LifeCare Chiropractic

The Best Chiropractic Care in Mesa, Arizona

Probiotic

PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT OF INFECTIONS BY PROBIOTICS

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IF YOUR PEDIATRICIAN HAS NEVER MENTIONED “PROBIOTICS” TO YOU–FIRE THEM.  We have spent hundreds of thousands of years developing a commensal relationship with the bacteria in our gut and the benefits we obtain are too many to count.  Protection from toxins, balancing the immune system, protection from viruses and other bacteria, hunger control, proper digestion, protection from ulcers, B12 formation…Likewise, the number of clinical studies showing a benefit are vast.  But for some reason, in the past 20 years or so, we have decided that it is ok to wantonly destroy these beneficial bacteria w/ antibiotics with no thought for replacing them.

Based on the research, this is flat out dangerous for our infants and children.  Bottom line is to avoid antiobiotics unless absolutely necessary and, if used, replacement with probiotics after antibiotics.  And yogurt is NOT strong enough.

ARE VACCCINES THE BEST WAY TO PROTECT YOUR CHILD FROM THE FLU?

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ARE VACCCINES THE BEST WAY TO PROTECT YOUR CHILD FROM THE FLU?  Of course we know the answer is an enthusastic NO.  I’ve always recommended probiotics and Vit D as a very strong way to protect against the flu.  This is another study that helps to confirm this approach.  Although not surprising that D had an effect, the effect on children with asthma was surprising…only 2 / 167 kids in the Vit D group as opposed to 12 / 167 in the control (83% reduction) had asthma attacks.

Such a simple and effective approach and yet it remains frustrating that many pediatricians will fire parents as patients if they will not vaccinate their children, and yet will still, after years of research, not recommend probiotics and Vit D.

HAS YOUR CHILD HAD ANTIBIOTICS?

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Despite public opinion, the vast majority of infections will go away on their own.  Somewhere along the way we developed the misconception that our bodies are unable to deal with an infection without antibiotics.  With very few exceptions, this is very far from the truth.

I can almost hear the tremble of fear when parents talk about the notorious Strep infection.  Many would probably not even be able to tell you why Strep can be so dangerous.  The irrational fear is that Strep can cause rheumatic fever and heart valve damage, and so must be treated with antibiotics immediately.  However, the current belief is that the development of rheumatic fever is not directly related to the bacteria itself, but rather a cross-reactivity by the immune system.  Further, up to 1/3 of rheumatic fever patients had no noticeable infection prior to its development.

So what does this mean?  Certainly rheumatic fever can be life-threatening.  However, it is rarely seen in developed countries.  In addition, studies have shown that antibiotics will reduce the progression to rheumatic fever by a paltry 1.67%.  Hardly seems in congruence with the nationwide fear of Strep infections.  Overall, it seems like, if a Strep infection is going to progress to rheumatic fever, the odds are that it’s going to and there may be little we can do to stop it.

 And why the diatribe anyway?  Because antibiotic use is massively inappropriate and, despite researchers literally screaming to cut back on antibiotic use in our kids, nothing has changed.  Prescriptions for antibiotics are still prescribed in 21% of pediatric visits, and the bulk of these were inappropriately prescribed.

So what’s the big deal?  So what if a few extra prescriptions for useless antibiotics get thrown around?

I have said before that I believe that the indiscriminate destruction of healthy, protective bacterial flora in the gastrointestinal system by wanton antibiotic use is one of the worst things we can do to a developing infant, toddler or child.  The list of problems is endless and ranges from allergies and asthma to obesity to autoimmune diseases that can rip apart the gut later in life.

This particular article looks at the prevalence of the superbug MRSA in those who have been prescribed antibiotics.  At the crazy far end of the spectrum, with greater than 4 courses of antibiotics in the prior 5 months, the risk of developing MRSA was 1800 times higher.  And in any child who’s had that many courses of antibiotics in 5 months, there are serious health problems, on top of which a MRSA infection would be a very, very bad thing.

Bottom line is that antibiotics should always be an absolute last line of defense.  Any courses of antibiotics should ALWAYS be following with probiotics.  And we should do everything possible to keep the immune systems of our little ones functioning at the optimal levels with good quality foods and lifestyles.

LACTIC ACID BACTERIA DIFFER IN THEIR ABILITY TO INDUCE FUNCTIONAL REGULATORY T CELLS IN HUMANS

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Probiotics / healthy bacteria. I remain stunned at how little respect mainstream medicine gives to just how important having the right bacteria in our bodies is.

The research on probiotics is extensive and ranges from allergies to obesity to autoimmune conditions to digestive compaints to liver problems. Antibiotics decimate our normal flora. After hundreds of thousands of yrs developing a commensal relationship w/ our bugs, we somehow decide that wiping them out indiscriminately is ok.

The bottom line is that we should avoid antibiotics unless ABSOLUTELY necessary, & always replace with probiotics (should take at least 20-40 Billion / day for several wks to replace) if used.

Read entire article here

 

4 REASONS WHY THE ULCER BACTERIA H. PYLORI IS GOOD FOR YOU

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Back in the mid 1980’s, a doctor by the name of Barry Marshall drank a concoction of the bacteria H. pylori to prove that ulcers were caused by bacterial infection.  He ended up with a Nobel Prize and forever changed medicine’s view of ulcers. Thus began the “blinders on” approach to eradication of H. pylori everytime it was found. Destroying this bacteria is a good thing, right?

Of course, we can all agree that wanton use of antibiotics (and they use 2 types of antibiotics in the treatment) is never a good thing. I have long stood by the belief that H. pylori is merely an opportunistic infection, growing in strength when the patient is not taking care of themselves.

Evidence supporting an important role for H. pylori is strong:

  • H. pylori may protect against asthma and allergies
  • Few patients who have H. pylori actually develop severe inflammation and ulcers
  • Children without H. pylori run a greater risk of being morbidly obese later in life
  • DNA damage to the stomach increases is higher after H. pylori eradication

Even if we viewed H. pylori as an infection that needs to be wiped out, evidence strongly supports the use of probiotics to keep the H. pylori at bay, which runs in direct opposition to the use of antibiotics to wipe out the bacteria.

This particular article relates problems lower down in the GI tract with H. pylori. Or rather, H. pylori is found to lower the inflammatory response lower in the GI tract, potentially lowering the risk of inflammatory bowel disease like Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis. 

Antibiotic use, especially early in life, is believed to be a strong concern for the development of inflammatory bowel disease. It is believed that the destruction of bacteria that is supposed to be there causes the immune system to lose balance, attacking the tissues of the body itself.

TAKE THIS FOR COLD AND FLU SEASON

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If you pay attention to the ads on TV, the second you get a sniffle you should run to Walgreens and down half a bottom of nightime-this or daytime-that. Symptom suppression is the name of the game. If that fails, resort to antibiotics.  But what if the answer is exactly the opposite?

By now almost everyone has heard about probiotics. Many times it may only be a rudimentary understanding that yogurt contains some type of bacteria in it that is good for you. 

The reality is that, over the course of hundreds of thousands of years, our bodies have developed a mutually beneficial relationship (called commensal) with the bacteria in our gut. The benefits to us are immense. Protection from nasty beings trying to infect us, detoxification of toxins from the environment, balancing of our immune system, production of certain vitamins like B12…the list is longer, but you get the idea.

The balancing of the immune system as well as the guarding of our gut and pharynx from competing viruses, bacteria and yeast clearly has the potential to lower our risk of infection. And sure enough, multiple studies have found this to be the case.

This particular review, done by the Cochrane Collaboration, which is a mutlinational think tank that evaluates medical research, continues to support the use of probiotics to lower the risk of an upper respiratory tract infection. In general, taking probiotics lowered the risk of getting an infection by 42% and, in conjunction, lowered the use of antibiotics in the studies. Not too shabby, especially considering that there is nothing, nada, zip, zilch in the armamentarium of mainstream medicine to support immune function and lower our risk of getting sick.

Now for my two cents…

If you are going to take probiotics, make sure that the levels are high enough. These are usually measured in colony forming units (CFU). Yogurt is not going to get you there.  The brand we recommend for routine use has 20 billion CFU / capsule. Make sure you read the label as many brands have much lower levels.

The jury on exactly what strains to take for what condition is still out (and probably will never reconvene, so don’t wait for it…), so a broad spectrum probiotic is best.

COULD ANTIBIOTICS LEAD TO OBESITY?

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There should be no shock to find out just how vitally important having the correct balance of bacteria in our gut is.  The list of conditions that probioitics have shown an effect on is quite a long one.  But this study really looks from a different angle.

The link between bacteria in our gut and obesity is not a newly studied one.  The links between dysbiosis (unhealthy composition of bacteria in our gut) and obesity seems to strengthen with each study.  This particular study goes even further.

Keep in mind that this is a rat study.  The researchers performed a Roux-en-Y gastric bypass on one group and looked at what happened to the rats.  The list is quite long.

First, there was a definate, strong change in the bacteria of the gut.  What this means, we don’t know just yet, but it strongly suggests that there are ties between obesity, bariatric sugery and the bacteria in our gut.  Maybe the changes associated with the surgery, which lead to weight loss, led to the bacterial change.  But does the bacterial change lead to the weight loss?  We don’t have the answer yet, but since it is well established that the metabolic changes that occur after bariatric surgery occur long before weight loss, this may be a logical progression.

It also raises the important question about whether our heavy reliance on both C-sections and antibiotics may not be contributing to the obesity epidemic.  Certainly there are other factors, but we can’t ignore the importance of a healthy gut flora.

Read more…

CONSTIPATION INCREASES RISK OF THIS???

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There are some who say that death begins in the colon.  They’re really not too far off the mark.  True health is not possible without a healthy gut.  There are two issues with constipation.

First is the consequences of constipation.  Now, as I sit here typing this post over lunch, I’ll try not to get too graphic, but think of the poor little cell lining the GI tract (colonocyte in the case of the colon).  In constipation, the view doesn’t change much.  That little guy is exposed to chemicals, byproducts and waste products from compounds that the body had earmarked for elimination.   If those nasties were not moving along at a healthy pace and I was a colonocyte, I know I would not be a happy camper.

Because of this, the risk of cancer and diverticulosis / itis goes up.  Waste products and toxins that were supposed to be removed get reabsorbed.  A perfect example is the glucuronidation of hormones like estrogen.  This is process by which the body will get rid of levels of excess hormones that it doesn’t need.  It occurs principally in the liver and the conjugated hormones are put into the gut for disposal.

With constipation, these conjugated hormones spend too much time in contact with evil bacteria able to un-conjugate the hormones, sending them back into our bodies in their mutated forms.  These mutated forms of hormones such as estrogen can disrupt hormonal balance in the body.  For this reason among others, a woman having PMS complaints needs to evaluate their overall gut function.

The second issue is what creates the constipation in the first place.  It’s not uncommon for this to begin in infanthood.  It seems that parents are sometimes told that their little infant having a bowel movement every couple days is ok…UGH!!!  This can be a very early warning sign of food allergies and, in an infant I would look at dairy-related constipation first.

Poor quality diets can also lead to constipation, as can too little fluid intake.  Many medications can cause constipation as a side effect.  Antibiotics can destroy the healthy bacterial flora.  Gall bladder problems may contribute (an entire post by itself).

So, fixing constipation begins with those concerns mentioned above.  In the short term, magnesium will easily fix constipation.  NEVER use stool softeners as your gut will adapt to them and become dependent.  I usually recommend 400 mg of high quality magnesium before bed.  This amount may be altered by individual circumstances such as stress levels, base dietary intake and other supplements.  But magnesium can’t NOT work (ever heard of anyone not getting cleaned out the day before a colonoscopy?). 

Add to this probiotics to balance out the bacterial flora and produce more stability within the gut.

With all this in mind, looking at this particular article and finding a 23% increased risk of heart disease in those with constipation should now make a little more sense.  It is not likely a direct result, but rather the lifestyle or food allergies that created the constipation coupled with the problems created by the constipation. 

Either way…get it fixed.

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