Tag Archive for: microbiome

The Final Question on Ultra-Processed Food

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Here’s what we found out so far: When we eat ultra-processed food (UPF), we tend to eat way too much of them, upwards of 500 more calories per meal. We absorb more of those calories; the absorption starts sooner in the small intestine because of the simple carbohydrates in the UPF. Finally, we found out that we do not lose as many calories in our stool as we would if we had more fiber and more resistant starch in our foods.

But we need to answer one more question.

Is a Calorie Just a Calorie?

Despite the research that’s been done, all the clinical trials on UPF are on small groups of subjects. I’d like to see one more study similar to the one comparing the microbiome-beneficial diet with the Western diet high in processed foods. If researchers could do the same study on a group of overweight people and put them on one of two calorie-restricted diets—one following the microbiome-beneficial diet while the other used an ultra-processed food diet—we could see if there were differences in weight loss and other health markers between the two groups. Then we’d know whether there were any real differences between the types of calories we put into our bodies.

When thinking about weight loss, I always go back to the Minnesota Starvation Experiment. The subjects, all conscientious objectors, were given only the foods that would be available after WWII in war-ravaged Europe: bread, potatoes, and other root vegetables, little to no protein, and little fat. Normal-weight men lost weight and continued to do so for the entire six months of the study. If it’s just about the calories, then substituting UPF for the starvation diet and adjusting it on a weekly basis would get the same results today. But I don’t see that study happening any time soon.

Are UPFs Healthy?

Not in my opinion because of what they don’t have. No fiber. No resistant starch. No phytonutrients. Then add artificial flavors and colors and throw in sodium and umami flavoring to make us want to eat more of them. No, I don’t think they’re healthy. But if they’re a part of a total diet and consumption is controlled, then, while the research is not in yet, a calorie could be just a calorie.

The Bottom Line

It’s easy to be a demagogue and condemn UPFs as so many others have, but remember that protein powder is a highly processed food, whether from animal or plant sources. So is stevia, the “natural” sweetener. How about almond milk? Have you ever seen an almond teat? Neither have I.

What we need for good health today, not in 1900, 1930, 1950, or even 1970, is a balanced approach to nutritional intake. It’s as simple as eat better, but not perfect. Eat less, but don’t starve yourself on foods you don’t enjoy. And move more. It’s as simple as that.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Reference: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-38778-x

Ultra-Processed Foods: Losing Calories

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In our examination of the research on ultra-processed food (UPF), we’ve found out that we consume more calories and that we absorb more calories if we eat UPF. The final question is probably going to seem a little unusual. Do we actually lose more calories if we eat less UPF? In other words, do we actually eliminate calories if we eat a diet favorable to our microbiome? This is really interesting: we may actually not absorb every calorie we consume! I must admit that this one surprised me; I didn’t realize that we lost calories in our stool under healthy conditions.

Researchers wanted to test whether diet could influence the number of calories lost in feces among a variety of other variables. The researchers recruited 17 healthy, normal-weight to overweight men and women with an average age of 31. They designed a diet that could enhance the microbiome by feeding the healthy microbes that reside in the colon. They matched the diet for percentages of calories and macronutrients with a Westernized diet. The major difference was the fiber content and level of resistant starch; the Western diet included more highly processed foods.

At different points in the study, on both types of diets, they measured the exact calories consumed, calories used in exercise, rest, and sleep, and collected all urine and stool for 24 hours. The most interesting result was that the microbiome-friendly diet increased the calories lost in the stool by an average of 116 calories per day. The bacteria were using the fiber and resistant starch to manufacture more metabolizable calories, but they were lost in feces. They weren’t absorbed, so those calories do not apply.

What does it all mean? More than that, what is the question that hasn’t been answered by any study on ultra-processed food? I’ll cover that on Saturday.

And here’s one more reason to limit UPF, according to an article in the Washington Post: “…eating more pro-inflammatory foods, such as processed meats or sugary sodas, was associated with a higher risk of fecal incontinence. The authors hypothesized that pro-inflammatory foods could have negative interactions with the gut microbiome and diminish the function of the muscles and nerves of the pelvic floor.”

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Reference: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-38778-x

Are Ultra-Processed Foods Absorbed Faster?

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The next question to consider with UPFs is this: Do you absorb more calories from UPFs than you would from minimally processed food? The answer appears to be yes, but requires some explanation.

Keep in mind that UPFs have been mechanically and chemically altered during the manufacturing process. The original grains of wheat, corn, or even something such as carrots bear no resemblance to their original form. The components, especially the fiber, have been torn apart. What’s the big deal? The normal chemical bonds that make up the food matrix are no longer in the same form as they were. Therefore, they require less digestion and potentially can be absorbed much faster starting in the small intestine.

That can mean a couple of things. The higher the proportion of UPFs in the diet, the more calories from carbohydrates can enter the bloodstream and get there faster. Blood sugar goes up more quickly; if the calories aren’t immediately used, the extra calories can be converted into fat for storage, and don’t we all love that!

It also means that the food that could have fed our microbiome is no longer present—we’ve taken in plenty of calories, but our microbiome is starving. What nutrient is missing? Fiber in the form of resistant starch. What does it resist? Digestion and absorption. That’s the food for probiotics in the microbiome, and without it, our microbiome is starving and not as healthy as it could be. The more UPFs you eat, the more you need a fiber supplement.

There is one more question that needs to be addressed, and I’ll do that in the next Memo. In the meantime, how about a bowl of steel-cut oats, bean soup, or a nice salad? Your microbiome will be so happy!

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

References:
1. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2019.05.008
2. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-38778-x

How Fasting Impacts Your Mitochondria

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The research scientist in the webinar focused on mitochondria and aging in his part of the presentation. He has helped research and develop a nutrient that appears to help with mitophagy, the process of removing and replenishing old mitochondria. The naturally produced chemical is called urolithin A. It’s produced naturally by the microbiome in response to eating foods such as fruit, especially pomegranate, and nuts. The problem is that we may or may not produce enough urolithin A, depending on the state of our microbiome. There has been decent research on the supplement, and I talked about the supplement in Aging with the Vengeance: Reclaiming Your Power.

What caught my attention was that intermittent fasting may also help with renewing and replenishing mitochondria. The problem becomes what kind of fasting are we talking about? Complete fasting? Eating during only a few hours per day? I’ll cover the two most popular forms.

Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is “in” right now. It is especially popular when combined with the Paleolithic or the ketogenic diet. What it essentially means is that you take in no calories by mouth for up to 20 hours per day, often called the 20:4 approach, and then you eat during that four-hour block of time. Research has shown that people lose weight, get better control of their prediabetes, and may even reduce some of the metrics related to cardiovascular disease such as blood pressure and cholesterol levels. But specific to mitochondria, the data are nowhere near as clear.

Fasting Mimicking Diet

I first encountered the fasting mimicking diet, or FMD for short, when I looked at the research of Valter Longo. He’s a scientist who has used periodic fasting with patients undergoing cancer treatment. For one to five days before treatment, they go on an FMD which drops down to 500 calories per day in some cases, and then they go back to their regular diet and go through their normal chemotherapy protocol. The critical factor is that he’s shown an improved quality of life as well as improved outcomes for people who used the FMD during treatment as opposed to those who ate their normal diet.

In research in mice, using FMD has demonstrated a reduction in symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Parkinson’s disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and others have also benefited from the FMD approach. Dr. Longo has created a commercial program that is available.

Why FMD? As near as I can gather, the concept utilizes the body’s protective mechanisms that allow energy to continue to be produced at a high enough rate to continue carrying on with life (such as searching for food in other eras) in the absence of food until food can be found. Research in athletes who’ve used FMD versus a normal diet has demonstrated maintenance of strength and endurance after going through a five-day FMD protocol while continuing to work out.

The Bottom Line

In my opinion, FMD makes sense. Fasting for two days and then going back to your normal diet for a couple of weeks just makes more sense than obsessing about when you can eat every day. But you may feel intermittent fasting’s a better way to go for your life, and that’s fine as well. One thing for sure is that I’m going to continue to follow this research.

The whole point to this is that restricting calories for long blocks of time stimulates the body to take good care of our mitochondria; that’s one battle that we have to win if we expect to age with a vengeance. And the great thing is that you can begin at any age.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

When Supplements Aren’t Absorbed

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If you take any type of dietary supplement, you want to make sure that you’re getting the active ingredient whether that’s turmeric, the mineral iron, or omega-3 fatty acids. The problem is that whether in its natural form in food or put into dietary supplements, nutrients can be difficult to absorb. In addition, the same holds true for pharmaceuticals as well. Here are some of the reasons why:

  • Taking supplements with food is important for nutrient absorption. If they’re fat-soluble, they need fat present to be absorbed. That’s problematic if someone takes the supplement without food or is on a low-fat diet.
  • I seem to always talk about increasing fiber in the diet, and we should, but fiber can interfere with the absorption of some nutrients. It may be the increased transit time or some form of mechanical blockage, but it happens.
  • Finally, gut health may also impact the absorption of nutrients. Lack of enzymes, too acidic or too alkaline, or lack of a healthy microbiome can also impact nutrient absorption.

All is not lost; the pharmaceutical and supplement industries have been working on ways to help deliver more active ingredients. I’ll cover those on Saturday.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Resolving Gas Problems

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Whatever the cause, the question is how you can control any issues you have with intestinal gas. Once you realize how probiotics do what they do, and by that I mean via fermentation with the resultant gas, there are several strategies you can use to deal with it.

Strategies for Gas

Digestive enzymes can often help if the culprit is a specific food. For many people, beans cause gas while for others, excess protein can do it. With so many people doing keto these days, gas can be a substantial problem for them.

The solution may be to use a multi-purpose digestive enzyme before eating food you know causes you issues. Beans are obvious, as is protein. But for those who are lactose intolerant, milk and cheese can cause issues. Cellulases, proteases, and a lactase can help digest those macronutrients. For carbohydrates such as grains, amylases can be helpful.

The next question is whether taking digestive enzymes help with gas caused by supplements or pharmaceuticals. I can’t answer that because there’s no evidence one way or the other. Because your body naturally releases digestive enzymes, it’s doubtful they’ll interfere with the processing of the medication or supplement. It could be that your body isn’t making enough digestive enzymes to fully break down the substance, so adding or changing a digestive enzyme supplement is worth a try.

The second approach would be to identify which foods cause you problems, and it may not be as obvious as beans or dairy. It could actually be a spice that reacts with the microbes in your microbiome, and that’s not always easy to identify. Some foods such as sugar alcohols that are often used as sweeteners in processed food can cause gas. Once you’ve discovered which foods cause problems, sometimes the best policy is to limit them or avoid them entirely.

The third approach goes hand in glove with the second and that’s to change your diet. Research continues to show that people who eat more plant-based foods have different and perhaps better functioning microbiomes than those who do not. That’s a tough sell in this keto world we live in, but the carbs a person eats should lean toward vegetables with some fruit rather than starchy vegetables and grains.

Finally, if you take a probiotic supplement, stop it for a couple of weeks and see what happens. Remember in Tuesday’s Memo, the excess gas stopped when the person stopped taking the probiotic. It may be that a different probiotic blend might work better. There are over 6,500 different microbes that have been identified, and it may take trial and error as well as newly developed probiotic blends before you get it right.

The Bottom Line

There are a couple of other things that can contribute to gas such as drinking carbonated beverages and simply swallowing too much air. For most people, it’s still an issue of fermentation in the microbiome. The best approach is trial and error until you get the diet, prebiotic, and probiotic in balance.

Unlike other health issues, excess gas can be uncomfortable and can result in embarrassing situations, but as long as you’re not standing next to a flame, shouldn’t be fatal.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

What Causes Increased Gas?

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Over the years, I’ve learned this about people as it relates to their health: they notice every change in their digestive system. They have their own bathroom habits, and they don’t like anything that changes their pattern. If they make a change in their nutritional intake—whether it’s a food, a supplement, or a medication—and it impacts their pattern, they really don’t like it. What’s not as noticeable immediately is another digestive change, and that’s an increase in gas.

In one case, a person developed an increase in gas production—and not in a good way; she stopped taking a probiotic (after regular use for a couple of years) and the problem stopped. Another person noticed an increase in gas after adding an amino acid blend. Yet another noticed an increase in gas after starting a medication. What gives?

The microbiome consists of the bacteria and other microbes that reside in the digestive system. The primary way they do what they do is by fermentation; the result is the production of gas, and that’s perfectly normal. Any change that impacts the microbiome can change the production of gas. Other than stopping the food, supplement, or medication, what can we do about it? I’ll give you some ideas on Saturday.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

My Nutrition Questions for This Next Year

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Is 100 years a long time? How about 10,000 years or a million? The answer: it depends on the reference point. In human terms, 100 years is a long time, but in terms of changes within a specific type of food or in terms of the microbiome, maybe not.

In the next year, there are three major questions and several smaller ones I plan to research and, I hope, come up with some answers.

Where Is the Nutrition “Sweet Spot”?

How much vegetables and fruits do you need to eat to offset some foods considered not as good? For example, cabbage is a great cruciferous vegetable; not everyone likes it cooked, but they often like coleslaw. Here’s my question: how much sugar and mayonnaise can you add to cabbage in your coleslaw before it’s not a healthy food? Real mayonnaise and sugar can be adjusted in the dressing recipe, so you’re getting the flavor but not quite as much sugar and fat.

Berries with ice cream? Carrots with brown sugar? Ketchup on French fries? Cucumbers and lettuce with Italian dressing? On and on. We need the phytonutrients. How much good cancels the bad?

Can We Get All The Nutrients We Need from a Well-Balanced Diet?

This has been my question for almost 25 years; now I’m trying a different approach to getting the answer to that question.

Has the Microbiome Changed Significantly Since We’ve Changed the Food Supply?

Plant and animal husbandry have resulted in plants and animals with more desirable traits while eliminating others. Have the microbes been modified in response to what we’ve done?

There are more questions, such as does our inability to make vitamin C impact the ability to metabolize other nutrients or medications? Are the LDL-cholesterol sub-fractions more important than the total-LDL number?

The Bottom Line

My objective to answering my questions is to make it reasonable to modify diet, exercise, and supplements to achieve the best health we can at any age. But I do know the answer to one: what’s the most important factor in obtaining good health? The answer to this question is, as always:

What are you prepared to do today?

New: The Optimal Performance Program Goes Digital!

Starting today you can buy and download the Optimal Performance Program audio and workbook. While I’ll be back on the road starting this summer, I’ve decided to go digital with my keystone energy-building, weight-management, and fitness product—not only because so many of us prefer digital, but also because shipping costs preclude the product from being offered around the world. From the semi-ketogenic meal plan, eating at timed intervals, and high-intensity interval training (HIIT), you can train to have the energy you need exactly when you want it.

I’m introducing the download version only for only $29.95; Member and Insider discounts apply. Regardless of age or current fitness level, you can achieve Optimal Performance. Get your copy today!

        Dr. Chet

Building a Healthy Microbiome

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After last week’s Memos on the importance of a healthy microbiome and immune health, let’s review how to have a healthy microbiome to protect your brain and boost your immune system.

First, eat a mostly plant-based diet: some raw, some cooked, some fermented. The raw will give you probiotics and fiber. The cooked, especially whole grains and beans, will give you fiber. The fermented such as sauerkraut and yogurt will give you even more probiotics.

Second, fast once in a while. I covered this in Memos from June, so you can re-read the Memos on fasting and microbiome health.

Third, reduce your refined carbohydrate and sugar intake. Simply put, they provide the bad microbes with the food they need to overtake the good bacteria. Good bacteria need fiber from foods or supplements, so make sure you’re getting 25–30 grams per day.

My knee replacement surgery is scheduled in six days, so I’ve been working on preparing my body to defend against staph infections. I’ll talk about that in Saturday’s Memo.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet

Science at Work

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The challenge this week was to watch two video podcasts, think about what you heard, and then provide comments and questions. For those of you who did it, thank you. For those that didn’t, I recommend that you take some time this weekend and listen to them. I’m going to share my thoughts but there’s so much information, I’ll hit only the highlights. Suffice it to say, based on the questions, there are many subjects that will need to be explained. That will take months to research and present in Memos and Insider conference calls in a way that’s understandable.

The point of the interviews with Dr. Jay Lombard was to find out the relationship between the microbiome and pathogenic bacteria and neurodegenerative disorders (NDD). That includes everything from Alzheimer’s disease to depression to Parkinson’s disease. Here are the three things that stood out to me out of the many concepts presented.


Three Things I Learned

Leaky Brain Theory
The prevailing thought is that the blood-brain barrier prevents almost everything from entering the brain via a series of tightly packed blood vessels and cells. Nutrients are let through along with some medications, but bacteria are thought to be barred.

But evidently the toxins of some pathogenic bacteria are able to cross this barrier and affect the production of the proteome, an organism’s complete set of proteins. Remember the tau mice from last week’s Memos? The bacterial toxins impact the way the tau and other proteins are folded, which renders them unusable, thus resulting in misshapen structures that can contribute to NDD depending on which proteins are affected.

Antibiotic-induced Reduction in Fevers
In the treatment of patients with NDD, one characteristic that most seemed to share is the inability to get significant fevers with infections. The cause appears to be chronic use of antibiotics over a lifetime which somehow reduces the ability of the immune system to create high fevers. The rise in temperature is a natural part of the immune system when dealing with infections; without it, the immune system will not be as effective at combating viruses or bacteria.

Heat-Shock Proteins
Think of heat-shock proteins as the “cleaners” of the body. One of their functions is to collect the misshapen proteins and take them to the organelles inside a cell; that’s where they’re taken apart and the amino acids reused. If you can’t generate a fever that’s high enough, they can’t do that job as well.

There were several other items on my list, but those were the most profound. The first question in your mind is most likely “What can I do about these?”


How Science Works

The reason I chose to focus on Dr. Lombard with the purpose of showing how science works was two-fold. First, he asked good questions. Many physicians would think “How can I fix this?” and stop there. What Lombard and Hyman asked was “What caused this?” or “How did this happen?” You find that out only by asking the right questions of patients.

The second is that Lombard went to the current research to find out if there were any answers, and he discovered where he might have been incorrect because someone had tested it. Remember that in the first interview he was sure that the bacteria C diff was related to ALS; two years later he found that there was more than a single pathogen that could be related to ALS and other NDDs. He learned and adapted his hypothesis: that’s how science is supposed to work. Instead of spending time heading in the wrong direction, science guides the research he’s currently doing so that eventually he may discover effective treatments for these neurological conditions.


The Bottom Line

If you haven’t watched the video podcasts, I urge you to do that; you’ll learn much more than by reading my review. More than that, you’ll have more questions. One of the things both Drs. Lombard and Hyman agreed on is that “we know close to nothing.” I agree wholeheartedly. When you begin by asking the right questions, you have a chance of finding out the answers. Another point they agree on is that there’s no single cause of any NDD. There are multiple factors that contribute; finding out what they are may help develop effective treatments by focusing on a potential cause.

For those of you who want answers, whether about what I’ve written or about the many other things covered in the podcasts, I’ll write more as time goes on to satisfy that “What should I do now?” question. Obviously, you’ll want to keep your microbiome as healthy as possible (a search for the term microbiome on drchet.com will point you in the right direction); beyond that I have questions I need answers to before I can provide more answers for you. I’m on it and when I know, so will you.

What are you prepared to do today?

        Dr. Chet