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It has been known for some time by scientists that variations in food intake lead to various different gut floras. However, that theory had only been tested on mice…Until now. Lawrence David, assistant professor at the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, led an experiment that resulted in the discovery that different foods not only lead to different bacteria, but the bacteria themselves experience gene variations. Although the discovery itself is truly amazing, the celerity at which the changes occur is the most impressive. University of Chicago’s professor of medicine Eugene Chang specializes in gastroenterology originally thought the changes would take months or even years but the study showed that the changes started to take place within a couple of hours. There were also changes in the amount of bile acid secreted into the stomach and that microorganisms native to cheeses and cured meats were stronger against this. The real question is “Why is this relevant?” To Chang, the first is evolutionary. Ancient humans who experienced rapid dietary changes could successfully switch from nuts and berries to meat with little gastric distress and maximum absorption of nutrients from even the most unrecognizable foods. The second is the effects of diet on certain diseases. Chang, who has been leading a research team to discover the connection between B. wadsworthia and colitis in mice is yet to apply these tendencies to humans. However, he believes there could be a connection. His experiments show just how sensitive the body is to dietary change. Dramatic changes in ones diet could lead to a brief exposure to harmful diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease. The experiments are difficult to conduct however because according to David, it’s hard to find even 10 people willing to dramatically change their diets for science.
original article: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-guts-microbiome-changes-diet/
similar article on the gut micro biome: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/290747.php
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