At the Intersection of Health, Health Care and Policy Cite this article as: Joseph E. Scherger You Are What You Feed Your Gut Microbiome Health Affairs, 35, no.2 (2016):380 doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2016.0008
The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is available at: http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/35/2/380.2.full.html
For Reprints, Links & Permissions: http://healthaffairs.org/1340_reprints.php E-mail Alerts : http://content.healthaffairs.org/subscriptions/etoc.dtl To Subscribe: http://content.healthaffairs.org/subscriptions/online.shtml
Health Affairs is published monthly by Project HOPE at 7500 Old Georgetown Road, Suite 600, Bethesda, MD 20814-6133. Copyright © 2016 by Project HOPE - The People-to-People Health Foundation. As provided by United States copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code), no part of Health Affairs may be reproduced, displayed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or by information storage or retrieval systems, without prior written permission from the Publisher. All rights reserved.
Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution Downloaded from content.healthaffairs.org by Health Affairs on February 13, 2016 by guest
Letters There is a limit of 300 words for letters to the editor. Health Affairs reserves the right to edit all letters for clarity, length, and tone. Letters can be submitted by e-mail, [email protected], or the Health Affairs website, http:// www.healthaffairs.org.
doi:
10.1377/hlthaff.2016.0008
You Are What You Feed Your Gut Microbiome The November 2015 issue of Health Affairs on food and health is outstanding. Global public health issues and the role of both healthy and unhealthy foods are covered well. However, the gut microbiome was not addressed. There are 100 trillion microorganisms on and in the human body—ten times more than the number of cells. 1 Most of these microorganisms are in our gut, and they play a major role in health and the digestion of food. With the recent discovery of the gut-brain axis, it is clear that the health of our gut plays a major role in our mental health.2 The nature of the gut microbiome is wholly determined by the food we eat. Also recently discovered is the role of inflammatory proteins in certain grains and other food, which causes proteins to enter our circulatory system and trigger inflammation. Autoimmune diseases; many allergic reactions; and gastrointestinal dis-
380
Health Affairs
orders such as acid reflux, irritable bowel syndrome, and inflammatory bowel disease may be related to ingesting these proteins. 3 Daniel Lieberman states that many diseases and public health problems are due to a “mismatch” between the human body and the food people eat. 4 If emerging data bear the test of time and scientific scrutiny, the burden of disease caused by a new type of malnutrition may be staggering. Joseph E. Scherger Eisenhower Medical Center RANCHO MIRAGE , CALIFORNIA NOTES 1 NIH Human Microbiome Project [home page on the Internet]. Bethesda (MD): The Project; [cited 2015 Nov 30]. Available from: http://hmpdacc .org/ 2 Mayer EA, Tillisch K, Gupta A. Gut/brain axis and the microbiota. J Clin Invest. 2015;125(3): 926–38. 3 Perlmutter D with Loberg K. Brain maker: the power of gut microbes to heal and protect your brain—for life. New York (NY): Little, Brown and Company; 2015. 4 Lieberman DE. The story of the human body: evolution, health, and disease. New York (NY): Pantheon Books; 2013. p. 157.
F e b r u a ry 2 0 1 6
35:2
Downloaded from content.healthaffairs.org by Health Affairs on February 13, 2016 by guest
The online version of this article, along with updated information and services, is available at: http://content.healthaffairs.org/content/35/2/380.2.full.html
For Reprints, Links & Permissions: http://healthaffairs.org/1340_reprints.php E-mail Alerts : http://content.healthaffairs.org/subscriptions/etoc.dtl To Subscribe: http://content.healthaffairs.org/subscriptions/online.shtml
Health Affairs is published monthly by Project HOPE at 7500 Old Georgetown Road, Suite 600, Bethesda, MD 20814-6133. Copyright © 2016 by Project HOPE - The People-to-People Health Foundation. As provided by United States copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code), no part of Health Affairs may be reproduced, displayed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or by information storage or retrieval systems, without prior written permission from the Publisher. All rights reserved.
Not for commercial use or unauthorized distribution Downloaded from content.healthaffairs.org by Health Affairs on February 13, 2016 by guest
Letters There is a limit of 300 words for letters to the editor. Health Affairs reserves the right to edit all letters for clarity, length, and tone. Letters can be submitted by e-mail, [email protected], or the Health Affairs website, http:// www.healthaffairs.org.
doi:
10.1377/hlthaff.2016.0008
You Are What You Feed Your Gut Microbiome The November 2015 issue of Health Affairs on food and health is outstanding. Global public health issues and the role of both healthy and unhealthy foods are covered well. However, the gut microbiome was not addressed. There are 100 trillion microorganisms on and in the human body—ten times more than the number of cells. 1 Most of these microorganisms are in our gut, and they play a major role in health and the digestion of food. With the recent discovery of the gut-brain axis, it is clear that the health of our gut plays a major role in our mental health.2 The nature of the gut microbiome is wholly determined by the food we eat. Also recently discovered is the role of inflammatory proteins in certain grains and other food, which causes proteins to enter our circulatory system and trigger inflammation. Autoimmune diseases; many allergic reactions; and gastrointestinal dis-
380
Health Affairs
orders such as acid reflux, irritable bowel syndrome, and inflammatory bowel disease may be related to ingesting these proteins. 3 Daniel Lieberman states that many diseases and public health problems are due to a “mismatch” between the human body and the food people eat. 4 If emerging data bear the test of time and scientific scrutiny, the burden of disease caused by a new type of malnutrition may be staggering. Joseph E. Scherger Eisenhower Medical Center RANCHO MIRAGE , CALIFORNIA NOTES 1 NIH Human Microbiome Project [home page on the Internet]. Bethesda (MD): The Project; [cited 2015 Nov 30]. Available from: http://hmpdacc .org/ 2 Mayer EA, Tillisch K, Gupta A. Gut/brain axis and the microbiota. J Clin Invest. 2015;125(3): 926–38. 3 Perlmutter D with Loberg K. Brain maker: the power of gut microbes to heal and protect your brain—for life. New York (NY): Little, Brown and Company; 2015. 4 Lieberman DE. The story of the human body: evolution, health, and disease. New York (NY): Pantheon Books; 2013. p. 157.
F e b r u a ry 2 0 1 6
35:2
Downloaded from content.healthaffairs.org by Health Affairs on February 13, 2016 by guest
