SHERLOCK HOLMES SOLVING THE MYSTERY OF OBESITY, TYPE 2 DIABETES, GUT BACTERIA AND CHEMICAL EXPOSURES

The holiday season is fast approaching and the last thing anyone wants to think about is his or her weight, obesity or type 2 diabetes. Nevertheless, this would be a good time not only to set goals for the new year but also to actively make plans for those changes right now. So here is some detective work I have been doing in the past week. If you think that science, biology and medicine have a role to play in your life, then read on.

• How your diet and the colon bacteria interact is now well understood. If there are lots of fruits, veggies and whole grains in the diet, then the good, health-producing bacteria in the lower gut thrive. On the other hand, if the diet is primarily animal protein and saturated fat based, meaning lots of deep fried foods, then the bad bacteria, called Firmicutes, predominate.
• The presence of these bad bacteria in the gut are associated with and, indeed, appear to be instrumental in increasing the number of calories absorbed from the colon. This type of diet also changes the metabolism of fat cells in the body leading to obesity and diabetes type 2. These are now well known medical facts.
• Now for some new information. As far back as 2004 there were reports in the medical literature relating the exposure of a variety of chemicals, particularly early in life, to subsequent obesity.  (link 1 below).
• In 2007 came another report strongly linking the chemical phthalate to obesity and type 2 diabetes. Phthalate chemicals are very widespread and commonly used in cosmetics, soaps, pesticides, lubricants, plastics and paints. 75% of the US population was found to have phthalates or their derivative in their blood. This too was linked to obesity and/or type 2 diabetes (link 2 below).
• In Feb 2011, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, a part of the National Institutes of Health, published another amazing study of unwanted chemicals found in the blood or urine of Americans. There were present a variety of 216 different chemicals, including heavy metals such as lead. This is simply mind-boggling. We are all exposed to a staggering array of chemicals used in industry and home products. These include products used in aerosols,  health care products like skin creams and cosmetics, toothpaste and even in factory manufactered and prepared foods and even medicines we ingest.

• This month Nov 2011 comes an article in a well-respected environmental journal. The paraphrased title is “Is There a Relationship Between Environment Chemicals and the Gut Bacteria in causing Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes?” It is an extensive 41-page article with a long list of medical references. In summary it supports the facts that gut bacteria are very important, that these bacteria are exposed to many of the chemicals in our environment, and that there is a likely relationship between these chemically influenced bacteria and obesity and type 2 diabetes (link 3 below).

1. Change your gut bacteria to the good guys. This can be done by gradually changing to a plant based, predominantly fruit, veggie and whole grain diet. Our prebiotic supplement formula, Prebiotin, can help in making this change.
2. Consciously eliminate as many chemicals as possible from your outside and inside environment.
3. Eat fresh foods, preferable organic. Even locally grown veggies, found in your farmers market, may have pesticides on them. Always ask, just to be sure.
4. Avoid to the extent possible factory manufactured foods found in boxes, packages and bottles at your food store. These are usually found in the center aisles.
5. Read food labels. Factory manufactured foods must list all the ingredients. Simple foods like olive oil will list one ingredient. But most labels will have lots of ingredients listed on them. Do you know what each ingredient is? Have you ever heard of some of them? There may be chemicals in the food that produce better shelve life, taste, mouth feel or some other property to benefit the manufacturer. Many of these chemicals are said by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and by manufacturer to be safe. But many of these chemicals are not natural. They are manufactured somewhere in a factory. They were approved by the FDA long before we knew anything about the gut bacteria or the huge exposure to chemicals we all face. Now we know that they may interact to cause very serious medical disorders. Simple and natural is always better.
6. Remove as many bottled, canned and boxed chemicals under the sink, in the garage or elsewhere around the house as possible. Keep countertops and other food preparation areas free of detergents and all other such cleaning products.

1. http://www.niehs.nih.gov/about/assets/docs/feb2011obesityheindel.pdf
2. http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/fetchArticle.action?articleURI=info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.115-a312b
3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=dominteractions%20between%20gut%20ecology%20and%20enviormental%20chemicals%20contribute%20to%20obesity%20and%20diabetes%3F