western diet Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Western High-Fat Diet Can Cause Chronic Pain, According to UT Health San Antonio-Led Team

AHA Publisher — Mon, 28 Jun 2021 07:00:13 +0000

University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio via EurekAlert – SAN ANTONIO, June 23, 2021 – A typical Western high-fat diet can increase the risk of painful disorders common in people with conditions such as diabetes or obesity, according to a groundbreaking paper authored by a team led by The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, also referred to as UT Health San Antonio. Moreover, changes in diet may significantly reduce or even reverse pain from conditions causing either inflammatory pain – such as arthritis, trauma or surgery – or neuropathic pain, such as diabetes. The novel finding could help treat chronic-pain patients by simply altering diet or developing drugs that block release of certain fatty acids in the body. The paper, more than five years in the making, was published in the June edition of the journal Nature Metabolism by a collaborative team of 15 local researchers, headed by first co-authors Jacob T. Boyd, MD, PhD, and Peter M. LoCoco, PhD, of the Department of Endodontics at UT Health San Antonio. In all, 11 of the co-authors are from UT Health San Antonio, including seven current or former students of its Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; three represent the Department of Chemistry at the University of Texas at San Antonio; and one is from the Department of Neurology with the South Texas Veterans Health Care System. “This study exemplifies team science at its best – multiple scientists and clinicians with complementary expertise working together to make lives better,” said Kenneth M. Hargreaves, DDS, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Endodontics at UT Health San Antonio, and senior author of the paper. Fatty Acids and Pain Chronic pain is a major cause of disability around the world. But although fat-reduction often is advised to manage diabetes, auto-immune disorders and cardiovascular diseases, the role of dietary lipids, or fatty acids, in pain conditions has been relatively unknown. In the new paper, Dr. Boyd and his colleagues used multiple methods in both mice and humans to study the role of polyunsaturated fatty acids in pain conditions. They found that typical Western diets high in omega-6 polyunsaturated fats served as a significant risk factor for both inflammatory and neuropathic pain. Omega-6 fats, mainly found in foods with vegetable oils, have their benefits. But Western diets associated with obesity are characterized by much-higher levels of those acids in foods from corn chips to onion rings, than healthy omega-3 fats, which are found in fish and sources like flaxseed and walnuts. Generally, unhealthy foods high in omega-6 fats include processed snacks, fast foods, cakes, and fatty and cured meats, among others. Reversal of this diet, especially by lowering omega-6 and increasing omega-3 lipids, greatly reduced these pain conditions, the researchers found. Also, the authors demonstrated that skin levels of omega-6 lipids in patients with Type 2 diabetic neuropathic pain were strongly associated with reported pain levels and the need for taking analgesic drugs. “This paper is a high-profile contribution for a huge unmet translational need as there are no treatments altering the nature of this neurological disease,” said José E. Cavazos, MD, PhD, professor of neurology, assistant dean and director of the National Institutes of Health-designated South Texas Medical Scientist Training Program at UT Health San Antonio. In an editorial accompanying the paper, Duke University researchers Aidan McGinnis and Ru-Rong Ji wrote, “This comprehensive and elegant study from Boyd et al. may serve as a foundation for new clinical trials and ultimately provide new avenues for the clinical treatment of neuropathies.” To read the original article click here.

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Western Diet Impairs the Gut Immune System, Could Increase Risk of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

AHA Publisher — Fri, 21 May 2021 07:00:34 +0000

Washington University in St. Louis via News-Medical – Eating a Western diet impairs the immune system in the gut in ways that could increase risk of infection and inflammatory bowel disease, according to a study from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Cleveland Clinic. The study, in mice and people, showed that a diet high in sugar and fat causes damage to Paneth cells, immune cells in the gut that help keep inflammation in check. When Paneth cells aren’t functioning properly, the gut immune system is excessively prone to inflammation, putting people at risk of inflammatory bowel disease and undermining effective control of disease-causing microbes. The findings, published May 18 in Cell Host & Microbe, open up new approaches to regulating gut immunity by restoring normal Paneth cell function. “Inflammatory bowel disease has historically been a problem primarily in Western countries such as the U.S., but it’s becoming more common globally as more and more people adopt Western lifestyles. Our research showed that long-term consumption of a Western-style diet high in fat and sugar impairs the function of immune cells in the gut in ways that could promote inflammatory bowel disease or increase the risk of intestinal infections.” Ta-Chiang Liu, MD, PhD, Stydy Lead Author and Associate Professor of Pathology & Immunology, Washington University Paneth cell impairment is a key feature of inflammatory bowel disease. For example, people with Crohn’s disease, a kind of inflammatory bowel disease characterized by abdominal pain, diarrhea, anemia and fatigue, often have Paneth cells that have stopped working. Liu and senior author Thaddeus Stappenbeck, MD, PhD, chair of the Department of Inflammation and Immunity at Cleveland Clinic, set out to find the cause of Paneth cell dysfunction in people. They analyzed a database containing demographic and clinical data on 400 people, including an assessment of each person’s Paneth cells. The researchers found that high body mass index (BMI) was associated with Paneth cells that looked abnormal and unhealthy under a microscope. The higher a person’s BMI, the worse his or her Paneth cells looked. The association held for healthy adults and people with Crohn’s disease. To better understand this connection, the researchers studied two strains of mice that are genetically predisposed to obesity. Such mice chronically overeat because they carry mutations that prevent them from feeling full even when fed a regular diet. To the researchers’ surprise, the obese mice had Paneth cells that looked normal. In people, obesity is frequently the result of eating a diet rich in fat and sugar. So the scientists fed normal mice a diet in which 40% of the calories came from fat or sugar, similar to the typical Western diet. After two months on this chow, the mice had become obese and their Paneth cells looked decidedly abnormal. “Obesity wasn’t the problem per se,” Liu said. “Eating too much of a healthy diet didn’t affect the Paneth cells. It was the high-fat, high-sugar diet that was the problem.” The Paneth cells returned to normal when the mice were put back on a healthy mouse diet for four weeks. Whether people who habitually eat a Western diet can improve their gut immunity by changing their diet remains to be seen, Liu said. “This was a short-term experiment, just eight weeks,” Liu said. “In people, obesity doesn’t occur overnight or even in eight weeks. People have a suboptimal lifestyle for 20, 30 years before they become obese. It’s possible that if you have Western diet for so long, you cross a point of no return and your Paneth cells don’t recover even if you change your diet. We’d need to do more research before we can say whether this process is reversible in people.” Further experiments showed that a molecule known as deoxycholic acid, a secondary bile acid formed as a byproduct of the metabolism of gut bacteria, forms the link between a Western diet and Paneth cell dysfunction. The bile acid increases the activity of two immune molecules -; farnesoid X receptor and type 1 interferon -; that inhibit Paneth cell function. Liu and colleagues now are investigating whether fat or sugar plays the primary role in impairing Paneth cells. They also have begun studying ways to restore normal Paneth cell function and improve gut immunity by targeting the bile acid or the two immune molecules. To read the original article click here.

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WRONG Idea: Eating Healthy “Most of the Time” for Brain Health, New Study Warns

AHA Publisher — Fri, 22 Jan 2021 08:00:10 +0000

Joy Jensen via NaturalHealth365 – Many people try to follow a healthy diet like the Mediterranean diet. However, sometimes temptations win, and it’s easy to indulge in unhealthy foods, despite eating well most of the time. Unfortunately, new research shows there’s bad news about having “cheat days.” Scientists have looked closely at the Mediterranean diet and the health benefits it offers, but they have never dug into what happens when unhealthy foods are included in a mostly healthy diet. In a new study published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, researchers from Rush University Medical Center set out to uncover answers, and what they found was quite enlightening and disturbing! The More You “Cheat,” the Fewer Benefits Healthy Eating Offers to Your Brain, Study Reveals Following the Mediterranean diet – or another diet that emphasizes whole grains, fish, fruit, vegetables, and healthy fats, positively affects health. However, when you cheat on your diet, combining it with unhealthy options like processed meats, fried foods, refined grains, sweets, and red meat, the benefits of your normal healthy diet seem to be diminished. Since the Mediterranean diet has been linked to lower rates of cognitive decline in aging adults, researchers conducted an observational study on 5,001 aging adults in Chicago. These individuals were all a part of the Chicago Health and Aging Project, which evaluated cognitive health in older adults between 1993 and 2012. Participants in the study filled out questionnaires every three years, tested their memory and processing skills, and then weighed in on the foods they consumed. Rush researchers analyzed how closely these participants stuck with the Mediterranean diet, as well as how often they ate foods from the Western diet like sweets, fried foods, pizza, full-fat dairy, red meats, and refined grains. They discovered that when study participants added more Western foods, the Mediterranean diet had minimal effect against cognitive decline. Try Your Best to Stick to Your Diet to Reap MULTIPLE Other Health Benefits Along with showing the dangers of cheating on your diet, this recent study also complements additional studies on the Mediterranean diet showing that it reduces the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and some types of cancer. Some research even shows that sticking with a Mediterranean diet lowers the risk of premature death by as much as 30 percent. The bottom line: the more we eat healthy foods like fruits, whole grains, healthy fats, vegetables, and fish, the better it is for the body and brain. Many studies show that eating processed whole grains, fried foods, and processed meats are associated with cognitive decline, inflammation, and other negative health consequences. While it doesn’t mean you can never indulge, the key to better health is to avoid cheating as much as possible, sticking to the healthy foods that nourish your body and promote overall health. Sources for this article include: MedicalXpress.com, NaturalHealth365.com, NaturalHealth365.com To read the original article click here. For more articles from NaturalHealth365 click here.

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High-Fat Diet with Antibiotic Use Linked to Gut Inflammation

AHA Publisher — Wed, 15 Jul 2020 07:00:57 +0000

UC Davis Health via Newswise – UC Davis researchers have found that combining a Western-style high-fat diet with antibiotic use significantly increases the risk of developing pre-inflammatory bowel disease (pre-IBD). The study, published July 14 in Cell Host and Microbe, suggests that this combination shuts down the energy factories (mitochondria) in cells of the large intestinal lining, leading to gut inflammation. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) affects approximately 11% of people worldwide. It is characterized by recurring episodes of abdominal pain, bloating and changes in bowel habits. IBS patients with mucosal inflammation and changes in the gut’s microbial composition are considered pre-IBD. Antibiotic Usage with High-Fat Diet Is a Risk Factor The study included 43 healthy adults and 49 adult patients diagnosed with IBS. The researchers measured fecal calprotectin, a biomarker for intestinal inflammation, of participants. Elevated levels of fecal calprotectin indicated a pre-IBD condition. The study identified 19 patients with IBS as pre-IBD. The researchers found that participants who consumed high-fat diet and used antibiotics were at 8.6 times higher risk for having pre-IBD than those on low-fat diet and no recent history of antibiotic use. Participants with the highest fat consumption were about 2.8 times more likely to have pre-IBD than those with the lowest fat intake. A history of recent antibiotic usage alone was associated with 3.9 times higher likelihood of having pre-IBD. “Our study found that a history of antibiotics in individuals consuming a high-fat diet was associated with the greatest risk for pre-IBD,” said Andreas Bäumler, professor of medical microbiology and immunology and lead author on the study. “Until now, we didn’t appreciate how different environmental risk factors can synergize to drive the disease.” Shutting the Cell’s Powerhouse Promotes Gut Microbial Growth Using mouse models, the study also tested the effect of high-fat diet and antibiotic use on the cells in the intestinal lining. It found that high-fat diet and antibiotics cooperate to disrupt the work of the cell’s mitochondria, shutting its ability to burn oxygen. This disruption caused reduction in cell’s oxygen consumption and led to oxygen leakage into the gut. Higher oxygen levels in the gut promote bacterial imbalances and inflammation. The body’s beneficial bacteria thrive in environments lacking oxygen such as the large intestine. With the disruption in the gut environment, a vicious cycle of replacing the good bacteria with potentially harmful proinflammatory microbes that are more oxygen tolerant begins. This in turn leads to mucosal inflammation linked to pre-IBD conditions. The study also identified 5-aminosalicylate (mesalazine), a drug that restarts the energy factories in the intestinal lining, as a potential treatment for pre-IBD. “The best approach to a healthy gut is to get rid of the preferred sustenance of harmful microbes,” Lee said. “Our study emphasized the importance of avoiding high fat food and abuse of antibiotics to avoid gut inflammation.” To read the original article click here.

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