Do we really want people controlled by parasitic micro-organisms controlling our world? Please be sure to watch the video at the end of this post before answering this question.

More and more information is coming out about probiotics lately and the intimate symbiotic relationship formed between microbes and humans. Many people have been talking about this relationship for years, but the main-stream seems to finally be picking up on it. This is good news for all of us as land has gotten measurably wetter in the past couple years. All of the flooding and dampness is causing a flourishing of fungus of all varieties. Higher levels of radiation also cause certain types of yeast and bacteria to flourish. Our best defense against pathogenic types of micro-organisms out to colonize our mucous membranes is to maintain a flourishing garden of diverse and friendly bacteria, fungus and other micro-organisms through a diet rich in probiotic foods and drinks.

Milk is one of the best mediums for growing friendly and helpful micro-organisms and has historically been used for this purpose in many different traditions from India to Africa to Europe. It is renowned as the first food in many cultures. Many traditions care deeply about the energetics of the animals that are producing this milk and feel the greatest threat and pollutant to this sacred food comes from animals that are mis-treated and suffering. As a result, in many places every family would have their own goat, sheep, cow, yak or water buffalo.

Other countries make fermented vegetables, in Korea every family made their own kim chi and many still do, in Japan various types of miso as well as fermented vegetables and fish, in Myanmar they also eat a fermented fish paste as a dip with lightly blanched vegetables, as well as pickled mustard greens or bean sprouts with every meal. I could go on. Recent studies pointed to below demonstrate just how symbiotic the relationship between humans and these microbes is.

This relationship has lately been discovered to be even more interconnected via the vagus nerve which connects the gut and brain. When a pathological fungus such as candida overwhelms and colonizes the gut it actually influences behavioral patterns, causing pathological, obsessive and paranoid behavior. I believe people who are operating influenced by these types of intestinal dysfunction should not be in positions of power to make decisions for the rest of us.

Fortunately a gut full of unfriendly micro-organisms can be remedied through diets such as GAPS or SCD, but it is a long and difficult process that takes commitment. The key ingredient in these probiotic-rich diets are homemade fermented foods made from properly cared for raw ingredients, such as biodynamic vegetables or raw milk from grass-fed cows or goats.

The following are some excerpts pulled from recent articles on this topic which range over a variety of topics from how gut bacteria influences thoughts and behavior to how our military is farting excessively from over-processed rations in Afghanistan causing the locals to request a cease-fart-fire:

Gut bacteria influence thoughts and behaviour

The human gut contains a diverse community of bacteria which colonize the small intestine in the days following birth and vastly outnumber our own cells. These intestinal microflora constitute a virtual organ within an organ and influence many bodily functions. Among other things, they aid in the uptake and metabolism of nutrients, modulate the inflammatory response to infection, and protect the gut from other, harmful micro-organisms. A new study by researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario now suggests that gut bacteria may also influence behaviour and cognitive processes such as memory by exerting an effect on gene activity during brain development.

The idea of cross-talk between the brain and the gut is not new. For example, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is associated with psychiatric illness, and also involves changes in the composition of the bacterial population in the gut. But this is the first study to show that the absence of gut bacteria is associated with altered behaviour. Bacteria colonize the gut in the days following birth, during a sensitive period of brain development, and apparently influence behaviour by inducing changes in the expression of certain genes.

Exactly how gut bacteria might exert such influences is unclear, but they may do so via the autonomic branch of the peripheral nervous system, which controls functions such as digestion, breathing and heart rate (vagus nerve). A better understanding of cross-talk within this so-called ‘brain-gut axis’ could lead to new approaches for dealing with the psychiatric symptoms that sometimes accompany gastrointestinal disorders such as IBS, and may also show that gut bacteria affect function of the mature brain. Read More

The Yogurt Made Me Do It

(There’s nothing metaphorical about ‘gut feelings’—bacteria influence our minds)

The latest evidence comes from a new study of probiotic bacteria, the microorganisms typically found in yogurt and dairy products. While most investigations of probiotics have focused on their gastrointestinal benefits—the bacteria reduce the symptoms of diarrhea and irritable bowel syndrome—this new research explored the effect of probiotics on the brain.

The experiment, led by Javier Bravo at University College Cork in Ireland, was straightforward. First, he fed normal lab mice a diet full of probiotics. Then, Mr. Bravo’s team tested for behavioral changes, which were significant: When probiotic-fed animals were put in stressful conditions, such as being dropped into a pool of water, they were less anxious and released less stress hormone.

How did the food induce these changes? The answer involves GABA, a neurotransmitter that reduces the activity of neurons. When Mr. Bravo looked at the brains of the mice, he found that those fed probiotics had more GABA receptors in areas associated with memory and the regulation of emotions. (This change mimics the effects of popular antianxiety medications in humans.)

Furthermore, when he severed the nerve connecting the gut and brain in a control group of mice, these neural changes disappeared. The probiotic diet no longer relieved the symptoms of stress.

This research shows that the immateriality of mind is a deep illusion. Although we feel like a disembodied soul, many feelings and choices are actually shaped by the microbes in our gut and the palpitations of our heart. Nietzsche was right: “There is more reason in your body than in your best wisdom.” Read More

Gut Biota Never Recover from Antibiotic Use – Extends to Future Generations

Emerging research shows that the harmful effects of antibiotics go much further than the development of drug resistant diseases. The beneficial bacteria lost to antibiotics, along with disease-inducing bacteria, do not recover fully. Worse, flora lost by a mother is also lost to her babies. The missing beneficial gut bacteria are likely a major factor behind much of the chronic disease experienced today. The continuous use of antibiotics is resulting in each generation experiencing worse health than their parents.

Overuse of antibiotics could be fuelling the dramatic increase in conditions such as obesity, type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, allergies and asthma, which have more than doubled in many populations…. We’ve seen evidence that suggests antibiotics may permanently change the beneficial bacteria that we’re carrying.

When a mother’s microbiota is deficient, her child is born to a deficiency. The evidence now appears to show that, once a probiotic deficiency exists, it is never recovered—and it’s passed down the generations. Read More.

In the meantime we are experimenting on our military in more ways than we even realize. The rations they get these days are made from highly processed foods–including lots of processed carbohydrates. Add a couple courses of antibiotics to this diet and we have a perfect environment for short tempers and paranoid behavior — not the conditions we want to cultivate if we are trying to create a peaceful world:

For Marines in Afghanistan: be careful where you fart

Audible farting has been banned for some Marines downrange because it offends the Afghans.

I know there are many things in the Afghan culture that don’t seem normal to Americans and it’s hard to spend seven months working in someone else’s back yard. Still, the Marines I saw downrange are doing a pretty good job at trying to do the right thing around the Afghans.

They’re not supposed to cuss because it could be misunderstood (that one goes out the window a lot). And they stay away from talking about politics, religion or girls because those topics could escalate into major disagreements (they can’t communicate anyway because of the language barrier).

But farting? That’s practically a sport. Ok, it’s not soccer, but a good contest could open the door for cross-cultural exchanges, jokes and other gallows humor. Read More

Given the current state of the world, run by paranoid, greedy and irrational people, I can’t help wondering if the microbiotic world is on the brink of doing away with all of us by infiltrating our bodies and gaining control of our neurotransmitters in much the same way as this parasitic fungus takes over these insects:

Return of the brain-controlling zombie-ant parasitic fungi

A team of entomologists working in the Brazilian rain forest has discovered four new species of parasitic Cordyceps fungi, which infect insects and manipulate the behaviour of their hosts in order to disperse their spores as widely as possible.

The modus operandi of Cordyceps is reminiscent of the famous chest-bursting scene in the movie Alien. Microscopic spores infiltrate the host via the spiracles – the holes in the exoskeleton through which insects breathe – and the fungus begins feeding on its non-vital organs.

When it is ready to release its spores, Cordyceps brainwashes its host: its filaments grow into the insect’s brain, and release chemicals that cause it to climb a nearby plant and attach itself near the top by biting onto a leaf or stem. The host is then killed, and a mushroom containing spores sprouts from the top of its head. Read More

More info here: Brainwashed by a parasite

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