There are a few theories why there has been a spike in food allergies over the past few decades. Many sound plausible. I don't know how to evaluate this one -
that overuse of antibiotics reduces gut bacteria and weakens the immune system. It does have at least some evidence to support it.
Gut bacteria - the microbiome - seems to be the up-and-coming thing in medical research. I expect it's going to become to this generation of researchers what genetics was to the last one.
ReplyDeleteThere's also been some work done on its relationship to weight gain. Nothing very solid that I'm aware of, but some interesting mouse studies.
Something I was reading two weeks ago said the gut bacteria varied wildly "in the wild", apparently depending on the diet. IIRC some of this was in Africa, where antibiotics aren't quite so common. So it is plausible that antibiotics might be a factor, but figuring out which and how isn't going to be easy.
ReplyDeleteYou'll be promoted soon.
ReplyDeleteYou were the guy bitching about having received nothing from the BGI yet despite harassing Chang.
You're the one without any self-awareness.
And you make your living as a thief.
Get a real job already.
And for God's sake the Bible can't be interpreted before you've read Gilson and Heidegger.
ReplyDeleteEgo sum qui sum.
Are you one of those humorless grinds with high test scores? Ugh.
I have met one psychiatric social worker, because my dad was once the head of the juvenile court in my city.
ReplyDeleteHe was fucking retard.
So you run your social science experiments with n=1.
ReplyDeleteMaybe HL is having a bad day. I don't recall him commenting here before, but my memory runs short.
ReplyDeleteAh, the CRF post. So I'm pleased you're letting HL show himself for what he is, whatever that is,, and now that I know, I will deal with my end of it.
ReplyDeleteThe microbiome is what the Chinese have been working with for about 4000 years. They just call it the datien or various herbal remedies.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious to see how the research will come out, too. We're in that early chaotic stage right now, it seems.
ReplyDeleteOne line of inquiry that yielded surprisingly clear results was the efficacy of what are delicately referred to as microbiome transplants in treating C. difficile infections: north of a 90% cure rate, which is head and shoulders above the usual bombardment with vancomycin or whatever. And C. difficile is not just a garden-variety gut disorder, it's spectacularly unpleasant, not to mention really dangerous.
I'm convinced there's something significant going on in this area, and I only wish much of it weren't so obscured by the crazy reporting. Will it be more like gluten-intolerance research, or more like discovering that H. pylori causes ulcers?