Physiology of the Gastrointestinal Tract and Intestinal Microflora
A healthy, balanced intestinal flora is an essential factor for human health, playing a role in digestion, in maintaining the integrity of the digestive epithelial barrier and in the development of local immune functions. The important advances in microbiology and molecular biology over the recent years have allowed a more detailed analysis of the „intestinal microbiota”, which has led some scientists to describe this set of microorganisms as a true „forgotten organ” (O’Harra, 2006) of our body.
Read more in the material made by the Innergy medical team.
Intestinal microbiome
Recent studies conclude that, depending on the bacterial populations in the gut, humans can fall into three categories. Like the discovery of the four blood groups, which essentially changed medical practice, the classification according to the bacterial ecosystem prevailing in the intestine could change the medical approach, from which drugs to prescribe till which alternative methods for antibiotic therapy.
The categories of intestinal bacterial populations, named in the studies enterotypes, were identified in the researches that were aiming the discovery of correlations between intestinal bacteria and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Read more.
Microbiota in patients with type I diabetes
If, until now, the involvement of the intestinal microbiome in numerous pathologies that affect a large part of the global population has been demonstrated, the protective role of the intestinal microbiota in the development of type I diabetes is now confirmed by a series of researches that open up new therapeutic opportunities.
A study developed by researchers from INSERM (Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale) could pave the way for new therapies against type 1 diabetes.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome and the CRITERIA ROMA IV
Irritable Bowel Syndrome is one of the most common intestinal disorders and a consequence of several possible factors, including psychological stress, gastrointestinal infections, inflammation in the intestinal mucosa, imbalance of the immune system, hormonal status and intestinal microbiome, which interfere with the transmission of messages between the brain and the intestine.
The Rome IV criteria, which were made public in May 2017, come with new information useful in diagnosing patients with SII.
The effects of a low fiber diet could be irreversible and hereditary
Comparing ourselves with previous generations, especially with our grandparents, many of us end up blaming the current health problems on a number of differentiating factors: the increasing level of stress, the hectic lifestyle and poor nutrition. A recent study conducted by researchers from the American Universities of Stanford, Harvard and Princeton supports part of this hypothesis, showing that a modern diet, low in fibers contributes to reducing the number of beneficial microorganisms in the human colon, creating irreversible and hereditary damage.
Read on to find out what should not be missing from your diet and that of your family.
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