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Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

bbc.com

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Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#121

Post by pfdietz »

voxl wrote: post #97
user1029384756 wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Putting this out there in case it may help others: My mother suffered from GERD for years and years and about two years ago, her condition seemed to have taken a turn for the worse. We’re talking waking up in the middle of the night projectile vomiting. Constant heartburn, burping and indigestion after meals and daily constipation. The doctors were completely unable to help except to recommend antacids and possibly P…

Any time GERD comes up diet is one of the very first things people are told about (by doctors) to reduce symptoms.

And the next thing is proton pump inhibitors. They work marvelously, but you develop a dependency on them.

Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#122

Post by teaearlgraycold »

jadbox wrote: post #67
rosywoozlechan wrote: post #62

I believe it for anecdodal reasons. Since a few years ago I started eating vegetables and whole foods and greek yogurt, cottage cheese, my cravings for what foods I want to eat and what foods I like have changed so much. I can't stand the foods I used to love, and I love always having veggies now in my food. I'm always joking with my partner that my gut bacteria have mindcontrolled me and that I'm a zombie for my gut…

I just want to echo this and also speak from experience. I've learned to know my cravings- for protein, vegis, simple (ideally mono) fats, and so on. Sometimes I just think to myself.. I need an avocado and a little salt to solve this particular inner craving. When we have a healthy balanced diet, I find my cravings more closely align with what our bodies naturally require, no more or less.

I like to call this "palette inertia" - the opposite of palette fatigue.

Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#123

Post by corobo »

user1029384756 wrote: post #98
corobo wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sounds less paid infomercial and a little closer to antivax from here if I'm honest. Did she at least tell the doctor "hey no worries my kid fixed it"? What did they say?

I guess the difference is that being an antivaxer can potentially harm society whereas trying a high fibre, probiotic rich diet can’t hurt anyone. And I completely understand the skepticism, which is why I couched my comment with “it may not work for everyone”. > Did she at least tell the doctor "hey no worries my kid fixed it"? What did they say? The answer is no: I told her not to tell her doctor under any circumst…

Well as long as you're omitting information for brevity while suggesting it may be helpful to others and at the same time having told n=1 to avoid consulting with someone who is trained in the subject that may be able to catch and correct any errors or problems you've missed I can't see any issue there. I stand corrected.

Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#124

Post by astrange »

fastball wrote: post #106
user1029384756 wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Putting this out there in case it may help others: My mother suffered from GERD for years and years and about two years ago, her condition seemed to have taken a turn for the worse. We’re talking waking up in the middle of the night projectile vomiting. Constant heartburn, burping and indigestion after meals and daily constipation. The doctors were completely unable to help except to recommend antacids and possibly P…

Do doctors not routinely recommend pre/probiotics to replenish gut microbiota these days? I've had multiple discussions with medical professionals that would indicate they are on board with the idea. To whit, I had to take strong oral antibiotics for a serious bacterial throat infection I had last year, and afterwards saw a significantly diminished ability to cope with spicy foods (I love spicy food). The doctor sugg…

Each probiotic is different and each person is different, so it's hard to make the recommendation actionable.

You'd have to know what's already in your intestines, and the best we have are poop tests, one of which (uBiome, YC S14) famously failed and is being prosecuted as insurance fraud, so doctors probably don't want to get into that. (There are still going ones like Viome that might give you interesting results.)

Fermented foods aren't all the same too; yogurt is milder than kimchi for sure.

Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#126

Post by wnolens »

yosito wrote: post #7

In the last three years, something related to my gut-brain connection got fucked. I'm not sure if it was some kind of post-viral inflammation causing stress, or stress of isolation causing inflammation. But it's definitely a two way street and mine got completely stuck in a feedback loop. The mainstream medical system failed to help me. Eventually some functional medicine doctors managed to help me improve via diet,…

Hmm.. same/similar. Maybe I should go outside the western playbook a little further. Thanks.

An episode of extreme stress during the pandemic has left me with IBS-C.

Apologize for TMI.

Before: I ate anything, whenever, in whatever quantity body requested and was consistent 2-3x/day.

Now: my body just does not pass stool on its own anymore and I require a prescription for Linzess (highest dosage). Without it, I will bloat to the point of a visibly distended stomach and pass rock hard stool once every 3ish days. Being so bloated causes me to eat less and I shed 15lbs (145lb@6ft). Tried no fodmap diet, heavy on fermented foods for a while, xifaxan (in case of SIBO), prebiotics previously mentioned on HN. I've settled on Linzess daily + a heavy meat diet, with oats for breakfast. Too many vegetables and I get bloated. Most breads as well. Carbonated beverages make me into a balloon.

Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#127

Post by jnellis »

unsupp0rted wrote: post #86
myshpa wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Have you tried apple cider vinegar (ACV)? Works wonders. PPIs don't really treat GERD, imho it's one of those medicines to be used perpetually (good only for shareholders). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTzxfoL82n8 - good explanation why/how ACV works and why PPIs don't, iirc

I was told me esophageal sphincter doesn't fully close. Would apple cider vinegar help keep my acid low?

If you are overweight or have belly fat then it may be that your esophageal sphincter is fine and its your sleeping position that is causing the issue. Sleeping on your stomach causes belly fat to push into the area of your sphincter and opens it up slightly, now acids can flow past this point. The rise of esophageal cancer in the 90's up to now corresponds with the rise of obesity. I was actually allergic to NSAIDs which were causing gastritis but this mechanical component of sleeping on stomach (and being fatter at the time) was one of the issues that made it worse. After losing some weight it went away and after figuring out NSAIDs were causing the initial problem, I've been reflux free for four years now. Spent twenty years battling this problem and thought most of it was due to hereditary reason because my father had the same issues and died from esophageal cancer.

Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#128

Post by user1029384756 »

corobo wrote: post #123
user1029384756 wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess the difference is that being an antivaxer can potentially harm society whereas trying a high fibre, probiotic rich diet can’t hurt anyone. And I completely understand the skepticism, which is why I couched my comment with “it may not work for everyone”. > Did she at least tell the doctor "hey no worries my kid fixed it"? What did they say? The answer is no: I told her not to tell her doctor under any circumst…

Well as long as you're omitting information for brevity while suggesting it may be helpful to others and at the same time having told n=1 to avoid consulting with someone who is trained in the subject that may be able to catch and correct any errors or problems you've missed I can't see any issue there. I stand corrected.

This course of action was only taken after consultations with trained professionals had already failed and as I mentioned, the effect of the omitted supplements paled in comparison with the probiotics. Also this is a thread about gut bacteria so I thought I’d initially only mention the most relevant part of the treatment and follow-up if there was more interest.

It’s pretty clear that this (like 99% of internet advice) is all anecdotal evidence and again, I’ve made it clear it may not work for everyone. I’ve also mentioned elsewhere that I’m not a healthcare professional. But if my comment is able to help even one person escape the nightmare of not being able to hold food down and the sleep deprivation and depression that comes with severe GERD… then that’s worth one snarky linux systems guy yelling at me on HN.

:)

Re: Some gut bacteria appear to communicate with the brain

#129

Post by nextaccountic »

comboy wrote: post #70
stuckinhell wrote: post #9

This is a little scary, doesn't that mean they can hack you and cause issues from brain fog to mental illness.

There are more bacteria cells in your body than your cells. We are hack on a hack on a hack on a hack.

Yes but bacteria cells are generally tiny. We have our own bacteria-like "cells" inside our own cells (mitochondria) and maybe it helps to even out the numbers?
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