Gut bacteria may be able to evolve over time to live outside of the intestine, a new study finds – and that might make them more dangerous, possibly bringing chronic inflammation and related health risks to other organs in the body.
There’s plenty of research explaining the positive and negative effects that gut microbes can have on our health, but scientists still don’t understand much about how these various biological mechanisms and chain reactions work.
Some health issues are put down to what’s known as a ‘leaky gut’, where the intestine is more permeable than it should be, releasing bacteria outside of the digestive tract. However, there are lots of unanswered questions about the condition – including whether it’s a symptom or a cause of inflammation problems.
“One mystery has been how potentially pathogenic bacteria can exist in healthy people for decades with no apparent health consequences,” says immunobiologist Noah Palm, from Yale University.
In an attempt to solve the mystery, Palm and his colleagues introduced the potentially pathogenic bacterium Enterococcus gallinarum – a species found in around 6 percent of gut microbiomes in humans – into germ-free mice with no gut microbes of their own. Researchers then monitored the mice for three months.
Researchers observed the bacteria evolving into two distinct types. One was similar to the original strain, while another featured small DNA mutations so it could live in the intestine’s mucosal lining – and survive in the lymph nodes and liver after escaping the intestine.
More worrying, the mutated bacteria can apparently remain hidden in organs and escape the attention of the immune system. In the experiments on mice, the presence of mutant microbes could lead to inflammatory responses, including those linked to autoimmune diseases (which in humans include type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis).
“We believe that this evolutionary process starts over in each new host due to the preferential transmission of non-pathogenic strains between individuals,” says Palm.
In other words, within a human host, a niche may open up within the intestines as some non-harmful strains move on to other people, giving other bacteria in the gut room to evolve.
This phenomenon is known as ‘within-host evolution’ and is a possible explanation for why bacterial species living in our intestines can adapt over time, the scientists say. Environmental factors, including diet, have some influence on this.
The more diverse a bacterial community in the gut, the less space any one species has to grow, reducing the chances of unhealthy variants – those that can potentially escape – developing. Anything that affects that diversity, such as diet, could then help explain the risk of inflammatory conditions that sometimes have ‘leaky gut’ as a symptom, says Michael Palm, the study’s senior author.
All of this means that if we can understand more about this bacterial evolution, we might be able to develop and introduce preventative therapies for these health problems – perhaps by targeting specific microbes before they can escape.
“These bacteria are essentially pre-adapted to exist in organs outside the intestine,” says Palm.
This article is a special request I received from some readers. This is a difficult article since meal preparation has many ingredients. However, I tried every possible means to research on this significant subject.
Let’s get started: Wikipedia(2021) notes that Gari and beans are very nutritious, gari is starch-rich and serves as a source of energy. In this article, I will focus on the scientific review of the four major ingredients used for gob3(Beans, Gari, fried Plantain, and Palm oil). The other ingredients are minor so I will not focus on them but they add up to the taste and holistic benefits.
Yoo ke garri, The Science
I examine yoo ke gari based on the four key ingredients as adumbrated:
Blacked eyed peas
Gari
Palm Oil
Fried Plantain
Beans
Gob3 is a Ghanaian staple food
Black-eyed peas are the beans used in gob3. There are other types of beans and they are nutritious.
Black-eyed peas, science
Weight loss
Black-eyed peas are loaded with protein and soluble fiber, this means eating gob3 or yoke gari supports weight loss. Two studies (Bloom et al.2006; Lomenick et al.2009 ) found that the Protein in gob3 reduces levels of ghrelin, a hormone that’s responsible for stimulating feelings of hunger.
On the other hand, as a soluble fiber, Lattimer and Haub’s (2010) study found that this fiber is a type of fiber that forms a gel-like consistency and goes into your digestive tract slowly to make you full. This account for why most people like eating gob3 to keep them for the day. Eating beans, therefore, helps to manage your weight.
For instance, one large study in 1,475 people, by Papanikolaou and Fulgoni(2008) found that people who ate beans frequently had a 23% lower risk of increased belly fat and a 22% lower risk of obesity, compared with non-consumers.
Another, Kim et al.(2016) review of 21 studies found that consuming black-eyed peas, in your diet(gob3) could be an effective weight loss strategy and may help reduce body fat percentage.
Digestive Health
As a soluble fiber food, black-eyed peas support digestive health. Interestingly, one meta-analysis by Yang et al.(2012) demonstrates that when we eat more gob3, the soluble fiber can help promote regularity and increase stool frequency in those with constipation.
Anderson et al.(2009) also found that the fiber in gob3 may avert digestive disorders, such as acid reflux, hemorrhoids, and stomach ulcers. Another good news is that one study by Carlson et al.(2019) found that the soluble fiber found in black-eyed peas and other plants can also act as a prebiotic, which helps the growth of the beneficial bacteria in our gut to help foster a healthy microbiome.
Kechagia et al.(2013) found that these beneficial bacteria go beyond our digestive health support but also reduce inflammation, enhance immune function, and reduce cholesterol levels.
Heart Health
Eating gob3 also reduces your risk of heart diseases. Bazzano et al.(2009) review of 10 studies, found that frequent eating of legumes was linked to lower levels of total and LDL (bad) cholesterol, these two could add to heart disease
Alizadeh et al.(2014) study on 42 women found that when we eat a low-calorie diet enriched with 1 cup of legumes per day for 6 weeks drastically decreased waist circumference and triglyceride and blood pressure levels, juxtaposed with a control group. Three studies(Esmaillzadeh and Azadbakht, 2012; Hosseinpour-Niazi et al. 2015; Golia et al. 2014) found that frequent consumption of legumes is linked to lower markers of inflammation, and therefore reduces your risk of heart disease
Gari, science
Gari makes a good choice for people with health conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol since it’s extremely low in salt/sodium, sugar, and fat, plus free from refined carbohydrates and synthetic ingredients.
Although it’s not very high in fiber, protein, healthy fats, or other essential nutrients (aside from vitamin C), cassava is low in calories and allows you to enjoy some of your favorite recipes without the use of processed, bleached, or gluten-containing flours.
Cassava gari, vitamin C, digestion, colon health
one study by Montagnac et al.(2009) found that cassava is loaded in vitamin C juxtaposed to other staple crops (and grains) and contains more vitamin C than potatoes, yams, wheat brown rice, corn, and plantains.
Two studies (Korczak et al. 2017; Rachman et al. 2020) found that cassava gari is rich in dietary fiber. Dietary fiber aids digestion, fecal frequency, and weight. It also reduces the colonic transit time of digested food.
Cassava gari is a resistant starch. Magallanes-Cruz et al.(2017) explained that resistant starch is starched that the small intestine does not digest. Nugent, (2005) explained that resistant starch work in a similar manner to dietary fiber. They pass from the small intestines into the colon where they begin to ferment and finally promote gut health by feeding the beneficial gut bacteria as they ferment(Maier et al.2017).
Palm Oil
Palm Oil, Scientific Benefits
Support Brain health, Heart Health
Palm oil is loaded with tocotrienols, a form of vitamin E which contains antioxidants that may support brain health. In the human study, Gopalan et al. (2014) conducted for 2-years involving 121 people with brain lesions, the group who took palm oil-derived tocotrienols twice a day remained stable, but for those who received a placebo, their lesions grow.
Though some study results have been mixed, this oil largely appears to have beneficial effects on heart disease risk factors, including lowering LDL (bad) cholesterol and increasing HDL (good) cholesterol (Fattore et al.2011; Ismail et al.2018; Lucci et al.2016; Voon et al. 2015)
In the case of Fattore et al.(2011), the study involved a large analysis of 51 studies and found that total and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels were lower in people who consumed palm oil-rich diets than those who consumed diets high in trans fats or myristic and lauric acids.
In a previous clinical trial, Zhang et al.(1997) also examined the effects of palm oil, soybean oil, peanut oil, and lard on cholesterol levels. The authors found that palm oil caused a 13.1 percent decrease in bad LDL cholesterol and a 6.7 percent drop in triglyceride levels in those with normal cholesterol. Apart from Palm oil lowering your cholesterol levels, it also slows the progression of heart diseases.
Enhanced vitamin A
One old study by McLaren(1999) and a recent review study by Tan et al.(2021)found that Red palm oil enhances vitamin A status in people who are deficient or at risk of deficiency because it’s rich in carotenoids that the body can convert into vitamin A.
Another small study in 16 participants by Sommerburg et al.(2015)found that people with cystic fibrosis, a condition that makes it difficult to absorb fat-soluble vitamins, experienced an increase in vitamin A blood levels after taking two to three tablespoons of red palm oil daily for 8 weeks.
A previous clinical trial by Radhika et al.(2013) also found that Palm oil is mostly used as a supplement to help improve vitamin A status in those who are at risk for deficiency. This study emanated from the National Institute of Nutrition, Indian Council of Medical Research in India, for example, showed that treating pregnant women with red palm oil increased vitamin A levels for both women and their babies.
Another meta-analysis of nine high-quality studies by Dong et al.(2017)found red palm oil supplementation to increase vitamin A levels in both children and adults.
Fried plantain
Mixed Study on Glycemic index in Plantain.
Ogbuji et al.(2013) found that the average glycemic index for ripe plantain is 54.6 and 45.3 for unripe plantain. They also noted that the glycemic index values for fried, boiled and roasted ripe plantain are 56,54 and 55 respectively.
one study by Kouamé et al.(2017) in Côte d’Ivoire found plantain chips to have a GI of 45 which is within the low range(refer to my previous article on GI). The study did not support consuming Banane braisée(Charcoal –roasted light green stage plantain) which has a GI of 89 and uses the roasting method. The other cooking method for plantain such as chips used deep frying with major ingredients being salt, and refined palm oil.
A previous study by Ayodele and Godwin(2010) in Nigeria found no difference between boiled plantain (Bp), fried plantain (Fp), roasted plantain (Rp), boiled and pounded plantain (BPp), and plantain flour. The study found that roasted plantain gave the lowest glycemic index and the value was significantly lower than the other test foods.
Plantain, Science
Loaded with Potassium, Magnesium
Plantain contains 913 milligrams of potassium in one cup of cooked, mashed plantains. This is about 27 percent of the recommended daily amount of potassium, this gives plantains an advantage over cassava and makes it one of the most potassium-rich foods on the earth.
He and MacGregor(2008) study found that potassium contents also affect skeletal and smooth muscle contraction, which allows for regular digestive and muscular function. Potassium in addition supports heart rhythm, and studies show that people who consume diets with high potassium levels have a reduced risk of stroke, osteoporosis, and kidney disease.
Magnesium contents control blood pressure and support osteoporosis and many others. Additionally, Paunier’s(1992) study found that magnesium directly affects calcium absorption, which can avert or reverse osteoporosis.
Digestive Health, Immunity
Vitamin C is an antioxidant that fights free radical damage. Studies revealed that plantains have over 35 percent of the daily value of vitamin C. This makes plantain one of the best vitamin C foods to eat. Also, Plantain is loaded with 36 percent of the daily value of vitamin A and helps the body. Vitamin A and C support the immune system and fight diseases.
Plantains also can give you 24 percent of your daily value of vitamin B6. This important vitamin supports the brain. This vitamin in plantains is one of the eight B vitamins that aid in processing food into energy and metabolizing fats. Similar to vitamin A, B6 also helps slow the onset of eye diseases like macular degeneration. B6 and B12 work together to manufacture red blood cells and cells in the immune system and also fight rheumatoid arthritis.
Warning
Messina, V(2014) found that black-eyed peas are likely to cause stomach pain, gas, and bloating in some people due to their content of raffinose, a type of fiber that can aid digestive matters. However, this could be addressed by soaking and cooking dried beans to enable easier digestion. Alternatively, one can use tablets and pills to deal with the gas.
On the other hand, Masum et al.(2011) found that Black-eyed peas also contain antinutrients, such as phytic acid, which bind to minerals like iron, zinc, magnesium, and calcium and prevent their absorption in the body. This, Gupta et al.(2015) found that it can however be averted by soaking and cooking black-eyed peas before eating to drastically reduce their phytic acid content and help boost nutrient absorption.
So in conclusion Black-eyed peas in gob3 may help increase weight loss, improve digestive health, and support better heart health. Also, the study on fried plantain is mixed on diabetics’ health. So I advise diabetics to eat gob3 moderately.
Take home
So this is what you get from eating gob3. I hope my review helps you. Always do remember that the starch content in cassava products is resistant starch and they are beneficial to our health especially gut health.
The writer is a Professor of Naturopathic Healthcare, President, Nyarkotey College of Holistic Medicine & Technology (NUCHMT)/African Naturopathic Foundation. E-mail: collegeofholisticmedicine@gmail.com.
References
Borresen EC, Jenkins-Puccetti N, Schmitz K, Brown DG, Pollack A, Fairbanks A, Wdowik M, Rao S, Nelson TL, Luckasen G, Ryan EP. A Pilot Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial to Assess Tolerance and Efficacy of Navy Bean and Rice Bran Supplementation for Lowering Cholesterol in Children. Glob Pediatr Health. 2017 Feb 16;4:2333794X17694231. doi: 10.1177/2333794X17694231. PMID: 28345013; PMCID: PMC5349558.
Luhovyy BL, Mollard RC, Panahi S, Nunez MF, Cho F, Anderson GH. Canned Navy Bean Consumption Reduces Metabolic Risk Factors Associated with Obesity. Can J Diet Pract Res. 2015 Mar;76(1):33-7. doi: 10.3148/cjdpr-2014-030. PMID: 26067245.
Sombié PAED, Compaoré M, Coulibaly AY, Ouédraogo JT, Tignégré JS, Kiendrébéogo M. Antioxidant and Phytochemical Studies of 31 Cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata (Walp L)) Genotypes from Burkina. Foods. 2018 Sep 3;7(9):143. doi: 10.3390/foods7090143. PMID: 30177591; PMCID: PMC6165398.
Blom WA, Lluch A, Stafleu A, Vinoy S, Holst JJ, Schaafsma G, Hendriks HF. Effect of a high-protein breakfast on the postprandial ghrelin response. Am J Clin Nutr. 2006 Feb;83(2):211-20. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/83.2.211. PMID: 16469977.
Lomenick JP, Melguizo MS, Mitchell SL, Summar ML, Anderson JW. Effects of meals high in carbohydrate, protein, and fat on ghrelin and peptide YY secretion in prepubertal children. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2009 Nov;94(11):4463-71. doi: 10.1210/jc.2009-0949. Epub 2009 Oct 9. PMID: 19820013; PMCID: PMC2775646.
Lattimer JM, Haub MD. Effects of dietary fiber and its components on metabolic health. Nutrients. 2010 Dec;2(12):1266-89. doi: 10.3390/nu2121266. Epub 2010 Dec 15. PMID: 22254008; PMCID: PMC3257631.
Papanikolaou Y, Fulgoni VL 3rd. Bean consumption is associated with greater nutrient intake, reduced systolic blood pressure, lower body weight, and a smaller waist circumference in adults: results from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2002. J Am Coll Nutr. 2008 Oct;27(5):569-76. doi: 10.1080/07315724.2008.10719740. PMID: 18845707.
Kim SJ, de Souza RJ, Choo VL, Ha V, Cozma AI, Chiavaroli L, Mirrahimi A, Blanco Mejia S, Di Buono M, Bernstein AM, Leiter LA, Kris-Etherton PM, Vuksan V, Beyene J, Kendall CW, Jenkins DJ, Sievenpiper JL. Effects of dietary pulse consumption on body weight: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 2016 May;103(5):1213-23. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.115.124677. Epub 2016 Mar 30. PMID: 27030531.
Yang J, Wang HP, Zhou L, Xu CF. Effect of dietary fiber on constipation: a meta analysis. World J Gastroenterol. 2012 Dec 28;18(48):7378-83. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v18.i48.7378. PMID: 23326148; PMCID: PMC3544045.
Anderson JW, Baird P, Davis RH Jr, Ferreri S, Knudtson M, Koraym A, Waters V, Williams CL. Health benefits of dietary fiber. Nutr Rev. 2009 Apr;67(4):188-205. doi: 10.1111/j.1753-4887.2009.00189.x. PMID: 19335713.
Carlson JL, Erickson JM, Lloyd BB, Slavin JL. Health Effects and Sources of Prebiotic Dietary Fiber. Curr Dev Nutr. 2018 Jan 29;2(3):nzy005. doi: 10.1093/cdn/nzy005. PMID: 30019028; PMCID: PMC6041804.
Kechagia M, Basoulis D, Konstantopoulou S, Dimitriadi D, Gyftopoulou K, Skarmoutsou N, Fakiri EM. Health benefits of probiotics: a review. ISRN Nutr. 2013 Jan 2;2013:481651. doi: 10.5402/2013/481651. PMID: 24959545; PMCID: PMC4045285.
Alizadeh M, Gharaaghaji R, Gargari BP. The effects of legumes on metabolic features, insulin resistance and hepatic function tests in women with central obesity: a randomized controlled trial. Int J Prev Med. 2014 Jun;5(6):710-20. PMID: 25013690; PMCID: PMC4085923.
Esmaillzadeh A, Azadbakht L. Legume consumption is inversely associated with serum concentrations of adhesion molecules and inflammatory biomarkers among Iranian women. J Nutr. 2012 Feb;142(2):334-9. doi: 10.3945/jn.111.146167. Epub 2011 Dec 21. PMID: 22190025.
Hosseinpour-Niazi S, Mirmiran P, Fallah-Ghohroudi A, Azizi F. Non-soya legume-based therapeutic lifestyle change diet reduces inflammatory status in diabetic patients: a randomised cross-over clinical trial. Br J Nutr. 2015 Jul;114(2):213-9. doi: 10.1017/S0007114515001725. Epub 2015 Jun 16. PMID: 26077375.
Golia E, Limongelli G, Natale F, Fimiani F, Maddaloni V, Pariggiano I, Bianchi R, Crisci M, D’Acierno L, Giordano R, Di Palma G, Conte M, Golino P, Russo MG, Calabrò R, Calabrò P. Inflammation and cardiovascular disease: from pathogenesis to therapeutic target. Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2014 Sep;16(9):435. doi: 10.1007/s11883-014-0435-z. PMID: 25037581.
Messina V. Nutritional and health benefits of dried beans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2014 Jul;100 Suppl 1:437S-42S. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.113.071472. Epub 2014 May 28. PMID: 24871476.
Masum Akond ASMG, Crawford H, Berthold J, Talukder ZI, Hossain K. Minerals (Zn, Fe, Ca and Mg) and Antinutrient (Phytic Acid) Constituents in Common Bean. Am J Food Technol. 2011;6(3):235-243. doi: 10.3923/ajft.2011.235.243. PMID: 29861700; PMCID: PMC5983041.
Gupta RK, Gangoliya SS, Singh NK. Reduction of phytic acid and enhancement of bioavailable micronutrients in food grains. J Food Sci Technol. 2015 Feb;52(2):676-84. doi: 10.1007/s13197-013-0978-y. Epub 2013 Apr 24. PMID: 25694676; PMCID: PMC4325021.
Maki KC, Pelkman CL, Finocchiaro ET, Kelley KM, Lawless AL, Schild AL, Rains TM. Resistant starch from high-amylose maize increases insulin sensitivity in overweight and obese men. J Nutr. 2012 Apr;142(4):717-23. DOI: 10.3945/jn.111.152975. Epub 2012 Feb 22. PMID: 22357745; PMCID: PMC3301990.
Maier TV, Lucio M, Lee LH, VerBerkmoes NC, Brislawn CJ, Bernhardt J, Lamendella R, McDermott JE, Bergeron N, Heinzmann SS, Morton JT, González A, Ackermann G, Knight R, Riedel K, Krauss RM, Schmitt-Kopplin P, Jansson JK. Impact of Dietary Resistant Starch on the Human Gut Microbiome, Metaproteome, and Metabolome. mBio. 2017 Oct 17;8(5):e01343-17. doi: 10.1128/mBio.01343-17. PMID: 29042495; PMCID: PMC5646248.
Starch Pasting Properties and the Effects of Banana Flour and Cassava Flour Addition to Semolina Flour on Starch and Amino Acid Digestion https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/star.202000137
Dietary fiber and digestive health in children https://academic.oup.com/nutritionreviews/article/75/4/241/3747768?login=true
Proximate Composition Physicochemical Functional and Antioxidant Properties of Flours from Selected Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) Varieties https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijfs/2021/6064545/
The Role of Antioxidants in Human Health https://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/bk-2011-1083.ch001
Effect of vitamin A biofortification on the nutritional composition of cassava flour (gari) and evaluation of its glycemic index in healthy adults https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jfbc.12450
Quality assessment of gluten-free bread from pro-vitamin A cassava and velvet bean flour https://www.myfoodresearch.com/uploads/8/4/8/5/84855864/_20__fr-2020-243_olatunde.pdf
What is vitamin A and why do we need it? https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC3936685/
Optimization of process conditions for cassava (Manihot esculenta) lafun production https://academicjournals.org/journal/AJB/article-full-text-pdf/E8188E16552
Outbreak of Cyanide Poisoning Caused by Consumption of Cassava Flour — Kasese District Uganda September 2017 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC6611475/
Allergic reactions to manioc (Manihot esculenta Crantz): Identification of novel allergens with potential involvement in latex-fruit syndrome https://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(11)01091-8/fulltext
Tinnitus, commonly described as ringing in the ears, affects about 749 million people worldwide, according to research in the journal JAMA Neurology and based on about five decades of data. Not a disease but rather a symptom of an underlying health condition, tinnitus is the perception of a constant or intermittent sound in one or both ears when there is no external source for the sound. Other than ringing, some people describe it as a clicking, hissing, buzzing or whistling sound. Often, the cause stems from damage to the auditory system, which is the body’s system (involving the ear, the brain and the nerves that connect them) responsible for the sense of hearing. The American Tinnitus Association, however, says that tinnitus can be a symptom of roughly 200 different health problems, including a blocked ear canal, head or neck injury, a sinus infection, certain medications, a host of diseases and medical conditions, as well as hearing loss from prolonged exposure to loud noise or age-related hearing loss. Also, some people develop tinnitus for no obvious reason, according to the National Institutes of Health. The researchers found little difference by sex in the prevalence of tinnitus, but its occurrence did increase with age — affecting 10 percent of young adults, 14 percent of those middle age and 24 percent of those 65 and older. Although there is no universal cure for tinnitus, finding and treating the underlying condition may quell the sounds. If that does not work, a doctor may suggest ways to manage the effect of tinnitus on daily life, such as the use of hearing aids, sound generators (for internal or external use), techniques to ease stress and increase relaxation or, if appropriate, medication or counseling.
One by one, cases of the painful viral infection popped up this summer at George Washington, Georgetown and American universities. Now these schools in the nation’s capital and others across the country are warning their communities to be on guard against the potential spread of monkeypox in the coming weeks when students return to campus for the fall term.
The public health campaigns centered on monkeypox come as colleges and universities are managing the third back-to-school season shadowed by the coronavirus pandemic. Students and educators are eager for normalcy after the disruptions of the previous two years.
That could complicate efforts to combat a threat much different from covid-19. Health authorities say monkeypox spreads through intimate contact, often skin to skin, including but not limited to sexual encounters. Authorities also warn of possible spread through respiratory secretions or touching the bedding or towels used by someone who is infected.
World ignored monkeypox threats, including signs of sexual transmission
All of which sounds like circumstances that could occur in college dormitories, on dance floors or in other campus spaces.
“Now we have to manage two public health emergencies all at once,” said Ranit Mishori, vice president and chief public health officer at Georgetown. “It’s very difficult for staff, students and faculty.”
Mishori said Georgetown officials know of two recent cases within their community. GWU and AU officials also have confirmed cases. The news site Inside Higher Ed reported this month that cases have emerged as well at the University of Texas at Austin, and West Chester and Bucknell universities, both in Pennsylvania.
Gregory L. Fenves, president of Emory University, said the campus in Atlanta is preparing for the new health threat and mindful that the coronavirus pandemic has not disappeared. “People are tired of covid,” he said. “This issue of public health fatigue is a real one.”
One of the most sensitive issues colleges face is how to communicate about an outbreak that so far in the United States has spread mainly among men who have sex with other men. “We don’t want to stigmatize sexual behavior,” said Lynn R. Goldman, dean of public health at GWU. She noted that monkeypox is not a sexually transmitted disease, and condoms don’t guard against it.
The American College Health Association said in a statement: “Anyone can get monkeypox, so campuses should communicate it as a public health concern for all; however, campus communications can be tailored to different audiences to be most effective. No matter the audience, it is important that communications convey compassion, reduce stigma and address equity.”
Mishori said schools should brief athletes, coaches, custodians and others about the virus. “We recognize that anybody and everybody is at risk, regardless of gender or sexual orientation,” she said.
In recent days, universities have cautioned communities about how the virus spreads, the signs of infection — painful rashes that appear like pimples or blisters, then scabs — and the degree of the threat it poses.
“Currently, the risk of monkeypox transmission on campus is very low and with proper safety precautions, there is no need for elevated concern,” David S. Reitman, the medical director of the AU student health center, wrote in an Aug. 8 message to the community. “Monkeypox is less contagious and less likely to result in severe illness or death than COVID-19.” The possibility of infection in classroom settings and normal daily activities is low, Reitman wrote.
Spyridon S. Marinopoulos, chief medical officer of the University of Maryland, urged people on campus on Aug. 9 to take “everyday precautions” to protect themselves, such as regular handwashing and avoiding “close, skin-to-skin contact with people who have a rash that looks like monkeypox.”
Mass vaccination, a solution many universities embraced to protect against the coronavirus, is not yet under consideration with monkeypox. Supplies of the monkeypox vaccine are limited, and health authorities are giving priority to high-risk individuals.
What you need to know about the monkeypox vaccine
D.C. expands monkeypox vaccine eligibility to counter falling demand
Campus health centers will be alert to what monkeypox rashes look like, officials say, and will arrange for viral testing if students need it. The turnaround time to get results could be up to five days, Mishori said, and students with suspected cases would be required to isolate until learning whether they are infected.
Those with confirmed infections would be required to isolate further, Mishori said, possibly two weeks or longer. Depending on the configuration of dorm beds and rooms, that could mean an infected student would move temporarily into a hotel room on Georgetown’s campus.
Those are among the unwelcome scenarios that colleges and universities everywhere are gaming out as the fall term approaches.
“We’re all kind of on-deck right now in terms of thinking ahead — what are we going to do if?” said Goldman of GWU. “What if, what if, what if?”
Just as COVID-19 began its life as a mysterious virus that crossed over from an animal to humans, it is natural that the public might look at other emergent zoonotic viruses with similar wariness. This, perhaps, explains the recent attention paid to a new Langya virus outbreak in China that has already infected 35 people. Could this lead to another global pandemic?
Fortunately, that is very unlikely, experts say. Unfortunately, that does not mean that the virus is not a threat, as a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that there were 35 infections in a pair of eastern Chinese provinces in 2021.
Yet one reason not to be alarmed is, quite simply, that none of those patients died. Another lies in the nature of the Langya virus itself: It does not appear to have spread through human-to-human contact, and the infected patients all had close contact with animals like fruit bats and shrews, which were likely the original hosts.
RELATED: How 40 years without smallpox vaccinations could make the monkeypox outbreak worse
“There are clearly repeated transmission events from what looks to be a common reservoir in shrews,” Vaughn Cooper, an evolutionary biology professor at the University of Pittsburgh, told NBC News. “The team did a very nice job of evaluating alternatives and finding that as the most likely explanation.”
Yet while this virus does not seem to pose a global threat, it is part of a classification of viruses with a long and ugly history. They are known as henipaviruses.
Want more health and science stories in your inbox? Subscribe to Salon’s weekly newsletter The Vulgar Scientist.
Henipaviruses are negative-strand RNA viruses that are commonly found in mammals like shrews and fruit bats. Some henipaviruses are very dangerous; the Nipah virus, for instance, has a fatality rate between 40% and 75%. In addition to causing fevers, headaches, coughing and other flu-like symptoms, the Nipah virus can lead to serious side effects like brain swelling (encephalitis), seizures and even comas. Then there is the Hendra virus which has a fatality rate of 57% for the humans that it infects, bringing with it symptoms that can as with the Nipah virus also seem flu-like — and, likewise, can lead to brain swelling and death.
While the Langya virus does not appear to be a global threat, other henipaviruses do pose large problems on the regional level. A February article in the scientific journal PLOS: Neglected Tropical Diseases had this observation about the Nipah virus (NiV).
“Malaysia (43%), Bangladesh (42%), and India (15%) represent all incident cases of human NiV infections worldwide,” the authors explained. “Apart from the human catastrophe of high morbidity and mortality rates during documented epidemic outbreaks, the economic impact is tremendous. After the first NiV outbreak in 1999, Malaysian pig industry and related sectors suffered enormous damage, i.e., 1.1 million pigs were culled costing about US$66.8 million with a total decrease in the Malaysian economy of around 30% during that time.”
The authors also said that a global spread could arise from henipaviruses that can be spread through person-to-person transmission — such as NiV.
“The capacity for NiV to spread in hospital settings between staff and patients was shown in an outbreak 2001 in Siliguri, India, which affected 66 people,” the authors wrote. “The outbreak originated from an unidentified patient admitted to Siliguri District Hospital who infected 11 people. Thus, the ability of NiV to spread from patients to nursing staff has raised concern that the virus might adapt to more efficient human-to-human transmission.”
Although we wish we could turn back time, aging stops for no one. That’s why it’s important to maintain overall body health as much as possible. It may not always be in your control, but there are certain aspects that you can target to ensure you’re doing everything possible to stay healthy. Working out and following a balanced diet are two ways to support a healthy body after 50 years old and beyond.
If you don’t know where to start or don’t know how to, we’ve got you covered. Jessica Sylvester, MS, RD, LDN, CNSC, CDCES, Clinical Dietitian, Media Spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and Owner of Florida Nutrition Group, shares with us the best eating habits to have that can help you maintain a healthy lifestyle if you’re over 50.
Something to consider about these best eating habits over 50 is that “these recommendations are made for generally healthy adults without chronic medical conditions,” explains Sylvester. “Dietary advice should be unique to the individual and their medical conditions.
Furthermore, Sylvester states that these are generalized recommendations. Always check with your physician and dietitian before initiating a new dietary routine.
Shutterstock
Bone density is at its peak during your early twenties. After that, it begins to weaken.
“As we age, our bones begin to leach calcium and we become more susceptible to falls,” Sylvester explains. “Sometimes, these falls are a result of bone frailty. Other times, they highlight diminished bone health.”
Because these falls can be detrimental to our health and well-being, and may even be life-threatening, it’s important to minimize the risk of falls and/or catastrophic results from a fall by “taking a calcium and vitamin D supplement daily.” Not only will this supplement help preserve bone density, but vitamin D also plays a role in maintaining gut health, allowing your body to absorb the nutrients consumed.
If you want to go the extra mile, Sylvester suggests avoiding consuming dairy and meat in the same meal. “Dairy contains calcium, and meat contains iron; the two minerals negate one another in the body,” Sylvester explains. “By eating them at the same time, you minimize the dietary benefits of both.”
Sign up for our newsletter!
Shutterstock
Many things may slow down as we age, and that includes our metabolism. “As such, older adults typically need to consume fewer calories during the day than they used to,” says Sylvester.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e
While some people might notice that they are less hungry, others may have to adjust to this “new physiological adaptation.” To do so, she suggests eating smaller meals throughout the day.
But because you’re eating fewer calories at a time, it’s important to ensure that you are still getting enough nutrients from your foods.
“To do this while eating fewer calories, it is best to eat more frequently throughout the day,” says Sylvester. “This will ensure that you not only meet your caloric needs but your vitamin and mineral requirements as well.” Vitamins and minerals help your body function properly and preserve your health.
But if you’re still struggling with eating more frequent smaller meals while consuming enough nutrients, Sylvester recommends supplementation. “If you find it difficult to meet your caloric and nutrient needs throughout the day, take a high-quality multivitamin and/or sip on a nutrition supplement drink,” says Sylvester. “Both are available at most pharmacies.”
RELATED: Surprising Side Effects of Taking Multivitamins After 50, Say Experts
Shutterstock
Consuming enough protein is important, but it’s especially important as you age.
“Most adults begin to lose muscle mass as they age,” says Sylvester. “Our muscles play a role in metabolic health, physical stability, and wound healing.”
Consuming adequate protein helps to preserve muscle mass, thereby preventing sarcopenia—the age-related progressive loss of muscle mass and function.
“We often don’t recognize the signs of sarcopenia because of increased weight gain and adiposity (fat) associated with the hormonal changes that accompany aging,” says Sylvester. “So, while the number on your scale might be the same as it was years earlier, your body composition has likely shifted so that you have less muscle and more fat.”
For healthy adults without chronic conditions, such as renal disease, dietitians recommend getting 20% of your calories from protein.
“Fortunately, there are many ways to supplement protein in the diet,” says Sylvester. “Eating lean sources of meat, like chicken and fish, and eggs or beans is a good start. But, if you find you still aren’t meeting those protein goals, look for a protein shake, bar, or even a protein cookie in your supermarket and pharmacy aisles”
RELATED: 4 Best High-Protein Snacks for Stronger Muscles in Your 50s
Shutterstock
As important as it is to eat, it’s just as important to drink.
“Fluid recommendations are highly individualized to age, activity level, and health status,” says Sylvester. “Most people need anywhere between 1.5 to 3 liters of fluids a day.” One liter is about 33 ounces or about 4 cups.
“Our thirst mechanisms, the signals in our brain that tell us to drink, are not as strong in older adulthood as they are in childhood,” Sylvester explains. “So, it’s important to make a conscious effort to drink.”
Meeting fluid recommendations not only prevents dehydration, “but it also plays an important role in maintaining a healthy metabolism,” she adds.
In order to meet your fluid needs, Sylvester suggests using a small water bottle. Use one that you know you’ll enjoy drinking from and can also carry easily throughout the day. Sylvester even suggests trying using a children’s water bottle and committing to drinking at least 1-2 full bottles during the day.
Shutterstock
Sylvester stresses the importance of seeing a dietitian for your dietary needs. (To find a dietitian, go to www.eatright.org and click on “Find an Expert”.)
“Dietary advice is highly individualized and will differ according to age and medical history,” she says. “The best resource for nutrition advice is a registered dietitian (RD); dietitians are the nation’s nutrition experts with the ability to tailor your diet according to your specific needs.”
As we age, our bodies become more susceptible to infection and disease. Many people feel their bodies become foreign to them as they age, and have difficulties adjusting to their nutrition needs. Dietitians will work with you and your physicians to address these changes by managing your diet in a way that preserves health.
The 19th-century American writer Wallace D. Wattles once claimed, “Thinking is the hardest and most exhausting of all labor.”
On the surface, that might sound like a contentious comparison, but a new study suggests thinking too hard and too long really can drain your brain, much like exercise can wear out the body.
Hard physical labor is obviously tiresome, but the sweat on a person’s brow or the quivering of their muscles says nothing of how hard they might be thinking.
When someone says they feel mentally exhausted, we just have to take their word for it.
As a result, scientists still don’t really understand why intense thought causes cognitive fatigue. It isn’t exactly a feeling of sleepiness; rather, it’s a sensation that tasks are getting harder to complete or focus on.
Some researchers now suspect the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain is to blame for this lack of mental endurance.
Glutamate is an excitatory amino acid that was only properly described in the 1950s, despite the fact that it is present in over 90 percent of neuron-to-neuron communications in the human brain.
Over the decades, this underestimated chemical has continued to surprise scientists. Neurons, for instance, have been found to control the strength of their signals in the brain by regulating the amount of glutamate they release to other neurons.
Glutamate can even excite neurons to death, with as many as 8,000 glutamate molecules encapsulated in a single pouch of a synapse, the junction where two neurons meet.
The overabundance of glutamate is clearly a problem, and that’s part of why it has been linked to brain drain.
When monitoring the brain chemistry of 24 participants tasked with completing strenuous computer-based sorting tasks for over six hours, researchers found an increase in glutamate in the lateral prefrontal cortex. This is the part of the brain associated with higher-order cognitive powers, like short-term memory and decision-making.
In comparison, 16 other participants who were assigned easier tasks for the day didn’t show signs of glutamate accumulation in this part of their brain.
As such, the researchers think a rise in extracellular glutamate may be at least one of the limiting factors to human mental endurance.
Obviously, the brain gobbles up a lot of glucose when it’s working, too. Other theories suggest this energy source is probably another limiting factor, but it’s still not clear how a loss of glucose makes thinking harder, biochemically speaking.
Some researchers have proposed that a plummet in glucose triggers a loss of dopamine in the brain, which makes a person lose interest in certain cognitive tasks more easily.
“Influential theories suggested that fatigue is a sort of illusion cooked up by the brain to make us stop whatever we are doing and turn to a more gratifying activity,” explains clinical psychologist Mathias Pessiglione from the Pitié-Salpêtrière University in Paris, France.
“But our findings show that cognitive work results in a true functional alteration – accumulation of noxious substances – so fatigue would indeed be a signal that makes us stop working but for a different purpose: to preserve the integrity of brain functioning.”
Pessiglione also says there is good evidence that glutamate is eliminated from synapses during sleep.
That could be part of the reason why a night of rest can allow a person to feel mentally refreshed the next day.
A brain imaging study from 2016, which used a functional MRI (fMRI), also found the lateral prefrontal cortex (lPFC) was involved in intense cognitive effort that reduced its excitability over time.
To activate this region at the end of a long, hard day would require even more effort than at the start. Hence, the feeling of brain drain.
“Taken together with previous fMRI data, these results support a neuro-metabolic model in which glutamate accumulation triggers a regulation mechanism that makes lPFC activation more costly, explaining why cognitive control is harder to mobilize after a strenuous workday,” Pessiglione and colleagues conclude.
Glutamate is an incredibly fast-acting neurotransmitter. It’s part of what makes this amino acid so powerful. But it also makes the chemical difficult to measure.
Studies like the current one are making use of new technology to explore glutamate’s rapid role in our brains in greater detail.
The authors now hope to investigate why glutamate accumulates so much in the prefrontal cortex compared to other parts of the brain.
ATLANTA — It’s a diagnosis a 28-year-old Georgia resident, who didn’t want to be identified, says he’s still wrapping his head around.
“I couldn’t believe I got it,” he said.
He spoke to Channel 2 Action News’s Ashli Lincoln exclusively through Zoom after being diagnosed with the monkeypox virus by doctors at Emory.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
“Now I’m here, and now I have to get treated,” he said.
He says he suspects he got the virus from his job at Six Flags Over Georgia.
“It’s just the fact that there are a lot of people that work there. There are a lot of guests that come in and out of the park every day that we operate,” he said.
Chanel 2 confirmed the man is, in fact, an employee with Six Flags Over Georgia.
TRENDING STORIES:
He says the park has done a great job with sanitizing in recent months, but he suspects he touched a surface or object after a co-worker who appeared to have the monkeypox virus.
“On the back side of his neck, you can see it. I didn’t touch him. I was just walking next to him; I was near him. Is it that contagious? Is it on surfaces? Like, where is it?” he said.
Latest numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal 851 confirmed cases in the state of Georgia.
As the numbers continue to climb, hundreds are lining up at vaccination events across the metro area.
This week, U.S. health officials announced that they’d be stretching the nation’s limited supply of the monkeypox vaccine by giving people just one-fifth of the full dose. Doing this would expand the 440,000 available full doses to more than 2 million smaller doses.
“It is itchy, and they told me not to scratch. I can’t scratch,” said the Six Flags employee.
The Six Flags employee says he’s in the process of alerting management. The amusement park sent us a statement Friday afternoon saying they’re unaware of any confirmed monkeypox cases.
The state’s Department of Health says 90% of the cases are contracted through skin-to-skin contact.
However, the CDC says the virus can spread through fabrics and objects after touching these items behind an infected person.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
IN OTHER NEWS:
Metro Atlanta woman paid woman $24K in tax returns, only to have it immediately stolen
For those who starve themselves to cut calories but still don’t see results — you’re not alone.
Researchers at the University of Ottowa have identified a separate group of obese people who are especially resistant to losing weight through dietary changes alone, according to a report published on Wednesday in The Lancet’s eBioMedicine journal.
The findings contradict a long-held belief that diet alone is enough to bring about significant weight loss, with exercise added as a supplemental treatment to help boost the benefits of healthy eating.
“If you look at a large group of people who are overweight and trying to lose weight, they don’t respond to exercise very much. But now we’ve found that people in this [diet-resistant] obesity phenotype really do,” said endocrinologist Dr. Robert Dent, who collaborated with Ottowa colleagues Drs. Mary-Ellen Harper, Chantal Pileggi and Ruth McPhereson on the study.
“What the findings are telling us is that when we see individuals with obesity who don’t respond to dietary restriction, they should be shunted over to physical activity,” Dent explained in a statement for the university’s newsroom.
Those considered to have “diet-resistant” obesity fall in the bottom 20% for the rate of weight loss while following a low-calorie diet. Those are the folks for whom exercise should be prioritized, the doctors argue.
Based on clinical records from more than 5,000 patients, 20 such women were asked to participate in a workout regimen designed to analyze changes in skeletal muscle metabolism — one critical indicator of health in metabolic patients.
Fat metabolism in the skeletal muscle is regulated by the mitochondria, and those with “diet-resistant” obesity show lower mitochondrial activity in their bones than those with “diet-sensitive” obesity, according to the researchers.
Participants were put through a total of 18 workout sessions, three times a week for six weeks, involving treadmills and weightlifting.
For the group already at a mitochondrial disadvantage, exercise was shown to boost activity in the skeletal muscle, while those with comparably higher mitochondrial activity at the start of the experiment saw no added benefits in that regard.
For decades, “diet-resistant” patients have been accused of failing to adhere to a low-calorie meal plan, based on a lack of pounds shed. Now, researchers hope their new approach will lead to more tailored care.
“It’s exciting and important work. These findings have clinical implications and reveal molecular mechanisms that will drive research for many years to come,” said Harper, whose team hopes to soon relaunch their study with an even larger cohort.
Obesity has been called an epidemic here in the US, where more than a third of adults (41.9%) age 20 and older weigh too much, according to Centers for Disease Control statistics. Add overweight adults who fall just short of clinical obesity and the percentage rises to a staggering three-quarters (73.6%).
The consequences of carrying too much weight are high — with an increased risk for developing deadly and debilitating diseases across the board, including diabetes, heart disease, musculoskeletal disorders and several types of cancer. The condition is also known to weaken the immune system, which makes overweight people more susceptible to illnesses, such as COVID-19.
“For those individuals who have obesity and who’ve had enormous difficulty losing weight, the message for them is: You are in a group of individuals for whom exercise is particularly important,” McPhereson added. “And that’s really going to help you lose weight.”
Every time you peel a banana and dispose of the skin, you’re throwing away a tasty, nutritious snack.
A recent study has shown if banana peels are blanched, dried, and ground into a flour, they can be turned into baked goods that taste just as nice, if not better than wheat-based products.
Unless you’re a devoted reader of vegan cooking blogs or a Nigella Lawson fan, you’ve probably never considered cooking with a banana peel. But not only is it perfectly safe, but scientists also demonstrated it really is good for you.
When their experiments products were taste-tested, consumers reported they were just as happy with the flavors as they were with peel-free sugar cookies.
You’ll even get a generous helping of minerals and cancer-fighting nutrients. Enriched with banana peels, for instance, the sugar cookies made in the study contained much more fiber, magnesium, potassium, and antioxidant compounds.
On the downside, adding too much banana peel flour did result in cookies that were somewhat brown and hard, possibly from all the extra fiber. But when batches were made with flour containing 7.5 percent banana peel, the texture of the cookies hit a far more appealing balance.
As a bonus, the goods also kept well on the shell for three months at room temperature.
While the study only looked at the consequences of adding banana peels to baked cookies, the results suggest using banana peel flour in breads, cakes, and pasta might also be worth considering.
Last year, for instance, a study on banana peel cake found the yellow skin of the fruit provides a natural food color to the baked product as well as a nutritional boost.
A 2016 study, meanwhile, found that substituting up to 10 percent of wheat flour with banana peel flour can enrich baked bread with higher protein, carbohydrate, and fat contents.
Not into baking? Nigella Lawson has used banana peels in curry, and vegan bloggers have recently popularized the idea of banana peel bacon and pulled peel ‘pork’.
Eating the skin of this fruit isn’t just a healthy option, it can help reduce food waste. Around 40 percent of a banana’s weight is in its peel, and most of the time, this nutrition-packed skin is simply thrown away.
Sure, banana peels are pretty useless when raw. But if they are prepared right, they can actually taste pretty darn good. They can possibly even extend the shelf life of some products as the peels have antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.
The same goes for other fruit peels, too, like mango skin, which was also found to boost a cake’s antioxidant properties and improve its flavor.
So the next time you strip down a banana for the fruit inside, consider keeping the skin. Your belly might thank you later.
The study was published in ACS Food Science & Technology.
