Vinegar, one of the most commonly used ingredients, may have another purpose as well: fighting ulcerative colitis. Researchers, who published their findings in the American Chemical Society’s Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, found that vinegar suppressed inflammation-inducing proteins while improving the gut’s bacterial makeup in mice. Ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease, is a… Continue reading Vinegar Could Help Fight a Chronic Disease
Tag: bacteria
A Test for Whether Antibiotics Are Needed
Researchers at Duke Health are fine-tuning a test that can determine whether a respiratory illness is caused by infection from a virus or bacteria so that antibiotics can be more precisely prescribed. A release from Duke reports that the team of infectious disease and genomics experts has developed what they call gene signatures, patterns that… Continue reading A Test for Whether Antibiotics Are Needed
The Best and Worst Halloween Treats for Your Teeth
Halloween is fast approaching and that means time for trick-or-treating and lots of candy for both kids + grownups. But that yummy candy can bring about problems for our teeth – from tooth decay to eroding enamel. Author Dr. Susan Maples, writes in her book if you do it right, Halloween can still be lots of… Continue reading The Best and Worst Halloween Treats for Your Teeth
Intestinal Bacteria Could Be Clue to Aging
Analyzing intestinal bacteria may help predict health outcomes of aging people – and lead to treatments that could help delay physical decline. Researchers from UCLA discovered changes within intestinal microbes that precede and predict the death of fruit flies. The findings were published in the journal Cell Reports. “Age-onset decline is very tightly linked to… Continue reading Intestinal Bacteria Could Be Clue to Aging
Better Treatment for Listeria?
Researchers have discovered that the pathogen Listeria monocytogenes grows on refrigerated smoked salmon via a different pathway than had been known to do in the laboratory. The research could lead to reduced incidences of food-borne illness and death, said principal investigator Teresa Bergholz, PhD., of North Dakota State University, Fargo. The study appears July 24… Continue reading Better Treatment for Listeria?
A New Culprit in Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Researchers from Washington University in St. Louis have made a discovery that could lead to better treatment for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The illness affects 1.6 million people in the United States, causing abdominal pain, diarrhea, constipation, rectal bleeding and other potentially debilitating symptoms. Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis are the most common forms of… Continue reading A New Culprit in Inflammatory Bowel Disease
New Life for Traditional Antibiotics
“First-line” antibiotics could be brought back to fight against the increasing number of drug-resistant pathogens, according to a new study. A computer simulation created by Hannah Meredith, a biomedical engineering graduate fellow at Duke University, revealed that a regimen based on a pathogen’s recovery time could eliminate an otherwise resistant strain of bacteria. In theory,… Continue reading New Life for Traditional Antibiotics
Could Your Dental Habits Use A Spring Cleaning?
If you have some questions about what might be best when it comes to keeping your mouth healthy and smiling, you’re not alone. According to the national DentalPlans’ Annual SmileIndex Survey, people have many misconceptions about what is and isn’t healthy for our teeth and gums.Keeping good dental habits is one of the easiest ways… Continue reading Could Your Dental Habits Use A Spring Cleaning?
The Protein That Zaps Toxins
Researchers from Ohio State have discovered how a small protein in the immune system can disable dangerous bacterial toxins. The toxins have surfaces that help the bacteria to stay alive. At the same time, though, the pliability of the surfaces make the toxins vulnerable to the immune-system proteins called defensins. Defensins, peptides that consist of… Continue reading The Protein That Zaps Toxins
Surprise! Fat Cells Below the Skin Protect Us from Sepsis
In a paper published in the January 2nd 2015 issue of Science, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report the surprising discovery that fat cells below the skin help protect us from bacteria. Richard Gallo, MD, PhD, professor and chief of dermatology at UC San Diego School of Medicine and… Continue reading Surprise! Fat Cells Below the Skin Protect Us from Sepsis
Public Restrooms: Not as Unhealthy as You Might Think
Research done at San Diego State University found that public restrooms are no more healthy or unhealthy than the bathroom in your own home. The study was published online ahead of print in December 2014 in “Applied and Environmental Microbiology”. A release from the American Society of Microbiology explains that microbial succession in a sterilized… Continue reading Public Restrooms: Not as Unhealthy as You Might Think
Need to Know: Pink Eye
Although pink eye, or conjunctivitis, affects some very delicate areas of your eye, it’s one of the most treatable eye conditions. Here, the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) shares what you need to know about pink eye: its symptoms, how to prevent it, and when you should seek treatment. WHAT IS PINK EYE? An… Continue reading Need to Know: Pink Eye