Clinical Nutrition Highlights

 Clinical Nutrition Meeting Insights

The following are some insights into nerve issues and nutrition from the recent yearly clinical nutrition meeting:

Depression:

A mouse model of depression found that some of the most common blue-red polyphenols decreased the symptoms of depression in mice induced by LPS-- lipopolsaccharides, substances which build up in the digestive tract on diets high in processed foods. LPS are very inflammatory. Polyphenols decreased brain inflammation in the hippocampus, calmed the nerves and promoted improved nerve health. The hippocampus is a key part of the brain associated with learning, memory and emotion. Supplements rich in polyphenols such as NeoLife Tre may be helpful in warding off depression when we are not eating the way we should.

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acschemneuro.2c00087

The Vagus Nerve:

Several speakers at the conference pointed out that the vagus nerve connects the gut or digestive tract with the brain. The gut has so many neurons that it has been called the body's second brain. Due to the vagal nerve superhighway between gut and brain what goes on in one can have profound effects on the other. Abnormalites in gut function are common in many neurological conditions such as autism and ADHD.

Parasites:

American medicine give little attention to parasites but addressing them is sometimes helpful in addressing brain and nerve problems. Dr. Emily Gutierrez shared research on which compounds were the most helpful in dealing with common parasites. At the top of the list for bacteria were garlic and pumpkin seeds, and ivermectin. Most helpful for yeast was capryllic acid, nystatin, and grapefruit seeds.

SALMAN, S. S.; ARDALAN, N. M. Evaluation of Amygdalin (B17) and Cucurbita pepo (Pumpkin seed) Activity Against Blastocystis from Diarrheic Patients in Baghdad, Iraq: in Vitro Study. Plant compounds: • Allium sativum L. displayed high efficacy as a potential therapeutic agent against Cryptosporidium (mouse model) • Amygdalin (B17, plant compound from apricot seed) and cucurbita pepo (pumpkin seed) effective against blastocystis (in vitro)

Alyaa Farid, Mona Yousry, Gehan Safwat, Garlic (Allium sativum Linnaeus) improved inflammation and reduced cryptosporidiosis burden in immunocompromised mice,Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Volume292,2022,115174,ISSN 0378- 8741,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2022.115174.\

Weed, Seed, and Grow:

Promoting growth of beneficial organisms in the digestive tract of one of the most important things we can do to promote not only overall health, but also to help protect and nourish the nerves and brain.

Weeding refers to removing harmful bacteria and yeasts from the digestive tract as mentioned above.

Seeding refers to getting beneficial microbes in the digestive tract: pre and probiotic rich foods (fermented foods, garlic, asparagus, pickled vegetables, banana, honey, kefir, yogurt, onions.

Grow refers to generous intake of fibers to promote the growth of beneficial organisms: - fiber, both insoluble and soluble (apples, beans, legumes, nuts, seeds. A common mistake is to think there is only one type of fiber while there are many types and differing fibers have differing health benefits.