Renew You Challenge

Let’s start this week off right!

Weekly challenge (I mean opportunity!) to help set you off on the right foot and in the right direction for bringing health to your week. You could even add it to your calendar. Join us!

The development of allergies in infants is influenced by different factors. A too-clean environment is one factor. Lack of breastfeeding is another factor. Diet, both of the infant and the mother, is yet another factor. In a recent study, mothers’ diets during pregnancy were evaluated for a link to the development of allergies in infants.

Researchers found that if the mother’s diet contained omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) like those found in fish, walnuts and flaxseed, the babys’ guts developed differently. The PUFAs help to improve how gut immune cells respond to gut bacteria and other foreign substances in the gut. This highlights the complementary action of omega-3s with gut bacteria. The result? A reduction in the risk of allergy development in children.

Studies have shown that fish oil and walnut oil supplementation during pregnancy help reduce allergy risk in their children, and now this new study shows why. “The end result is that the baby’s immune system may develop and mature faster—leading to better immune function and less likelihood of suffering allergies,” stated Dr. Gaelle Boudry one of the study’s researchers.

It is well known that omega-3 fish oil—particularly DHA—is important for brain development of the fetus during pregnancy. This new study adds to the understanding of the benefits of omega-3s. This week, if you or someone you know is pregnant, be sure you’re getting enough omega-3s. A concentrated, purified fish oil supplement is a great way to get your omega-3s, just be sure to clear it with your doctor.

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The atopic diseases of childhood—Eczema, asthma and rhinitis (nasal allergies)—are increasingly more common, especially in developed countries like the US. One of the main explanations for this increase is known as the Hygiene Hypothesis (I’ve mentioned it before.) The Hygiene Hypothesis states that children who grow up in ultra-clean environments lack the immune-building contact with everyday microbes. This lack of microbial interaction results in underdeveloped immune systems that lead to immune dysfunction.

Eczema, asthma and rhinitis all involve immune dysfunction. If an infant has one of these conditions, she is more likely to develop another one later in life. For example, many children with Eczema during infancy go on to develop asthma in later childhood. Further, if a parent has an atopic disease then the child is more likely to also be affected by an atopic disease.

A recent study found that a combination of probiotics (beneficial bacteria) and prebiotics (soluble fibers that feed probiotics) reduced asthma-like symptoms in infants with Eczema. In this study, 90 infants under 7 months of age received infant formula either with the synbiotic (pre- and probiotic) or just infant formula for 12 weeks. One year later, the infants in the group receiving the pre- and probiotics had a 20 to 28 percent lower risk of asthma symptoms.

Researchers are still trying to determine just how this works, but it is known that gut microbial balance works to “educate” the immune system, over 70 percent of which resides in the gut. A proper gut microbial balance plays a big role in early immune development. Truly, optimal gut health is the foundation of total body health.

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When you’re pregnant it seems like everyone has some important bit of advice to give—do this, eat this, stay away from this—but really the keys to good health during pregnancy are a lot like any other day: follow a healthy diet and lifestyle, and the benefits are sure to follow. So the other day when I came across a story about how probiotic supplements could provide added benefits for pregnant women and their babies, I wasn’t surprised at all.

Scientists in Finland recently followed more than 250 expectant moms to look at how taking probiotics during pregnancy (and afterwards while breastfeeding) may help with healthy blood sugar and preventing gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is another name for women who experience high blood sugar levels during pregnancy even though they’ve never had diabetes before, and it affects over 100,000 women in the U.S. every year!

All of the women in the study were considered healthy and had no history of chronic disease, and their daily diet was closely monitored by a nutritionist. But now for the really interesting part: about half of the women received a daily probiotic supplement with a combination of Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria (those important L’s and B’s!), and those women had improved blood glucose control, which translated into fewer cases of gestational diabetes as well as healthy fetal and infant growth.

Now, I know I talk about probiotics all the time and how all those good bacteria in your gut play a BIG role in keeping your whole body healthy, but this just goes to show that the benefits of probiotics go way beyond just better digestion and a strong immune system. Because there’s been such a drastic rise in obesity and obesity-related disease in this country, researchers are excited about these study results and hope that starting probiotics early on in life will help to ensure a healthy body and weight in later years. More kudos for probiotics!

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You know how I feel about toxins, right? Right. So when I heard that the FDA had finally updated its warning about one of the most harmful toxic chemicals out there today, I thought to myself, “It’s about time!”

The folks at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have been dragging their feet for some time now on the issue of bisphenol A (or BPA for short). BPA, which I’m sure you’ve heard of by now unless you’ve been living under a rock, is one of the most prevalent chemicals in use today, and it’s found in 90% of the population—which means yes, it’s probably inside you right now!

BPA is used in the lining of canned foods and in many hard plastic products like those reusable water bottles you see everywhere. One of the most concerning uses of BPA, however, is its presence in plastic baby bottles and ‘sippy’ cups, as well as in containers for infant formula and food.

Whereas before they said BPA was ‘safe’ for infants, the FDA has since changed its tune. Now when you go on their website and research BPA, you can see that their new statement says they are concerned about the “potential effects of BPA on the brain, behavior, and prostate gland in fetuses, infants and young children”. So as a result the FDA is now supporting the removal of BPA from containers that are used by infants. Well, thank goodness!

But still, let’s not forget how BPA affects adults too—another study just came out that confirmed the link between high BPA levels and cardiovascular disease, showing that people who have the highest amounts of BPA in their urine also had the highest rates of heart disease. How’s that for a wake-up call? Just something to keep in mind the next time you consider buying canned foods or filling up your water bottle.

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