Posted on 03/08/2023 12:52:53 PM PST by Red Badger
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) is a common gastrointestinal disorder that affects the large intestine. It is characterized by symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea.
According to a team of Korean researchers, individuals with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) have a decreased diversity of bacteria in their intestines compared to healthy individuals. This is the first study to establish a clear connection between IBS and a reduction in gut microbiota diversity. The findings were published in the American Society for Microbiology’s journal Microbiology Spectrum.
Normally, “More than 10,000 species of microorganism live in the human intestine,” said corresponding author Jung Ok Shim, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, Department of Pediatrics, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul. Disruption of the microbiome of the human gastrointestinal tract can trigger IBS. Typically, IBS causes bloating, diarrhea, and stomach pain or cramps.
Previous studies of gut bacteria in patients with IBS have been controversial, with inconsistent results, due to small sample size and lack of consistent analytical methods used among these studies, said Shim. The investigators combined their own dataset with 9 published, shared datasets, encompassing 576 IBS patients and 487 healthy controls, analyzing them with a “unified data processing and analytical method.”
The researchers found that the gut bacterial community is less diverse in IBS patients than in healthy people, said Shim. Additionally, the abundance of 21 bacterial species differed between IBS patients and healthy controls. However, the findings were not statistically significant in the pediatric cohort due to a small sample size.
The investigators proved that the disturbed gut bacterial community “is associated with IBS, though this does not mean that the relationship is causal,” said Shim. “Functional studies are needed to prove whether the change in gut micro-organisms contributes to the development of IBS.”
Even though IBS is a common disorder, its pathogenesis remains unknown, and as yet there is no effective treatment strategy. “Based on the epidemiological studies of IBS patients, altered gut microbiota was proposed as one of the possible causes of IBS,” the researchers write. “Acute bacterial gastroenteritis can cause chronic, asymptomatic, low-grade intestinal wall inflammation sufficient to alter neuromuscular and epithelial cell function.”
“Gut Bacterial Dysbiosis in Irritable Bowel Syndrome: a Case-Control Study and a Cross-Cohort Analysis Using Publicly Available Data Sets” by Gun-Ha Kim, Kihyun Lee and Jung Ok Shim, 18 January 2023, Microbiology Spectrum.
DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02125-22
“Gay” Bowl Syndrome I believe is what it stood for.
A number of articles on PubMed about sodium butyrate and IBS. This one popped up right away:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4027835/
It’s best to feed your gut bugs so they produce butyrate. But getting good gut bugs doing their good stuff is more difficult in the elderly, even with high fiber diet and yoghurt and all.
One should really discuss it with one’s doctor before taking the supplements. And do your own research, too, of course.
Yogurt is the correct answer. Also Sourkraut and other fermented foods.
I disagree. I never eat anything from a health food store. My entire diet is what is available from Aldi grocery store and visits to Publix for fried chicken and desserts from bakery.
No pains, no aches, no prescription drugs needed nearing 83 age.
Never had heart attacks, strokes, PAD, Kidney stones etc. I mow my lawn with a push mower (not self propelled) in Florida summers.
My secret? 20 minutes on treadmill with 1 lb weights in each hand and weight machine for 10 minutes at gym every other day. I walk to ther gym, not ride in a car.
I think the body eliminates phosphoric acid quickly. It converts it to ammonium phosphate and puts it in urine.
I caught that, too! “Diversity is our strength, even in our guts?”🙄
Even our colons need affirmative action?
“...a decreased diversity of bacteria in their intestines.”
True. Thus, ten years ago some IBS patients were trying to borrow the fecal matter of healthy people and then place it in their large intestines. Gross but hopeful.
I’ll have to give my gastroenterologist a copy of this at my next colonoscopy…
I am sure this is part of it, if not most of it. It runs (!) in parts of families, not the whole family. Which does not necessarily mean it is biological in origin.
At first, I wondered what you meant. I was in a rush when I posted, and confess I did not read the article past the first bit (blush).
I think it probably has a number of causes. Gut bacteria get out of whack, various conditions or allergies, anything that would cause inflammation in the bowel. And having IBS is certainly “psychosocial” stress in itself — so embarrassing, and I imagine one feels so helpless — my heart really goes out to anyone who has IBS! I have known young people who suffered terribly from it. And yes, it can run in families.
My Dad’s always got worse when he got stressed. Stress affects one’s whole body, and in some people seems to particularly affect the bowel. My guess is his gut biome was not in the best shape and stress pushed inflammation up?
Again, I was very surprised when it suddenly went away after he started taking the butyrate, as he was taking for a progressive neurological disorder, not for his IBS. I did not know before that it was helpful to for that in some people.
We had tried the diet his doctor recommended (no fats, etc.), plus expensive probiotics (and prebiotics) and nothing had helped. Then presto, gone. The addition of the frozen yoghurt helped, too, I think, when he had to take antibiotics (which had caused diarrhea in the past, as they kill your good bugs, too). He could eat anything he wanted and no IBS (although too much peanut butter was still trouble, but only that one thing).
I don’t know that it would work for others. Again, one should consult with a doctor before taking it, and also research. This supplement might not be right for some people.
I had Taco Bell tonight.
Babyback pork ribs and roast beef earlier in the week.
And I’ve got chinese food in the freezer for tomorrow.
I’d say that diverse.
Most people are fat because they consume more calories than they burn
These studies are frustrating, because the drug industry can’t patent naturally occurring bacteria. Fecal transplants have cured MS, but, again, no money in it.
BFL
Do you have any Gray Poop on?
Butt of course!.......................
It is now an accepted practice, called a ‘Fecal Transplant’............................
And if you eat a diet that is nutritionally low, but calorically dense, made up of certain food types, you’ll get fattened up, like a pig, cow or goose.
This is how you fatten up a pig: https://www.wikihow.com/Increase-the-Weight-of-a-Pig
Look at what folks eat, example: American white bread, potato chips, breakfast cereals, juices, corn and HFCS added everywhere, oils used instead of real cheese... These are horrible things to eat and it’s literally being “pushed” by government in their so-called dietary education campaigns.
The government cannot even get something as basic as a food pyramid right because of folks manipulating things for their financial gain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PBf58Molvc
I am not advocating a government solution, because they can’t get anything right. The government is legalized corruption and that is meant literally - what is the job of a lobbyists?
Every decision made by government goes through a political and economic filter. All the decisions are influenced by how it self promotes, helps the party, hurts the opponent (opposition politics), or makes some corporation and oligarch richer. Do you really believe Covid was handled entirely pragmatically? Do you really believe there was no politics behind how the DOJ/FBI handled 6 January?
My concern is that today you have folks in government that have at least the ear of many in the public, some degree of credibility, telling folks what is not right. They are telling the public things which are outright wrong as it pertains to a healthy diet and weight management.
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