Archives for June 2022

The Intestinal Flora – The Unknown Organ

June 26, 2022 by Esther Neumann - [rt_reading_time label="Reading Time:" postfix="minutes" postfix_singular="minute"]

Did you know that our body accommodates about 10 times as many bacteria as body cells? A large part is in the colon and forms the intestinal flora, which handles a wide range of tasks for our body. They help with food absorption, strengthen the immune system and promote peristalsis.

The Intestinal Flora – The Unknown Organ

Cows and humans have one thing in common: they are home to countless other inhabitants, microorganisms and bacteria. Just the time at which these microorganisms do their work is very different in cows and humans.

In the cow, the breakdown of cellulose and other polysaccharides takes place in the forestomach. Short-chain fatty acids are formed in the process. In humans, the bacteria mainly really work in the colon. Again short-chain fatty acids are formed. The work of these microorganisms is extremely important for the health of cows and humans alike.

The 10¹³ cells of the human body are opposed to 10¹⁴ bacteria in the human ecosystem, that means 10 times more bacteria than body cells. There are far more of them living in the large intestine than in the small intestine. Around 1,000 different species and strains make up the intestinal flora, that can vary greatly from person to person. It is still unknown how, once destroyed briefly by antibiotics or during colonoscopy, they manage to rebuild so quickly into a new colony.

Actually, the term “flora” is not quite correct. Flora means plant kingdom. The phrase was coined in the time when bacteria were still considered plants. Today they are divided into a separate group. The bacteria in the gut are not a lifeless mass. They’re doing metabolism. And this huge number is capable to form substances that have an effect on the entire organism. The performance of the intestinal flora can be compared to that of the liver, which is the most versatile metabolic organ. Intestinal bacteria perform many important tasks on our behalf. Not everything has been explored yet.

Diet and Intestinal Flora

The composition of the intestinal flora changes with the food supply. Deviations in eating habits and dietary changes can affect the balance of the intestinal flora, damage it or conversely promote health. The administration of antibiotics also upsets the balance. If several negative factors are combined, pathogenic microorganisms such as enterococci or clostridia multiply. Health-promoting bacteria such as lactobacilli and bifidobacteria are suppressed. Many diseases are closely related to the intestinal microflora.

Lactobacilli at the intestine — Lactobacilli

Meat eaters have a completely different composition of the intestinal flora than people who only eat plant-based food. A study has shown that the metabolites of the microorganisms found in the stool of meat eaters lead to DNA damage. The result is cancer, especially in the colon. Many substances that are produced during the preparation of meat, especially when grilling over an open fire, also damage the DNA. Damage to the genetic material contributes significantly to the formation of cancer.

Functions of the Intestinal Flora

The intestine, with its huge surface area, represents the largest exchange surface with the environment. Foreign substances, including germs, are constantly passing through. Immune cells are located in the intestinal wall. A significant part of the antibodies is produced by lymphoid tissues in the intestine. They are passed on through the bloodstream and thus reach the mouth, nose and lungs. In this way, other parts of the body are also supplied with protective antibodies.

Healthy intestinal flora plays an important role in the development of the immune system. The harmless germs activate and train the immune cells. The function of the immune system cannot be maintained without a healthy intestinal flora. Of course, our defenses are not infallible and often become weakened, leaving us vulnerable to disease.

The intestinal flora participates in the digestion of dietary fibers. In the past it was believed that these were indigestible because there are no enzymes in the body that can break down fiber. They are therefore passed undigested to the large intestine. But gut bacteria can. They even break down wood. This results in short-chain fatty acids: acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid and lactic acid. These degradation products are very rich in energy. They nourish the intestinal mucosa cells and the intestinal flora itself.

It has been found that deficiencies in these fatty acids are common in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Irritable bowel syndrome, diarrhea or constipation can also be a consequence of disturbances in the intestinal flora. Short-chain fatty acids also stimulate intestinal movements. This promotes the mixing of the chyme for nutrient absorption and further transport.

In addition, the intestinal flora produces substances that the body cannot produce itself. This includes, for example, vitamin K, which is so important for blood clotting. It also produces vitamin B₁₂. Unfortunately, this vitamin is no longer absorbed in the lowest section of the intestine. However, the possibility is being discussed that in the healthy intestines of pure plant eaters such vitamin B₁₂-producing microorganisms continue to rise into the small intestine, where absorption is possible. They can also produce vitamin B₁ and B₂.

If the barrier function of the intestinal wall is impaired, it becomes permeable. This can lead to inflammatory reactions that can contribute to the development of other diseases. These include inflammatory bowel disease, type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis, heart failure and certain liver diseases.

In order to improve health and quality of life, it makes sense to pay more attention to the intestinal flora. We can take care of them by eating more fiber. We find them in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seeds and nuts. If we eat little or – even better – no meat at all, we improve the intestinal flora towards a positive colonization. This makes such a difference in our health.

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Stressors in the Midlife Crisis

June 19, 2022 by Martin Neumann - [rt_reading_time label="Reading Time:" postfix="minutes" postfix_singular="minute"]

Adults are expected to have it all together. They look back on years of experience that hopefully taught them some important lessons for life. They are dealing with growing responsibilities. This period in one’s life can come with a ton of challenges, both tangible and abstract. These are the years that are typically branded as the midlife crisis years, and for good reason.

At this point, many people realize that the first half of their life is over, and to some extent, they really can’t get back any of their childhood or young adult experiences. Unless they are pretty content with the lives they’ve lived thus far, it is pretty easy for somebody to slitter into that existential crisis of the midlife years.

One of the most dreadful causes of stress that people experience at this age is more philosophical than it is tangible. They start to see things in the bigger picture rather than just small portions of their life.

At this point, many people will start to wonder a lot about what they’ve done for the world. Thoughts such as, “What did I accomplish in my younger years?” and, “What was I put here to do?” are common, because it’s hard to imagine that you’ve already lived roughly half of your life without feeling like you did much. They really just want to have left some kind of reliable legacy, because there’s something scary about the prospect of one day being forgotten.

In a much more physical sense, this is when health problems can become really apparent. Joints at this age don’t work quite as well as they used to, leading to things like early stages of arthritis, general joint pain, and more. It might become harder for people this age to do things that they once enjoyed – especially when it comes to things like sports or hiking. By making basic enjoyable tasks painful, these health problems can take away much of their happiness and add on a lot of stress.

One major problem around this age that can cause stress is the sheer amount of responsibilities they have when it comes to family. Around this age, your parents are starting to get much older, and bluntly put, might pass away soon. They’ll have a ton of health problems of their own, so you’ll likely have to make sure they’re taken care of or become a caretaker yourself.

At the same time, your own kids will be a bit older, so you’ll also have to give them a certain amount of care and concern as you ready them to go out in the world as young adults soon.

Trying to balance that alone is bad enough, but you also still have to work and earn money, start thinking about retirement, and you might be experiencing issues with your relationship by this point.

All kinds of problems can arise around this time, making it one of the most stressful times of one’s life. The classic sign of stress around this time is the midlife crisis. A midlife crisis occurs when someone has been going through the same motions for decades now, and is so sick and tired of the monotony, that they do something very out of character in order for them to feel refreshed and reinvigorated.

A midlife crisis can manifest itself in a number of things, varying from person to person. With men, it could be something like buying a new sports car or a motorcycle – something exciting and interesting that they can enjoy.

In some more extreme cases, a midlife crisis might culminate in leaving your significant other, especially if you’re not fully happy with the relationship. It doesn’t have to be something specific, either.

Many people experience this crisis just by realizing they’re now older than they want to be. They start taking note of little things like how much the world has changed, how much they’ve changed, and how everything they used to do is now old-fashioned.

This can be really hard on some people, and they’ll show it. One prevalent sign of stress around this age is changes to the body. Many men experience a receding hairline as a result of both age and stress, and by worrying about it, they only make it worse.

Men can also experience a severe drop in testosterone around this time. No matter who you are, you’ll also start to get some gray hairs coming in, which can be stressful if you’re worried about your looks. Both men and women alike will dye their hair in an attempt to keep looking youthful.

There are many, many solutions for stress around this time. The first solution you might try is coming to terms with and accepting your age. Growing older isn’t a bad thing, but it feels bad at the time. In reality, you’re experiencing more and more each day than many other people got to, so you should enjoy the time you have rather than sit there stressing and having regrets.

It’s also important that you deal with your stress in a proper way. Going out to drop tons of money on an expensive car is not healthy, nor is leaving your family or taking up unhealthy habits. Instead, find joy in things that are either productive or make you feel whole. Sure, life is stressful, but if you can escape it for an hour to engage in some kind of hobby, you’ll feel so much better by the end of the day.

One practice that has helped many people become more positive in their lives is to embrace positive thoughts as much as you do negative thoughts, if not more. Each time you think about something negatively, think of a positive aspect to it as well.

For example, if you’re unhappy with your job, it’s fine to think about that, but just also think about the fact that you’re lucky to be employed and to have a stable source of income. Taking time to appreciate all of the little things can really make such a difference in your life. Gratitude can change your outlook to life quite drastically. Be sure you find the best in your years you are living right now, and let the stressful thoughts pass you by.

Do you need a guide to help you understand how to cope with Stress in an all inclusive approach? Learn how to combat stress, mentally, physically, emotionally and strategically in your life.

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Helping Makes You Happy

June 12, 2022 by Esther Neumann - [rt_reading_time label="Reading Time:" postfix="minutes" postfix_singular="minute"]

The wave of refugees is once again rolling through Europe. A lot of people stay there, others are going on somewhere overseas. A lot of volunteers are needed to take care of them. But being able to help is not a one-way street. It makes us happy and is important for our own satisfaction.

Helping other people is actually in our blood. Who could walk past a small child who has fallen on the gravel road and is now bawling his eyes out? It sees red, its own blood. That makes the tears flow even more. We set it up, clean it, blow the pain away, comfort and rock it.

An old lady stands wringing her hands at the ticket machine. She doesn’t have a clue how it works. She has to get a ticket. No one is around to explain this machine to her. You pass by and can’t do otherwise than to help her.

In the last few months, tens of thousands of people have got together, organized and joined aid organizations. They have set up platforms to teach the refugees the local language, to organize living quarters for them, to offer them leisure activities and to provide them with the necessities of life. People lend a hand where it is necessary. They do this in their free time. Some even travel abroad, to places where people are fleeing, where the need and desperation are greatest. Doctors take care of the sick. Others cook many meals every day and carry them to the train stations. Aid teams set up tents to protect people and relief supplies from the rain. Many are willing to work to the point of exhaustion. They drive their private cars to transport relief supplies to where they are needed.

Impact

Anyone who helps realizes it’s a win. Satisfaction and joy that you were able to help, come to yourself. You feel a sense of belonging and discover a sense of community. If you look more closely at people, the images of fear in our heads disappear. You no longer believe that you could be exploited or even robbed. Embarking on the adventure of helping allows one to participate in the other culture. Most refugees are proud when given the opportunity to cook one of their national dishes. And we can even broaden our horizons by being interested in their lives, their needs and fears.

An Ukrainian girl with a typical national bakery.

In Spite of Ourselves

It makes us happy when we can live out our Christian values. Many are guided by the text: “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them.” (Matthew 7:12) Some have fears about helping, but they cannot bear to do nothing and are happy afterwards that they did it in spite of themselves. Still others see it as a privilege to live in a safe country and want to give back out of gratitude.

It’s the Need

It’s true, of course: Where many thousands have passed, rubbish and dirt are left behind and not a green blade of grass grows anymore. But can you blame them? For what reason are they fleeing? Did the fear of a new bombing bring them? Or the terrifying fear of witnessing once again how a friend who was walking next to you is torn apart by a shell splinter? Or the fear of being tortured or raped by Russian soldiers? The reasons for fleeing are manifold. Nobody leaves their homeland voluntarily.

Ukrainische Flüchtlinge gehen über die Grenze

A mother of two is driving her car, bringing raincoats and rubber boots to the Austrian border where the refugees are waiting in the cold rain for the buses to take them on. Our helper hands out the raincoats to a father of three who is waiting for the buses with his wife and an uncle. All family members are cold and discouraged. They have an invitation in their pocket to visit one of their father’s brothers in Sweden. But how to get there? And now night is falling again. Our helper has distributed everything and is on her way home. But she has no rest, she always has to think of the waiting, freezing family. She turns around and finds the family in the crowd. She calls her husband and asks him to come to the border with a second car and three child seats. Without further ado, they take the foreign family home with them.

Everyone gets a towel and a warm bath. The own children and the strangers soon play contentedly with each other despite the language barrier. After a satisfying dinner, everyone sits together, chatting heart and soul, laughing a lot and making plans for further help. After two days the time has come. A happy family is put on the train – with Sweden as their destination. The brother there knows that his relatives have been helped and that they will come soon. Another happy family stays behind in Austria. They are satisfied that they were able to help at least a few people. This spurs on and encourages us to continue helping. A drop in the bucket? True, but many drops form a rain that fills the bucket. Anyone can become a drop and get involved. There are no limits to the imagination. And the joy will come back and make you happy!

If you cannot go personally to help, you still have an opportunity to get involved. I think it is time to show our help to those in need, and I am donating to OCI, an institution that has several member projects in the Ukraine and neighboring countries, who know the needs first hand are doing their best to help out in alleviating the pain of those who have the greatest need right now. Find out more what they do and make your donation to make a difference right now:

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This Happens in Your Brain When You Drink Too Little Water

June 5, 2022 by Dr. Cesar Vasconcellos de Souza - [rt_reading_time label="Reading Time:" postfix="minutes" postfix_singular="minute"]

Do you think you only need to drink water when you’re thirsty? Did you know that thirst is already an alarm? Drinking water only when you’re thirsty is like putting fuel in your car only when that little alarm light comes on, saying you’re running out of gas. Is water important for the brain?

This Happens in Your Brain When You Drink Too Little Water

Our brain depends on good hydration to function well. Brain cells and neurons require a delicate balance between water and different chemicals to function. When you lose a lot of water, sweating a lot for example, and you do not replace it, this balance is disrupted. Your brain cells lose their efficiency. Scientific studies have shown that when we’re dehydrated, it’s more difficult to keep our attention focused. Dehydration of the brain can produce both short-term and long-term memory impairment. Poor hydration can impair the ability to do mathematical calculations, such as calculating whether you will arrive at work on time, if you put off your alarm clock for another ten minutes.

Normally, the longest period of each day we go without ingesting liquids is the hours of sleep, which last about 6 to 9 hours each day, depending on the person. Despite the fact that sleeping usually doesn’t make us sweat, except in the summer if we have no air condition, it doesn’t mean that we don’t lose water while sleeping. With each breath we expel moisture, and the tendency during this hours of sleep is to dehydrate. That’s why it’s important to drink pure water throughout the day, and especially when you get up in the morning, at least one glass of water on an empty stomach. If you want your body and brain to function well, make a conscious effort to drink water from the moment you wake up, starting with getting out of bed in the morning. Think what a blessing to know that, and to have plenty of water available.

On our planet, millions of people have a shortage of drinking water. About 38,000 children under the age of five die each week because they don’t have clean water to drink; did you know that? Women in some African countries walk hours a week, carrying 5 gallons of water in containers, drawing even from places with unsafe water. What a blessing you have, for having pure water in your house, isn’t it? The brain is 75 percent water. So imagine how important is water for the brain to work well.

It is important to drink at least eight glasses of water a day to be healthy; and in the summer even more. There is a difference in the amount to be ingested, according to the activity performed throughout the day, the person’s weight and the season of the year. Having a glass of water every hour of the day (between meals) is a good habit, some people even recommend it. We usually don’t realize that we are dehydrated. We only remember to drink water when we feel dizzy, or when the skin becomes dry.

You may not notice it, but your brain does! It becomes slow to respond to stimuli if it is not properly hydrated. Water is a great remedy, both outside and inside the body. Water helps the blood flow to the brain and calms it, as well as helping to eliminate toxic substances. Brain cells require twice as much energy as other cells in the body, and water contributes more to brain energy than other substances. Drinking water helps children and adults to prevent attention deficit disorder. The lack of correct hydration affects the brain, producing tiredness in the afternoon, difficulty in focusing thoughts, exhaustion, some types of headache, sleep disturbances and loss of mental clarity.

It is important to ingest pure water throughout the day for proper brain function, as it has no way of storing it. Studies have shown that if you are only 1% dehydrated, you will have a 5% decrease in cognitive function, in reasoning. Prolonged dehydration can cause a decrease in the size and mass of brain cells. This is more common in older people who tend to be chronically dehydrated for years. By hydrating your body well, your brain will benefit from the removal of toxins, improving the exchange of nutrients and leading to better concentration and alertness.

Brain inflammation is often associated with various types of injuries. When the brain is not properly hydrated, inflammation gets worse. A study of young women showed that the loss of 1.36% of body fluids after exercise impaired mood and concentration, increasing the frequency of headaches. A similar study of young men showed that losing 1.59% of body fluids resulted in memory impairment increased anxiety and fatigue. It is important to know that 1 to 3% of fluid is equivalent to the loss of 1 to 4,5 lbs (½ kg to 2 kg) of body weight for a person weighing 150 lbs (68 kg). So, after doing physical activities, drink a good amount of pure water.

It’s worth remembering: drinking water throughout the day helps your brain and improves concentration, helping you think more clearly. It also helps balance mood, maintains good memory, increases blood flow and oxygen to the brain, and helps prevent some types of headaches.

Researchers at the University of East London believe that when you quench your thirst, your brain can better focus on the task at hand. They did an experiment with 34 men and women. They were given a first test for them to take after breakfast, which included cereal and protein bar. For a second test, they ate cereal, a protein bar and drank a bottle of water. Those who said they were thirsty improved the test time after drinking the water. Drinking water made their brains work 14% faster than before drinking it.

If you want your brain to do well, drink plain water throughout the day, but not together with your meals. This is important for a number of health benefits, and essential for optimized brain performance. Remember, 75% of our brain is water. We can see how important drinking water is to stay mentally well. Drink water! Peace and Light!

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