Introduction…

Mammalian Bacterium, what a name… sounds like it could be an epic film title? Or maybe a famous warrior written into the pages of history? Could even be a person of great importance in the Roman Senate from the times of Spartacus? Or maybe just a made-up character from Harry Potter?

In truth, they are both Latin words and, in modern terms, they simply translate as, mammal (of the breast) and bacteria, this being the plural. Maybe you can understand that written like this, for me, they didn’t inspire a title. However, there is nothing simple about them.

Standalone, each is a complex, powerful source of life, but in unison, working together, along with other factors that I will cover shortly, they will surely out rank all those mentioned in the opening paragraph and beyond.

The Background…

For many years, I have been interested in nutrition and exercise. After lots of self-taught study, I completed a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Human Nutrition, and a Master of Science (MSc) in Human Nutrition and Exercise.

Since graduating, I have been doing a lot of scientific ghost writing (uncredited work). Over time, part of this work has seen me trawling through stacks of scientific research papers and studies. It was here I first became immersed and then blown away by the relationship between the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and its inhabitants, this being the gut bacteria (microbiota), but it didn’t end there.

New technology in laboratories, and I mean new as in over the last decade, coupled with the previous decades of unexplained theories around the subjects, is allowing the very fine details of how we interact with, not only the gut bacteria, but also those other factors I said I would cover. These being, human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs), Short chain fatty acids, oxidant to antioxidant balance, and how together they are the path to good health.

Let’s Begin…

Living things, which were termed 'animalcules', were first discovered in human stools as far back as the mid-1600s by Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek. However, it would take around another 150 years before the name ‘bacteria’ was bestowed. Yet, apart from small amounts of research, due to this better technology, it’s only recently that research has increased.

What is this Research Saying and Why is it Exciting?

For millennia, humans have suffered. As we are born, we grow and learn that death will happen, then, if we are lucky, we ignore it for years until it comes knocking at a loved ones or our door.

In the interim, we face a barrage of allergies, ailments, physical and mental illness, disease, and ultimately, pain. To combat this, we rely on antidotes from old wives’ tales or medicine from many other science-based research. Yet we have an innate pre-programmed defence system that can sustain us through so many conditions, but unfortunately due to many of us being unaware of its requirements to function at its optimum level, we suffer.
 

The Gut Microbiota and Human Milk Oligosaccharides…

The following is a fascinating, fantastic order of inspired events. In fact, just as I did at the beginning, I still find it captivating, it is genius.

As we enter the world and come through the birthing canal and the vagina, we receive a showering of mum’s microbes, the first important set of bacteria needed to initiate bacterial growth and protection. Kids born by Caesarean section (C-section) will miss this. However, some hospitals and birthing centres are now swabbing from mum to baby after the operation. Additionally, there are ways to encourage and establish the essential microbiome.

Once we are out, our mothers’ milk is stimulated. Here, she delivers colostrum, the first milk. This first milk is packed with everything we need, including the third most abundant part of the formula which is, human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) a very important set of glycans (sugars). These HMOs feed the set of microbes we received from mum, in particular a few strains of the Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species. These probiotics are a main player and termed, good bacteria.

From here, it must be like a race to build their abundance as they will keep order of all within the microorganism world. But there must be the right balance. These important and much needed what are termed "good bacteria" must be the majority.

By now, there are several other bacteria striving to grow, some of which we need for certain duties, but they need to be in the right abundance, not the majority as this could mean they become pathogenic (disease causing).

Whilst this busy growth race is taking place, the HMOs are performing another role, where they can interact with the intestinal mucosa. These intestinal epithelial cells are a lining that surrounds the surface of our digestive canals and organs, they are an important part of our immune system development.

This interaction sees the HMOs, surround the mucosal and epithelial cells, basically protecting them. This protection renders what could be bad bacteria unable to attach and set up camp. The fewer places there are for these potential pathogens to set up camp, the less there will be of them. It is almost simple maths.

This whole process continues until we have balance, giving us an element of combat against disease. Unfortunately, we can be equipped with the perfect balance but as we move through life, we must negotiate many obstacles that can knock our internal eco system out of balance.

If we end up with our bacteria out of balance, which is termed dysbiosis, we begin to see the emergence of ailments through to chronic disease, simply because those potential pathogens have amassed in abundance and come to fruition, or we are simply not producing what we need for protection. There is an analogy after the next section that will hopefully explain how an overgrowth works.

The several ways in which we can disrupt this balance, we will cover shortly, but for now let’s just take a peep at one.

How Did We Distort this Element of Combat?

The TV has given lots of airtime to gut bacteria with adverts promoting live cultured yogurt drinks and the alike. But how about the adverts regarding antibiotics? Ever wondered about the dying capsules? Well, they represent us.

The discovery of antibiotics was ground-breaking, enabling the cure of many bacterial infections. Unfortunately, antibiotics wipe out good as well as bad bacteria leaving us almost zeroed out.

With the right diet, it should take around three to six months to reinstate the balanced gut flora, but here is the conundrum. Some bacteria can be resistant to antibiotics via a process called biofilm.

This enables them to survive the antibiotic onslaught. So, while you are busy trying to build good species like, Bifidobacteria, and Lactobacilli, you could already be in a state of dysbiosis as, species of pathogenic (disease causing) bacteria have already established themselves.

Or super bugs, like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or Clostridioides difficile (formerly Clostridium Difficile) amongst others, are swelling in dangerous numbers and ultimately take over. Consequently, we enter dysbiosis.

MRSA is well publicised, but Clostridioides difficile Infection (CDI) is the most common cause of hospital-acquired diarrhoea. The infection advances in stages, these are, transmission, germination and then the production of toxins. These toxins will then attack the colonic epithelium resulting in symptoms from slight diarrhoea to perforation of the colon and even death. In many cases of this disease, the opportunity has arisen following antibiotic treatment. You could go into hospital for something very trivial and come out in a box, it is that serious. 

So, through no fault of our own, in fact through our need for remedy and our ignorance to our own inner worlds, we have disrupted this essential element of combat.

CDI and MRSA are very matter of fact diseases; cop for either and you have a battle on your hands. They have been identified, and current research is looking for new ways to fight them. These are not the only diseases dysbiosis can trigger. The next paragraph opens just how dangerous these pathogens are, and it’s pretty staggering. 

A New Direction…

There are many ways in which we can knock our gut microbiota out of balance, such as, antibiotics, illness, stress, bad habits, and diet choices. There will also inevitably be some of us that didn’t have a great start from the get-go regarding our birth pattern and neonate feeding.

Research into dysbiosis is being carried out, looking into the connection with many chronic diseases such as, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, allergic disorders, type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, autism, colorectal cancer, heart disease, obesity, hypertension, osteoarthritis, mental illness, depression, and dementia. The list is growing, and it has illuminated amazing information around this subject. The good news is, it has been shown that resetting and maintaining a healthy balance can, in some cases, help reverse or undo some of the mess. In doing so, it could help to reduce our risk of future chronic disease, but reset isn’t just a case of banging in loads of good bacteria.

The science has to date listed 200 characters within the HMOs cohort, and amongst others that do other jobs, they have identified two that are of interest regarding resetting the gut. These are 2′-fucosyllactose (2′-FL) and Lacto-N-neotetraose (LNnT). Supplementation trials are what’s causing the excitement, not only for children but also for adults. Before we move on, I would like to say, if all 200 HMOs have a powerful role regarding each area of our health, just think of the possibilities. Here’s an analogy of how it works.

Imagine you had a building consisting of many rooms, (your body), that had just been built. In this building, there was a main room, (your gut), packed full of chairs, (your gut cells), and on each of those you have nice people, (good bacteria). These nice people take care of the rest of the building. This is because all the materials (nutrients) needed to maintain the building come through the room with all the chairs and filter through each row, the nice people sat on each chair, make sure the right materials get to the right room of the building.

There are some grumpy people, (potential bad bacteria) in these other rooms. They carry out their jobs correctly, they may have a little moan, but as they are in small numbers, they are kept in check. They just get on with it, and any repairs that are carried out are done so with the right material.

One day a major flood, (anything that causes dysbiosis), comes through the building and washes all the nice people and some of the grumpy people away. But not all the grumpy people are taken, some of the grumpy people hid in rooms that the water couldn't get into, so they were saved. They were resistant to the flood.

As the flood subsides, these grumpy people are now free, this freedom allows them to replicate. In abundance, they now rush into the chair room and sit on all the chairs. As there are so many of them, they now become nasty people, (pathogenic bacteria). Just the same as when the nice people were on the chairs, all the materials needed to maintain the building still come through that room. The nasty people damage the materials before they are taken to other rooms. When the materials get to the room they were intended for, they are distorted and don’t fit where they need to be (inflammation). Slowly, all the rooms fall into disrepair, (chronic illness).

Every 7 days all the chairs are replaced, but, as the room is full of nasty people, even though the chair renews, it continues to be occupied by a nasty person.

With so many together, these nasty people can cause lots of damage. Every day you send in thousands of nice people (probiotics, good bacteria) who you really want to sit on those chairs. Well, if they could get in the room, they may have a chance, but it’s packed, so they can’t even get in the room let alone on a chair.

In this situation the only way to get each of these nice people in, is to send in something stronger than the nasty people, like a group of bouncers (HMOs). These bouncers stop the nasty people getting on the new chairs and basically force them out with the old chair (cells as they die off). As the chair is replaced, a nice person sits on it.

After time there should potentially be a room packed with new chairs (cells) and on each chair is a nice person (good bacteria). After weeks of cleaning up, as the new repair materials are sent in and distributed which now fit where they should. Then finally the building gets restored (out of dysbiosis).

Studies are showing that we can get back what was initially our first point of protection and maybe extend the amount of time we get of a pain free life. Who knows? Maybe even extend our years on this beautiful planet, or even better, as some of the research is showing, we can reverse some already established health conditions.

From the information out there, getting the balance back is the way to go. Many of us in the western world will have had antibiotics. Have you ever thought about rebuilding your gut microbiota? If you are like me, then it’s a no. Maybe you have intolerance to some foods? Maybe a bit of discomfort or bloating after eating? Maybe some pain? Maybe sluggish bowel movements? Maybe you put it down to overindulgence? But maybe it’s just dysbiosis?

This is new science - mainly because we now have the technology. Some may think if this were true, surely the doctors would know and be prescribing it? Just as a heads up, some are, and the more research continues to display amazing results, the more will be prescribing, but this could take years. My plan is to get the information out and get the ball rolling for people now.

Some people who are not currently ill, or in discomfort, may well think there is no point, I’d say give it a go, you may just be tolerating something mild that could flare up as you age.

There is also the chance that certain foods you currently cannot eat because of the aftermath, could become comfortably edible.

For those already experiencing pain and discomfort, there will be a chance of evidence through the improvement of symptoms.

The More Research the More the Chance of Better Health…

Many illnesses and ailments are already under research and who knows where this will lead. I myself although not partaking in the research, will be offering up as much (with regards to results) as I can lay my hands on.

So, if you know someone with any health issues, and the list could well be endless, as I just don’t know where the research will take us, please forward this series to them as you never know, it could be of benefit.

So, I Put It to The Test…

I have been so enthralled by what I have read, that rather than just spouting about it, I have put it to the test. As you read the passages of this work, I hope my passion for the subject will sing out, but I thought it would be good if I could prove it, chapter and verse, to myself, do a bit of a Dr Jekyll.

In 2021, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes not long after my first covid jab. Since then, diabetes has affected different parts of my body, sometimes with quite substantial pain. This was mainly in my right foot, accompanied with swelling. I also had both large toenails detach, and a couple of my fingernails began to ripple. After a year or so, it got to the point where I felt as though my foot was dying and didn’t belong to me, a very strange feeling.

I had been suffering from trigger finger for three years on my right hand and around two years on my left with both middle fingers being badly affected. Trigger finger is where the fingers get stuck in a sometimes very painful position, this is due to the tendon not sliding through the sheath.

So, in 2022, I began taking a supplementation course of HMOs, probiotics, and high antioxidants products, I had devised according to what I had read in many studies. This was to aid the building and reinforcement of my gut bacteria, and to get myself out of dysbiosis, which I presumed I must be in as I have had lots of antibiotics over the years and never thought about proactively replenishing the good bacteria.

The Results So Far…

• Within two weeks my trigger finger on both hands was free of locking and pain. However, there was still tightness around the area.
• In the same two-week timeframe, the swelling in my foot had reduced, the feeling that it didn’t belong to me disappeared, and the pain was no longer there.

As the weeks progressed:

• My joints that felt worn and uncomfortable became more supple.
• I appeared leaner as excess weight seemed to disappear.
• I generally feel I have much more energy, almost like I could run and run.

I am still, to say the least, shocked, at my early results, it’s been pretty liberating. But then my head was like, ok let’s go further and make sure this isn’t a fluke. 

So, I Went About Getting Further Evidence

I worked to build a compilation of 24 case studies and testimonials. These consisted of people, who firstly were in presumed dysbiosis with some form of health complaint. The results of some are displayed within the Nutrition and Exercise Counsel section of the website.

Part 1 Complete

So that’s it, the first part of the series is complete and out there. I hope you have found some of the material intriguing. If so, please join me on Part 2, where we will begin to delve deeper into the world of the gut microbiota.
 

And lastly, if all goes to plan, through additional results from further work with clients, the case studies, and testimonials, we can all determine if we really are standing on the edge of the new world.

 Written by Nu-Tee.

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