cells.<br /><br />Any form of cow's milk, raw or pasteurized or A2, is not as healthy for infants as any form of human milk. All forms of cow's milk, including formula, should be avoided in hospitals for use with infants.<br /><br />Thanks for your comments.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-80387784996099273952010-06-16T10:59:02.453-06:002010-06-16T10:59:02.453-06:00Anonymous,
Oat and rice bran
It is hard for me to ...Anonymous,<br />Oat and rice bran<br />It is hard for me to have a balanced evaluation of brans. They are excessively hyped for their benefits and their problems are avoided. Most people like oat bran, because it encourages them to overeat starches. I don't consider oats to be nutritious and they are bad choices for breakfast, because of their high starch content.<br /><br />The insoluble beta-glucans, I consider to be medicinal, i.e. potentially unhealthy because they are inflammatory ("stimulate the immune system"). They can be used to improve the performance of vaccines, for example, because they heighten inflammation that is conducive to aggressive antibody production. This is not something that would normally be healthful, because it also contributes to autoimmune disease. Stimulating the immune system is not normally healthful. At the same time, blocking immune reactions is also only appropriate in emergencies, e.g. anaphylatic shock or cytokine storm.<br /><br />Bran can be considered to be modestly prebiotic, because your gut flora can learn to digest some portions of the polysaccharides, but I think that as the repository of the defensive molecules responsible for protecting seeds against pathogens, brans of all types are more toxic than healthful. <br /><br />Related note: Essentially all toxic plant phytochemicals would be classified as good anti-oxidants. The term anti-oxidant is usually meaningless in reference to the actual action of a phytochemical when eaten.<br /><br />Thanks for your questions.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-60094414714156977712010-06-15T19:40:02.008-06:002010-06-15T19:40:02.008-06:00Pooled human breast milk given to neonates is usua...Pooled human breast milk given to neonates is usually pasteurized thereby greatly reducing the antimicrobial effectiveness of the milk. Studies have shown that babies fed raw breast milk gain weight more rapidly than those fed pasteurized breast milk, a fact attributed to destruction of lipase by pasteurization. Babies fed pasteurized breast milk are also at greater risk for infection than those fed raw breast milk apparently due to inactivation of lactoferrin, lactoperoxidase and other factors.<br /><br />It has been found that raw cows milk does not support the growth of pathogens such as Salmonella, E.coli0157:H7, or Listeria whereas these pathogens thrive in pasteurized milk. It seems that raw A2 cows milk would be more beneficial to neonates than pasteurized human breast milk.<br /><br />The study, "Human Milk Inactivates Pathogens Individually, Additively and Synergistically" attributes much of the antibacterial capacity of human breast milk to the conversion of lipids in the milk to antibacterial triglycerides in the gut.<br /><br />http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/content/full/135/5/1286Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-79536846694821222942010-06-15T15:29:06.878-06:002010-06-15T15:29:06.878-06:00Susanne,
Vit.D deficiency may be one source of inf...Susanne,<br />Vit.D deficiency may be one source of inflammation that is contributing to your symptoms and it may also compromise attack on cryptic bacteria. <br /><br />I would recommend using an anti-inflammatory diet as I outline to eliminate diet-based contributions to inflammation, an make sure that your gut flora is functional, e.g. normal bowel movements and not constipation, to avoid immune system problems. Also be aware that candidiasis may be a problem following antibiotic treatments. <br /><br />Then, some rosaceans find that slowly increasing serum vit.D above 80ng/ml attacks some of the root causes of flareups. Avoid setbacks by proceeding no faster at increasing your serum vit.D than you can without flareups that quickly recover.<br /><br />Please let me know if this is helpful.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-38339055838583808342010-06-15T05:12:55.993-06:002010-06-15T05:12:55.993-06:00I saw you comment on bran, Dr.Ayers. Is oat bran a...I saw you comment on bran, Dr.Ayers. Is oat bran and rice bran as bad a wheat bran. I always thought that oat bran is a valuable prebiotic.<br />YasmineAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-83818505498621848692010-06-15T04:54:01.941-06:002010-06-15T04:54:01.941-06:00Dr. Ayers
I am a rosacea sufferer. I recently got...Dr. Ayers<br /><br />I am a rosacea sufferer. I recently got a blood test for Vit D. My 25-OH-D level is 32ng/ml. How high do you think it should be for me to see improvements?<br />RegardsMonikahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00999159184503685381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-71123710109791220552010-06-14T11:08:56.702-06:002010-06-14T11:08:56.702-06:00Cassandra,
I think that the structure of the study...Cassandra,<br />I think that the structure of the study used to conclude that bran contributes to health is limited and only shows the people eating bran are healthier. It can't actually show the direct contribution of bran to health.<br /><br />The bottom line is that most people who stop eating grains and bran feel better, and most cultures eating grains as a major part of the diet have some way of reducing the bran content.<br /><br />There is no convincing evidence of bran benefits, no explanation of why bran would be healthful and convincing reasons to not eat it. Putting bran in foods and advertising it as healthful is just a way of marketing a waste product of the processed food industry.<br /><br />Thanks for your comments/questions.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-38942752004808992882010-06-14T10:59:37.199-06:002010-06-14T10:59:37.199-06:00Anonymous,
Switching from grains to non-gluten sta...Anonymous,<br />Switching from grains to non-gluten starches.<br /><br />I recommend avoiding grains, because the majority of people react to gluten and bran, and their gut is not fully functional. I think that grain/gluten intolerance is a major entry point for autoimmune diseases.<br /><br />Many people try to avoid grains, by switching to other high starch foods. That misses the point that starch and the spike in blood sugar and insulin that it causes are a significant health problem. There is no need for substantial amounts of carbs in the diet and for most people they are a problem. Saturated fats as the source of dietary calories is much safer and satisfying. Eliminating the starch, eliminates most hunger due to crashing blood sugar.<br /><br />I think that your approach using fermented grain substitutes is sound, except that the amount of these sources of starch in the diet should, in my opinion, be small. I think that starch in the diet is just a bad habit.<br /><br />Thanks for your comments and congrats on your health successes.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-81632264384850126652010-06-14T10:44:35.949-06:002010-06-14T10:44:35.949-06:00Anonymous,
Allergies and saturated fats:
From my p...Anonymous,<br />Allergies and saturated fats:<br />From my perspective, the cause of allergies is typically chronic diet-based inflammation plus a disruption of the gut flora to produce a defect in the immune system.<br /><br />Curing allergies means changing diet to stop the chronic inflammation and reconstructing the gut flora to regain immune system function and suppress the inappropriate attack on common molecules.<br /><br />Using saturated fats as the major source of calories, instead of starch and polyunsaturated fats, is a major factor in reducing diet-based inflammation.<br /><br />The diet that I recommend is designed to eliminate all of the common sources of dietary inflammation. I also make suggestions on restructuring gut flora.<br /><br />Treating allergies requires persistence, but the triggering allergen is only the most obvious symptom of substantial underlying problems than cannot be addressed by just avoiding the allergen.<br /><br />Thanks for your comments/questions.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-30370661132276109112010-06-14T03:14:32.147-06:002010-06-14T03:14:32.147-06:00Dear Dr Art
Very interesting - I will supplement ...Dear Dr Art<br /><br />Very interesting - I will supplement with lactoferrin and keep you posted on any further developments.<br /><br />Kind regards,<br />ViktorViktornoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-38805264855931391722010-06-14T02:29:17.347-06:002010-06-14T02:29:17.347-06:00I have been following your diet suggestions and am...I have been following your diet suggestions and am feeling great, thank you. Also, I'm eating such a huge variety of vegetables, and I found out I like leeks!<br /><br />My question concerns bran. It sounds like we should just avoid it, but I was reading a blog which referenced this review article (http://tinyurl.com/23lpdy3) which apparently says:<br /><br />After adjustment for age and lifestyle and other dietary factors, only bran consumption was inversely associated with all-cause mortality: 25% lower risk of death for those eating an average of 10 g per day compared to 1 g per day. In other words,the women who ate the most bran had the lowest risk of dying from any cause.<br /><br />I got the original reference from this site:<br />http://diabeticmediterraneandiet.com/2010/06/12/whole-grains-good-for-diabetic-women/<br /><br />Heart disease runs in my family and I sure would like to avoid it. Thoughts on eating bran to reduce heart disease? Thank you so much.Cassandranoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-33202533222534834212010-06-13T18:46:14.115-06:002010-06-13T18:46:14.115-06:00I have adapted most of your dietary recommendation...I have adapted most of your dietary recommendations to great success, but I have a question regarding carbs. I replaced bread with Indian dosa which is made from fermented legumes and rice. I takes the consistency of a pancake but is gluten free. Do you see this as harmful to include in the diet?<br /><br />I also eat buckwheat as it is not a grain and is thus gluten free. Is this OK? I ferment the batter I make with it and keep this as a small portion of my diet.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-13670147168194739492010-06-13T17:52:48.644-06:002010-06-13T17:52:48.644-06:00Hi Dr Ayers
If allergies have been a problem for a...Hi Dr Ayers<br />If allergies have been a problem for a long time (ie. anaphylatic response to fish), does this indicate a chronic inflammation problem? would you recommend the use of saturated fats in the diet if this was the case?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-72365777016011578712010-06-13T11:49:18.539-06:002010-06-13T11:49:18.539-06:00Mrs. Ed,
In some of my early articles, I discussed...Mrs. Ed,<br />In some of my early articles, I discussed my experiments with lactoferrin. Lactoferrin is a cheap source of heparin-binding peptides. My students just emptied capsules of the nutrichemical, removed the rice powder filler, hydrolyzed with pepsin and purified the heparin-binding peptides on an affinity column of heparin-sepharose. We could use fluorescent derivatives of the peptides to follow heparan sulfate proteoglycans in cartilage secreting cells in culture. That was almost as cool as using tonic (quinine is fluorescent and binds heparin) to light up cells in microscopy.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-29294544541903461682010-06-13T11:37:14.685-06:002010-06-13T11:37:14.685-06:00Medjoub,
To make fiber simple, exclude bran as tox...Medjoub,<br />To make fiber simple, exclude bran as toxic and just discuss the remaining polysaccharides that the human body doesn't produce enzymes to digest, i.e. all polysaccharides except starch. These are fiber.<br /><br />Without gut flora, all fiber just passes through the gut untouched. People who routinely eat the same fiber and are exposed to diverse bacteria, e.g. soil, develop a collection of bacteria that can digest the fiber. This is the same process as spilling oil on soil and waiting for the development a bacterial population that digests oil. It happens.<br /><br />How long the adaptation takes is dependent on frequency of eating the new fiber polysaccharide and exposure to new bacteria. Clearly, eating the same food as everyone else provides access to adaptive bacteria. Living in a modern, mostly sterile environment with people on unhealthy diets tends to undermine public and individual health.<br /><br />Proactively exposing oneself to diverse bacteria to expand the fiber adaptation of gut flora is a problem, because that exposure is also effective for the bacteria to adapt to you as a nutrient source, i.e. it is a way of searching for pathogens. There is probably a cultural practice somewhere that optimizes gut flora adaptation and minimizes encountering pathogens, but I don't know what it is. Perhaps that is why babies are healthier if they continue breastfeeding while they begin eating solid food, i.e. they are protected by the mother's adapted immune system while they accumulate new gut flora.<br /><br />Excessive cleanliness of hands and food, that is promoted to sell cleansing products is the source of many health problems. Being around small children with access to backyards and animals is probably a health benefit (unless the kids are in daycare.)<br /><br />So, I don't worry about finding good or bad fiber. I just avoid grains and eat lots of different veggies and follow what is available from my garden and local farm produce. I don't bother to clean the veggies too much and I eat some raw. The appendix provides a gut flora reservoir to weather diarrhea or short term antibiotics.<br /><br />Yes, I am not promoting a special diet, because I don't think that it is necessary. Protein and fat from meat/fish/eggs/dairy supply most of the nutrition and calories. Veggies feed gut flora, provide vitamins, minerals and that's about it. Olive and coconut oil are used for dressing and cooking, and other vegetable oils with omega-6 polyunsaturated fats are avoided as inflammatory. These guidelines provide a satisfying diet that is easy to maintain for life and avoids the hunger associated with starch-based diets.<br /><br />Thanks for your questions.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-79362412005707156672010-06-13T09:45:40.498-06:002010-06-13T09:45:40.498-06:00I've been looking into Lactoferrin now. If you...I've been looking into Lactoferrin now. If you go to PubMed and type in "lactoferrin sepsis", there are many articles on necrotising enterocolitis and that it may help as well, such as this one:<br /><br />http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20464748<br /><br />Very Interesting!!!Mrs. Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02144247274657295271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-10991350197056187632010-06-13T07:34:59.499-06:002010-06-13T07:34:59.499-06:00Dr. Ayers -
I appreciate the long reply regarding...Dr. Ayers -<br /><br />I appreciate the long reply regarding fiber and gut health. I think I understand the basic processes, but need clarification on this point:<br /><br />"So, fiber to which your gut flora are adapted are healthy and support diverse gut bacteria (>100 species required for health), whereas other fiber may actually cause problems. This suggests that it is useful to augment a high fat, low carb diet with diverse herbs, spices, fruits and vegetables."<br /><br />How does the concerned individual pursue these good qualities in certain kinds of fibers (presumably inulin and pectin) without consuming the difficult-to-digest or useless kinds? Further, is there an effective strategy for "collecting" these >100 bacteria that are essential to health? There are commercial/conventional and organic vegetables of all kinds everywhere, but it seems to be a shot in the dark trying to figure out which might contain this or that bacteria. Am I wrong? I'm certainly not skeptical, I just wonder how a person can effectively approach this proactively. Perhaps the "problem" is just that you aren't pitching a diet and some of us are used to specific diet pitches. :-)<br /><br />Thanks again for your insight and for the time you so freely give to answering questions...Medjoubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16687188823132025199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-4196387009320920292010-06-12T11:25:09.011-06:002010-06-12T11:25:09.011-06:00Viktor,
I just look for article on the ability of ...Viktor,<br />I just look for article on the ability of lactoferrin and lactoferrin peptides to kill Candida. It seems to work and the human lactoferrin, with its stronger heparin binding domain:<br />KcfqwqRnmRKvR<br />is even more effective.<br /><br />Lactoferrin is also a major component of milk whey protein. Note that the Eades 6 Week Cure starts with protein shakes made from low carb milk whey.<br /><br />Thanks for giving me an excuse to talk about heparin-binding proteins.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-196334975274806517.post-34458639282721890302010-06-12T11:08:48.466-06:002010-06-12T11:08:48.466-06:00Hi Viktor,
The positive impact of probiotics sugge...Hi Viktor,<br />The positive impact of probiotics suggests both an anti-inflammatory and a gut-associated immune system response, e.g. autoimmune. There are lots of examples of secondary infections in the context of an immune system defect, e.g. skin mites in rosacea, thrush in HIV.<br /><br />Even a simple immune deficit caused by problems in gut flora can have significant ramifications.<br /><br />Lactoferrin is an iron chelator and is produced in milk and secreted onto wet surfaces of the body and at sites of infection. It is a heparin binding protein and is digested in the stomach into peptides that are anti-microbial -- heparin binding domains are anti-microbial. All of the protein sequences similar to heparin binding domains have been patented for use as acne treatments.<br /><br />Lactoferrin is available in capsule form. It is effective in avoiding hospital Clostridium infections. I doubt that oral lactoferrin would impact the skin micro-organisms directly, but it might still be useful for its gut impact. I don't know if it is effective against Candida.<br /><br />Thanks for your questions.Dr. Art Ayershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01727664149735013259noreply@blogger.com