The Rise and Rise of Allergies! Microbial Deprivation and Hygiene Hypothesis

I consider myself a germaphobe, the thought of unseen creepy crawlies does serious damage to my mind, bleach is my best friend.

I’ve fallen in love with antibacterial wipes, vinegar, indeed anything that will KILL microbes on surfaces anyplace near me. I grow a huge smile every time I see Asian tourists strolling the streets in surgical face masks, are we overreacting?

It turns out I might be overreacting, scientists reckon that some germs are good? I must point out that Hygiene – as used in this post –  has little relationship with ‘hygiene’ in the usual meaning of the word. The term ‘hygiene hypothesis’ is unfortunate, as it is misleading. A better term would be Microbial Deprivation Hypothesis.

Our immune systems are our single most important line of defense against infection.

The bacteria and germs that surround us, some of these microbes can be nasty, really nasty, causing food poisoning, colds, a variety of other infections as well as diseases.

It is perhaps the ones inside that we need worry most about though, many researchers are now focusing on dysfunctional colonies of microbes within human beings for causes to disorders such as asthma, MS and autism, including disorders previously believed to be entirely brain based like epilepsy, depression and even my favourite, Bipolar Disorder.

I must warn, this is an opinion piece, it is based on several hypotesis – of others – a little thought, possibly some hyperbole and a little wishful thinking, it is meant entirely for thought provocation :: Read the full article »»»»

FOLLOW US, WE’RE FAT!

I’ve been wondering for a while just how long it would take for Obesity to move from being a medical issue to a social one, it seems we are right now on that cusp. Obesity has had so much bad publicity - deservingly so – over the past 5 years that the obese are striking back, no longer satisfied with the social stigma, and  often unable to lose the weight, the obese are becoming a large majority.

Fat activist Jackie Wykes recently posted a volatile question via theconversation.edu.au, asking How Anti Obesity Campaigns Re-inforce Stigma. Ms Wykes says “By focusing on weight as the problem and weight loss as the solution, social and economic inequalities are made invisible.” I’d reckon that in this country at least – and the world generally –  supermarkets would disagree entirely, never have groceries – fresh included – ever been so inexpensive, there is literally NO excuse today for BAD EATING HABITS!

According to Ms Wykes, health disparities between groups are blamed on individuals for not making healthy choices, ignoring the ways that the choices available to comfortably middle-class white Australians are often very different to those available to people on low incomes, to recent immigrants, or to Indigenous Australians.

This rhetoric clearly scirts the issue – yes obese people have rights, more rights than drug addicts, less than breast cancer patients, and about the same as rights as smokers –  in my mind the formula is pretty simple, EAT LESS! If you wish to make the argument complicated - it’s still diet based for the majority of obesity – then EAT CAREFULLY! :: Read the full article »»»»

Chronic Obesity Killing 5 Million+ Each Year

A third of the world’s adult population is physically inactive, the couch-potato lifestyle kills about 5 million people every year, experts contributing to a special feature in the medical journal The Lancet say.

“Roughly three of every 10 individuals aged 15 years or older – about 1.5 billion people – do not reach present physical activity recommendations,” Dr Pedro Hallal and colleagues said in a report that described the problem as a pandemic.

The Lancet Physical Activity Series Working Group paints an even grimmer picture for adolescents, with four out of five 13 to 15-year-olds not moving enough, the report said.

Inactivity was described for the study as failing to do 30 minutes of moderate physical activity five times a week, 20 minutes of vigorous activity three times a week, or a combination of the two :: Read the full article »»»»

Researchers Reveal How a Single Gene Mutation Leads to Uncontrolled Obesity

The discovery offers clues about how to turn on brain sensitivity to leptin and insulin, hormones that turn off appetite.

Researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center have revealed how a mutation in a single gene is responsible for the inability of neurons to effectively pass along appetite suppressing signals from the body to the right place in the brain. What results is obesity caused by a voracious appetite.
Their study, published March 18th on Nature Medicine‘s website, suggests there might be a way to stimulate expression of that gene to treat obesity caused by uncontrolled eating.

The research team specifically found that a mutation in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (Bdnf) gene in mice does not allow brain neurons to effectively pass leptin and insulin chemical signals through the brain. In humans, these hormones, which are released in the body after a person eats, are designed to “tell” the body to stop eating. But if the signals fail to reach correct locations in the hypothalamus, the area in the brain that signals satiety, eating continues. Read the full article »»»»

Australia: Obesity Epidemic Affecting Autopsies

Australians are getting more obese by the day, with experts warning body fat is masking the diagnosis of other illnesses. It is causing stress on Australia’s public health system and the people who have to examine the grossly overweight bodies. South Australian forensic pathologist Roger Byard says the problem is so bad he cannot get some of his clients onto his examination tables, reports Rebecca Brice from abc.net.au.

Dr Byard says obesity is one of the most frightening epidemics he has seen in his four decades in medicine. ”We have antibiotics for infections, we have chemotherapy for cancer, so we take two steps forward but with the obesity problem we’re almost taking three steps back,” Dr Byard said.

Dr Byard says since 1986 the rate of morbidly obese bodies entering his Adelaide mortuary has risen from just over 1 per cent to almost 5 per cent. At times the bodies are so big he has to dissect them on the floor. ”We try to avoid this obviously, but if a body is so large that we can’t safely put the body on a trolley then we have to perform the autopsy on the floor, which is terribly difficult.”

The bigger the bodies, he says, the harder it is to dissect them and the harder it is to find the cause of death. ”Obesity comes with so many diseases – it’s almost how do you choose which is the problem,” he said. ”As well as the fact that they have to carry this excess weight around, their heart’s being compressed and this adipose tissue material is secreting toxins that people think actually cause death of heart cells. So they’re being attacked on all fronts.” Dr Byard said.

The problems are not confined to the morgue. Some obese hospital patients do not fit into CT scanning machines and excess fat can hinder the taking of blood using syringes, which impedes diagnosis in both the dead and the living.