Email
Print
FeedImmigration to U.S. Lowers Healthy Gut Bacteria
People in developing nations have much greater diversity in gut bacteria than Americans, but a University of Minnesota study of U.S. immigrants has found that six to nine months after moving to the U.S. and eating a Western diet, the gut bacteria of those from countries with predominantly non-Western diets changed to match gut bacteria typical of a Western diet, while their gut bacteria became less diverse and less healthy. These effects increased with the duration of U.S. residence and were compounded across generations. The more “Westernized” a woman’s microbiome, the greater her risk of obesity.
This article appears in the February 2019 issue of Natural Awakenings.
More from Natural Awakenings
Bitter Melon Eases Knee Pain
Patients with knee osteoarthritis who took a bitter melon supplement for three months had significantly less pain, lower analgesic use, and reduced body weight and blood glucose levels.
Harmful Bacteria Linked to Certain Showerheads
Mycobacterium that lurk in showerheads are more often found in homes using municipal water, using plastic showerheads, and in certain regions of the country.
Zinc Combo Fights Aging Diseases
When Zinc combines with certain antioxidant compounds found in tea, coffee and other foods, it produces a type of enzyme that prevents the oxidative stress linked to such diseases as dementia and cancer.
Ashwagandha Normalizes Hypothyroid Levels
Eight weeks of ashwagandha supplementation effectively normalized the serum thyroid levels of women with subclinical hypothyroidism.
The Power of Thank-You Notes
People who receive heartfelt thank-you notes are typically surprised, happy and appreciative, reactions that the letter-writers tend to underestimate.
