RRC Archives

You know how nutritional guidelines are always changing but the general health of the nation is just getting worse overall? Think it's just because of lazy people who sit on the couch eating Cheezy Poofs? Well, maybe some of it is, but not all.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/28/magaz ... f=magazine

This is long, but pretty well written, article about nutritional guidelines and where they come from and the factors that influence them. He's a bit anti-modernization in his recommendations, but maybe that's a good thing. Anyway, it's worth a read.

I read a report recently about a study that found obese people and slim people have a different bacterial flora in their guts. The interesting part was that when they injected the "fat" bacteria into mice, they got fat, but it didn't work the other way around. Makes you wonder if those bacteria are a random occurrence or if they are somehow acquired by or thrive off of certain diets.

Here's the link:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... Id=6654607

It's also interesting that most of the bacteria in the gut are actually in the large intestine while the small intestine is rather sterile. Also, most of the food absorbtion occurs in the small intestine. Kind of makes me think that the bacteria are reacting to something more than they're causing it.

marathon, aren't you in med school?

marathonmedic wrote:Kind of makes me think that the bacteria are reacting to something more than they're causing it.

I follow your logic, but the fact that the mice injected with fat bacteria got fatter indicates the relationship is more complex than that. It seems the bacteria themselves can have an influence on weight, at least temporarily.

yep, and I see your point.

correlation does not prove causation