Category Archives: science

I explained what happens in a healthy gut and the problems that occur in our bodies when our gut is damaged. What causes our gut to go from healthy to damaged? Unsurprisingly, it’s not just one factor.

Antibiotics

We’ve probably all been prescribed antibiotics at various times in our life.  We are also exposed to them through food.  Animals, poultry and farmed fish are routinely given antibiotics so our meat, milk, eggs etc. provide a constant supply of antibiotics and antibiotic resistant bacteria.  A lot of fruit and vegetables are also sprayed with antibiotics. As well as having a devastating effect on beneficial bacteria in our body antibiotics also:

• change benign bacteria, viruses and fungi, giving them the ability to invade tissues and cause disease.
• Change bacteria, making them resistant to antibiotics, so more and more powerful antibiotics have to be developed
• have a damaging effect on the immune system, making us more vulnerable to infections, which leads to a vicious cycle of more antibiotics and more infections.

Other Drugs

Most drugs, especially those used for long periods of time have a detrimental effect on gut flora.

• Pain killers (aspirin, ibuprofen etc.) stimulate growth of certain bacteria in the gut which are capable of causing disease.
• Steroids (like Prednisolone, hydrocortisone, betamethasone etc.) damage gut flora and in addition supress the immune system.
• The contraceptive pill has a devastating impact on gut flora, and since an new born baby acquires most of it’s gut flora from it’s mother this will be passed on to the child.
• Sleeping pills, heartburn pills and other types of drugs can all cause damage to the gut flora, digestive system and immune system.

Diet

What we eat has a direct effect on the composition of the gut flora.  This will be addressed further in future posts.

Disease

• Different infectious diseases, bacterial and viral,  can cause lasting damage to the gut flora.
• Chronic illnesses are often accompanied by serious defects in gut flora.
• Abnormal gut flora is also commonly seen after surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone therapy.

Stress

Short term stress has a detrimental effect on the gut flora, but it usually recovers well once the stressful situation is over.  However, long term stress (physical or psychological) can do lasting damage to the indigenous flora.

Other Factors

The following are also known to have an effect on our gut flora:

• Physical exertion,
• old age,
• alcoholism,
• pollution,
• exposure to toxins, radiation and extreme climates

What does this mean for CFS/ME sufferers?

Most of us have been exposed to most of these factors, and as such our gut flora will have been influenced, and will be unable to perform all the functions that it should.  By working to improve our gut flora, by following a good diet we can improve our situation, reduce many of our symptoms and improve our immune system.

I’ve explained what happens in a healthy gut .  Now it’s time to discuss what happens when our microbial gut lining is damaged.  The microbial lining of our gut performs so many important functions that when it is damaged there is a lot that can go wrong.

1. Without protection from the microbial lining the walls of the gut are open to attack from anything that comes along e.g viruses, funguses, bacteria, parasites, toxins.
2. These “invaders” can then enter gut cells and cause inflammation of the gut wall, leading to diarrhoea or constipation.
3. The gut wall becomes malnourished because the “good” bacteria are no longer present to digest food for the gut lining.
4. The gut cell renewal process becomes slower, the new cells that are produced tend to be less healthy and without protection from the bacterial lining they become abnormal.
5. The gut becomes unable to digest and absorb food properly, leading to mal-absorption, nutritional deficiencies and food intolerances.
6. Fibre (which in a healthy gut is beneficial) is not broken down by the good bacteria and provides a habitat for pathogenic bacteria and aggravates inflammation in the gut wall.
7. The immune system is compromised.  In people with damaged gut flora there are less lymphocytes (immune system cells).
8. Our gut becomes “leaky” and unscreened molecules can enter the bloodstream, travel around our body and cause damage and symptoms in other organs.  There is a good explanation of leaky gut and how it affects us here, I especially like the diagrams.  In a nutshell it can affect the liver, the immune system, cause inflammation (leading to pain), brain fog, lowered immune system and more.

In summary the damaged gut lining does not just affect our digestion, but can cause lots of other problems all round the body. Once again thank you to Dr Natasha Campbell-Mcbride for her book Gut and Psychology Syndrome, which helped me to understand what happens in our gut.

This post is going to get a bit technical about the biology of our guts.  I will attempt to explain what goes on in a healthy gut. My next post will explain what happens when our gut is not working properly (most people with CFS/ME have digestive problems – often diagnosed as Irritable Bowel Syndrome).  I share this information because I think it will help you to understand why I am following the diet that I am.

I credit Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride and her excellent book Gut and Psychology Syndrome for my understanding of this topic.  She is a practising doctor and her book is thoroughly researched, and includes a 17 page list of “selected” references.  Her explanations of what goes on in the gut and how this links to the brain were enlightening to me.

Microbes

Our gut is inhabited by millions of microbes, this is a symbiotic relationship where neither party can live without the other. Gut flora can be divided into 3 main types:

1. Essential or Beneficial Flora – the most numerous in a healthy individual and the most important group
2. Opportunistic Flora – in a healthy person their numbers are limited and tightly controlled by the beneficial bacteria
3. Transitional Flora -generally ingested with food.  In a healthy gut these pass through without doing any harm, but if the beneficial bacteria is damaged they can cause disease.

Natural Barrier

The whole length of our digestive tract is coated with bacteria, providing a natural barrier against undigested food, toxins, parasites and pathenogenic micro organisms we ingest.  If this protective barrier gets damaged, the gut wall suffers.

Our bacterial barrier can produce anti-biotic, anti-viral and anti-fungal like substances and they can engage the immune system to fight invaders.  They also produce acid ensuring the pH near the wall of the gut is very uncomfortable for “bad” microbes.

Our indigenous gut flora is also good at neutralizing the toxins produced by pathogenic microbes and that we ingest with food.

Digestion and Absorption

The healthy flora on the gut wall are designed to take an active role in digestion and absorption.  They can digest proteins, ferment carbohydrates and break down lipids (fats) and fibre.  By products of bacterial activity in the gut are very important in transporting minerals, vitamins, water, gases and many other nutrients through the gut wall into the bloodstream.

Providing Nourishment

Healthy gut flora provide a major source of energy and nourishment for the cells lining the digestive tract.  The bacteria digest the food converting it into useful, nourishing substances for the gut lining.  It is estimated that the gut lining gets 60-70% of its energy from bacterial activity.

Our bacteria also produce various nutrients and vitamins, namely vitamin K, pantothenic acid, folic acid. Vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6 and B12, as well as some amino acids.

Renewal of Cells

Cells in the gut lining have to work very hard digesting food, and hence need to be young and in good shape.  The gut is constantly producing new cells and shedding old cells in a process of renewal.

Fibre

Fibre cannot be digested by a human gut without the help of beneficial bacteria.  In a healthy gut fibre is broken down by bacteria to provide nutrients which feed the gut wall and the rest of the body.  They also activate the fibre to take part in water and elecrolytes metabolism, recyle bile acids and cholesterol and other stuff.

Phew!

If you’ve made it this far – congratulations, especially if you have CFS/ME.  I normally try and keep my posts quite short so they’re not too taxing for those with brain fog, but every so often I feel the need to write a more in depth post.

As you can see our guts (and the bacteria residing there) provide many essential functions, so if we want to improve our health then they are a key part of the equation.  In my next post I will attempt to explain what happens when our gut is damaged.