Immunity Health News

It’s not just that they didn’t eat Twinkies and Cheetos.

Hunter-gatherers ate a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, roots, beans, nuts, tubers, pollen and even flowers rich in antioxidants, phytochemicals, vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre. Some researchers believe that the early humans ate up to 100 different varieties of plants and it’s estimated that their vitamin C intake was about 600mg per day (about 10 times more than the present-day recommended intake). Also, the meat that formed part of the palaeontological diet differed from modern meat because it was low in fat and cholesterol.

In contrast, The everyday diets we follow are much more monotonous and restricted than those of our forefathers. Modern diets are high in energy, low in micronutrients, high in fat and sugar, have a high GI and a low fibre content.

Considering our genetic makeup hasn’t changed much in that time, it’s no wonder so many of us are sick!

Read more.

The days of the peanut allergy may be numbered.

Researchers at Britain’s Institute of Food Research have identified a missing molecule — interleukin-12 – which may be responsible for preventing food allergies.

The dendritic cells of mice bred to be allergic to peanuts did not produce this molecule.

If an allergen such as a peanut were taken alongside the Interleukin-12, Dr Nicoletti said that the allergic reactions might be brought under control.

Read more.

Recent research out of Spain has shown that resistant starch gave pigs healthier bowels. No surprise there. But what did surprise them was a general decrease in the pigs’ white blood cell levels, in particular those of the leucocytes and lymphocytes in their blood. White blood cells are produced as a result of inflammation or disease, generally when the body is challenged.

The general down-regulation of leucocytes observed by the Spanish researchers suggests an overall beneficial effect, a generally more healthy body, according to immunology expert Lena Ohman at the Department of Internal Medicine, Göteborg University, Sweden.

Read the whole article.

Well, we’re always on the lookout for that magical combination of just the right diet to make us live to 100. Here is just such a list, courtesy of realmuscleonline.com:

1. Garlic — for sulfur compounds which block enzymes that allow bad bacteria to take over otherwise healthy tissue.

2. Eggs — for zinc and iron (as well as protein and B vitamins) which are important for healthy immune function.

3. Mushrooms — which help in the production of white blood cells.

4. Green tea — full of those wonderful antioxidants and flavanoids.

5. Tomatoes — for vitamin C, beta carotene and folate.

In short, one omelet a day with a side of green tea ought to keep your engine running!

Earlier, I had linked to a blog outlining the 29 healthiest foods, but only Part I was available then.

Now you can read Part II and Part III

Apparently some of the foods are no longer available — the list has been amended to 26!

Here is an interesting blog post about the health claims of food companies, in particular those with products like yogourt claiming to have “probiotic” properties. In light of the increasing notoriety of probiotics, it’s not surprising that companies are trying to capitalize on the public’s buying trends, even if their claims may be misleading or fallacious.

This is why I’m such a big proponent of empirical testing as opposed to anecdotal or “traditional” evidence for product efficacy.

Interleukin-18 is a protein which plays an active part of the immune system.

A team led by Eric Zorrilla, an assistant professor at The Scripps Research Institute in San Diego was studying the protein when they noticed that something unusual occurred in mice genetically engineered to lack the protein.

The mice got fat.

Mice without the protein overate and became fatter than the other mice, the researchers found.

Read the whole article.

Take a look at this blog entry on detox diets.

Specifically, it outlines how these extreme diets result in vitamin deficiency, a depressed immune system and muscle tissue breakdown, among other things.

This is in addition to the fact that the more you diet, the more your metabolism slows down and makes it easier to put on weight, harder to take it off. This can become a destructive spiral of dieting and putting the weight back on. Diets are rarely a long term fix.