Probiotics: When Good Bacteria Turn Bad

As the popularity of probiotics grows, scientists are turning more of their attention to these tiny particles. With the spotlight intensifying, some researchers suspect that their impact may not be beneficial for everyone.

The concept of people improving their intestinal health by eating live organisms is not a new one but dates back almost 100 years. Today, however, the idea is mainstream. Grocery stores across the United States sell a range of products that contain probiotics and offer the promise of improved gut health.

Despite their growing popularity and impressive claims, research into the potential health benefits of probiotics is still relatively sparse and not entirely positive.

University of Texas engineers attached human cells to microchips and, depending on the cell type they chose, watched them mimic any organ in the body. The scientists were interested in understanding why inflammation arose in the digestive system. They recently published their work in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, in a study that marks the first time that an organ-on-a-chip has modeled the development of a disease.

To date, scientists have found it challenging to understand exactly why and how gut inflammation develops. The process involves communication between the epithelial cells that line the gut, the immune system, and the microbiome. These physiological components engage in a chemical dialogue that involves a dizzying array of secretions – and deciphering the interactions is difficult.

The researchers concluded that the main driver of gut inflammation is the health of the intestinal epithelium – specifically, its permeability. The intestinal epithelium is a thin layer of cells that have a protective role – namely, to prevent toxins and bacteria from the gut leaching out into the rest of the body, where they could cause harm.

As part of their study, the scientists considered the impact of probiotics. They found that so-called good bacteria might be healthful for some people but have a negative health impact for others. It seems that their influence depends on the integrity of the intestinal epithelium.

Wisdom Wednesday: Antibiotic Countermeasures

So you took that antibiotic. Maybe you needed it, maybe not but that boat has sailed. Now what do you do?

This is a frequent issue in my office. The sooner you take steps to undo any potential damage, the better. Antibiotics often disrupt the microbiome. This can lead to dysbiosis, IBS, autoimmune disease and even death through overgrowth of C. difficle.

First, has the infection you were treating with antibiotics resolved? If it was an upper respiratory infection (URI) about 90% of URIs are viral and will not respond to antibiotic therapy. That’s a common complaint on entry for many of my patients – the antibiotic didn’t work.

Colloidal silver is a good place to start. It is effective against bacterial, viral and fungal infections. I am a big fan of the Netti Pot, a device designed to irrigate the sinuses with Kosher salt in distilled water. I just substitute colloidal silver for the Kosher salt. Use 1-part silver to 10-parts distilled water. It burns like hell fire for a minute or two, but relief from the congestion is immediate. Patients often report that they can feel they are healing immediately after the first application. It is vital that you use distilled water, tap water may contain nematodes that can grow in the sinus cavities. Why people continue to drink that stuff is beyond me.

Wisdom Wednesday: Slippery Elm Bark

North American Indians and early settlers used the inner back of the slippery elm not only to build canoes, shelter and baskets, but as a poultice or as a soothing drink. Upon contact with water, the inner back, collected in the spring, yields a thick mucilage or demulcent that was used as an ointment or salve to treat urinary tract inflammation and was applied topically for cold sores and boils. Surgeons during the American Revolution treated gun-shot wounds with slippery elm. Early settlers boiled bear fat with the bark to prevent rancidity. Late in the 19th century, a preparation of elm mucilage was officially recognized in the United States Pharmacopoeia.

Slippery elm coats and protects irritated epithelial tissue (skin and the lining of the digestive tract). The powdered bark has been used in this manner for local application to treat gout, rheumatism, cold sores, wounds, abscesses, ulcers, and toothaches. The tannins present in the bark are known to possess astringent actions. It also has bee known to “draw out” toxins, boils splinters, or other irritants.

When slippery elm preparations are taken internally, they cause reflex stimulation of the nerve endings in the GI tract, leading to mucus secretion. This may be the reason they are effective for protection against stomach ulcers, colitis, diverticulitis, gut inflammation, and acidity. Slippery elm is also useful for diarrhea, constipation, hemorrhoids, IBS, and to expel tapeworms.

I also use slippery elm as a prebiotic. It is very high in soluble fiber that remains intact through the digestive process all the way to the colon. In the colon it feeds the healthy bacteria, the probiotics that form the microbiome.

Please refer to my blog “2014 in Review” posted on December 29, 2014. It lists 5 blogs posted last year on digestive issues.