Inflammaging: Yet Another Good Reason to Work on Biome Health

Inflammaging = age related chronic inflammation.  It’s become a really hot word – and it sums up a lot of new findings lately.

This week, the big excitement is study just published in Frontiers in Immunology.[i]  Researchers in the Netherlands transplanted gut bacteria from young and old mice into young, germ-free mice, and measured immune responses in various organs, including the spleen, lymph nodes and small intestinal tissue.  The  results showed an immune response to bacteria transferred from the old mice only.

“The results suggest that an imbalance of the bacterial composition in the gut may be the cause of inflammaging in the elderly. Imbalances or “dysbiosis” of gut bacteria results in “bad” bacteria being more dominant than “good” bacteria. An overgrowth of bad bacteria can make the lining of the gut become more permeable, allowing toxins to enter the bloodstream where they can travel around the body with various negative effects. Dysbiosis can have serious health implications: several disorders, such as inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, anxiety and autism are already linked to the condition.”

The researchers conclude that even though this study was in mice, “…it is clear that maintaining a healthy gut microbiota is key to a healthy lifestyle.”

In related news, new research also shows that inflammation in our 40s and 50s may be linked to increased brain shrinkage later in life leading to dementia.[ii]  How’s this for a scary statistic: by 2050, 1 in 85 people on the earth may have dementia.

Seems like some dramatic biome remedying solutions are needed in a hurry.

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[i] https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-11/f-nlf103117.php

[ii] https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/319938.php