Antibiotics are overused for conditions they do not treat, such as viral infections like cold or flu. Antibiotic overuse is leading to antibiotic resistance, one of the major challenges facing medicine today. But antibiotic resistance is not the only consequence of the average 10 – 20 courses of antibiotics children receive by the age of 18. An under-appreciated negative effect of too many antibiotics is the killing of beneficial bacteria, as highlighted in the recent Nature journal article, “Antibiotic Overuse: Stop the Killing of Beneficial Bacteria.”¹

From the article, written by Martin M. Blaser, head of the department of medicine at New York University’s Langone Medical Center:

“Early evidence from my lab and others hints that, sometimes, our friendly flora never fully recover [after antibiotics]. These long-term changes to the beneficial bacteria within people’s bodies may even increase our susceptibility to infections and disease. Overuse of antibiotics could be fueling the dramatic increase in conditions such as obesity, type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, allergies and asthma, which have more than doubled in many populations.”

This gut microbiota alteration is likely a contributing factor to the increase in antibiotic resistance seen in such “superbugs” as Clostridium difficile and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Blaser further explained.

Studies by Les Dethlefsen, David Relman, et al, have also found permanent alterations in gut microbiota after antibiotic treatment. These researchers investigated the effects of ciprofloxacin on gut microbiota changes over a period of 8 to 10 months in two studies—one with two courses of antibiotic treatment, the other with one.^2,3 Each study involved extensive stool sample analysis by 16S pyrosequencing (one rDNA, one rRNA) in three subjects over many months.

In one study, gut composition closely resembled its pretreatment state four weeks after antibiotic treatment. However, several bacterial groups did not recover even six months later. In the second study, gut composition stabilized by the end of 10 months, but it differed from its original state. The study concluded, “Antibiotic perturbation may cause a shift to an alternative stable state, the full consequences of which remain unknown.”

Blaser recommends reducing antibiotic use during pregnancy and childhood, citing that between one-third and one-half of pregnant women receive antibiotics during pregnancy in the U.S. and developing countries. “Each generation could be beginning life with a smaller endowment of ancient microbes than the last,” he stated, “Particularly the 30 percent or so of infants born via Cesarean.”

The search for effective alternatives to traditional antibiotics is on, as researchers from all over the world are testing new possibilities in the hopes of heading off the antibiotic-resistance disaster at the pass. One recent study highlighted the use of a commensal E. coli strain which was re-engineered  by adding fragments of DNA to the bacterium that allows it to sense the presence of the pathogenic bacteria known as, Psuedomonas aerugenosa. Pseudomonas is a superbug responsible for infections in the lungs, urinary tract, blood, and on wounds and burns. Upon sensing the Pseudomonas pathogen, the E coli released a potent toxin which killed up to 90% of the pathogen.⁴ It will be exciting to see if this technology holds up in forthcoming animal and human trials.

I believe the future will likely include widespread use of large amounts of commensal bacteria, probiotic bacteria and prebiotics, as well as genetically altered bacteria, to manage bacterial infections. We may even have a whole armamentarium of slightly altered commensal/probiotic bacteria on hand for certain infections. Antibiotics are already assuming a lesser role, and the CDC has a major program to remind physicians to be more discriminating in antibiotic use.⁵ So perhaps the future of pharmaceutical antibiotics will be their judicious use, in combination with various bacterial therapies, and this will become the standard of care. It will be very interesting to watch the unfolding of all the new research.

References

1.  Blaser M, “Antibiotic overuse: Stop the killing of beneficial bacteria.” Nature. 2011 Aug 24;476(7361):393-4.
2. Dethlefsen L, et al., “The pervasive effects of an antibiotic on the human gut microbiota, as revealed by deep 16S rRNA sequencing.” PLoS Biol. 2008 Nov 18;6(11):e280.
3. Dethlefsen L and Relman DA, “Incomplete recovery and individualized responses of the human distal gut microbiota to repeated antibiotic perturbation.” PNAS. 2011 Mar 15;108 (Suppl 1):4554-4561.
4. Saedi N, et al., “Engineering microbes to sense and eradicate Psuedomonas aeruginosa, a human pathogen.” Mol Sys Biol. 2011 Aug 16;7, no 521. Online ahead of print.
5. http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6034a1.htm

Leonard Smith, M.D.
Dr. Leonard Smith is a prominent Board-Certified, general, gastrointestinal and vascular surgeon who had a successful private practice for 25 years. In addition to his active surgery practice, he also incorporated lifestyle, diet, supplementation, exercise, detoxification, and stress management into many of the therapies he would prescribe. Many of his patients with cancer, cardiovascular disease, and other serious illnesses did so well under his treatment regimes that he began to devote most of his career to foundational health care and preventive medicine.  

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allergies, antibiotic resistance, antibiotics, asthma, beneficial bacteria, childhood, Clostridium difficile, cold, flu, friendly flora, gut microbiota, inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, pregnancy, superbug, type 1 diabetes, viral infections

Autoimmune disease involves a process whereby the immune system mistakes part of the body as a foreign invader, and mounts an attack against it, damaging tissue. The most common autoimmune diseases include type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, celiac disease, psoriasis, lupus, and Grave’s and Hashimoto’s diseases.

Prevalence of autoimmune disease is on the rise. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimates as many as 23.5 million Americans may be afflicted with at least one autoimmune condition, up from 8.5 million in 1996. But even this estimate is low, since those numbers only consider 24 autoimmune conditions, when these illnesses actually number over 80.

Though genes do play a role in autoimmune diseases (they tend to run in families), environmental triggers are also involved and contribute to the increase in prevalence rates, according to Fred Miller, director of the Environmental Autoimmunity Group at the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences. “Our gene sequences aren’t changing fast enough to account for the increases,” Miller says. “Yet our environment is—we’ve got 80,000 chemicals approved for use in commerce, but we know very little about their immune effects. Our lifestyles are also different than they were a few decades ago, and we’re eating more processed food.”

Environmental triggers of autoimmunity include: chemicals, infections, stress, hormones, drugs, diet, weight gain and behavior. Of these, chemicals are particularly concerning due to their prevalence in the environment and to the lack of safety testing and regulation. The following toxins have been linked to autoimmunity: polyaromatic hydrocarbons (found in air pollution), heavy metals (lead and mercury), trichloroethylene (an industrial solvent that contaminates our water and air) and asbestos (found in building materials of older buildings).

Studying the link between environmental toxins and any illness is difficult, but because there are so many autoimmune disease, and because each one has different features, studying the link between chemicals and each illness is particularly difficult. Scientists are calling for better ways to link autoimmune diseases together, as occurs with cancer, to increase funding and understanding of what factors trigger this complex of diseases.

In the meantime, reducing toxin exposure, following a healthy diet, and supporting the seven channels of elimination—colon, liver, lungs, lymph, kidneys, skin and blood—with regular internal cleansing is recommended to help reduce toxic burden.

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air pollution, asbestos, autoimmune disease, blood, cancer, celiac disease, chemicals, colon, diet, drugs, environmental, Grave’s, Hashimoto’s, healthy diet, heavy metals, hormones, illness, immune system, infections, internal cleansing, kidneys, lead, liver, lungs, lupus, lymph, mercury, multiple sclerosis, processed food, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, seven channels of elimination, skin, solvent, stress, toxins, type 1 diabetes, weight gain

A recent study to be published in the journal Pediatrics found that the prevalence of food allergy in children is higher than previously thought.¹ It turns out that 8 percent of children—that’s about 1 in every 13 children—are affected by food allergy. Food allergies and sensitivities are far-reaching problems contributing to many autoimmune conditions like type 1 diabetes, arthritis and psoriasis, and to neuro-inflammatory conditions like autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).^2-5

Food allergies and sensitivities are essentially the result of a breakdown in gut mucosal immune regulation in response to food antigens that pass through the gut. The gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) makes up about 80 percent of the body’s immune system, and it resides in and around the gut. The job of the immune system in the gut is to respond to foreign invaders, like pathogens, by destroying them. At the same time, it must also not respond to the large amount of food that passes through the gut every day—this is known as oral tolerance.

When it comes to food allergies and sensitivities, building and maintaining a healthy gut lining is key. The HOPE Formula can help you to achieve this with High fiber, Omega oils, Probiotics and digestive Enzymes.   

If you have the right bacterial balance, as can be achieved with probiotics, the gut lining will be minimally inflamed and therefore minimal leakage of microbial toxins will be available to activate the GALT. The beneficial bacteria also create more of an immune tolerance with the epithelial cells that line the intestine—especially the mucosal-associated lymphocytes that are part of the epithelial lining.⁶

The right balance of soluble fiber and insoluble fiber can also minimize allergies—the soluble fiber by producing beneficial short chain fatty acids, especially butyrate, which is the primary fuel of the colonocytes; and insoluble fiber by diluting out any toxins associated with allergens that are exposed to the intestinal lining. In addition, it holds water and bulks the stools to promote better and quicker elimination, thus reducing the time of exposure to allergens.

The essential omega-3 and omega-6 oils in the right ratio promote immune balance in the gut lining and gut-associated immune system. Most people consume too many omega-6 oils and too few anti-inflammatory omega-3 oils. Omega-3 supplements can help reverse this imbalance. Digestive enzymes help by effectively breaking down proteins, fats, and carbs into less-antigenic food particles so that the intestinal (epithelial) lining does not react in an allergic, immunologic manner.  

HOPE should be a foundational health concept to help eliminate and/or prevent food allergies, especially when combined with avoidance of known allergenic foods and a rotation diet that avoids repetition of any given sensitive food for at least 3 to 4 days before eating it again. 

1. Gupta RS, et al., “The prevalence, severity, and distribution of childhood food allergy in the United States.” Pediatrics. 2011 Jun 20. [Epub ahead of print]
2. Wasmuth HE and Kolb H, “Cow’s milk and immune-mediated diabetes.” Proc Nutr Soc. 2000 Nov;59(4):573-9.
3. Hvatum M, et al., “The gut-joint axis: cross reactive food antibodies in rheumatoid arthritis.” Gut. 2006 Sep;55(9):1240-7.
4. Abenavoli M, et al., “Celiac disease and skin: psoriasis association.” World J Gastroenterol. 2007 Apr 14;13(14):2138-9.
5. Curtis LT and Patel K, “Nutritional and environmental approaches to preventing and treating autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): a review.” J Altern Complement Med. 2008 Jan-Feb;14(1):79-85.
6. Savilahti E, et al., “Pre and probiotics in the prevention and treatment of food allergy.” Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol. 2008 Jun;8(3):243-8.

Leonard Smith, M.D.

Dr. Leonard Smith is a prominent Board-Certified, general, gastrointestinal and vascular surgeon who had a successful private practice for 25 years. In addition to his active surgery practice, he also incorporated lifestyle, diet, supplementation, exercise, detoxification, and stress management into many of the therapies he would prescribe. Many of his patients with cancer, cardiovascular disease, and other serious illnesses did so well under his treatment regimes that he began to devote most of his career to foundational health care and preventive medicine.

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Here’s something I thought you might find interesting: researchers at Harvard University Medical School recently discovered that bacteria in the gut can trigger the autoimmune response associated with rheumatoid arthritis.

In simple terms, an autoimmune response means that there’s an immune response in the body that goes astray, causing the body to attack its own tissues instead of a foreign invader, in this case causing the breakdown in healthy joint cartilage seen in people with rheumatoid arthritis.

So what does all this mean when it comes to the trillions of bacteria living in your digestive tract every day? It means that they can affect your whole body, sometimes even causing conditions nowhere near the gut, and it’s something I’ve been saying for years! Not only that, but more and more studies these days are proving me right, showing that many autoimmune conditions begin right in the gut.

This isn’t surprising, since more than 70% of your body’s immune defenses are found in the gut—and when things like digestive problems, gut bacteria imbalance and toxin overload put a strain on the immune system, it often leads to the development of autoimmune conditions. 

The folks at Harvard are planning to look at the effects of intestinal bacteria on other autoimmune conditions as well, including type 1 diabetes, so stay tuned! And remember to take good care of your gut!

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