AUSTRALIAN scientists have found a "direct link" between what we eat and how well our immune system operates,
a breakthrough that could explain rising rates of autoimmune disease across the western world.
Professor Charles Mackay, working at Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research, identified how fibre in the diet plays a major role in ensuring a person's immune cells function properly.
His research, published in the prestigious journal Nature, also signals the shift of what had been a fringe concept into the scientific mainstream.
"This potentially explains all the previous data that no one had taken that seriously," Prof Mackay said. "I think it's fair to say the broader immunological research community has never really believed that diet affects immune responses.
"This does provide a direct link for the way immune cells work with the sort of things we eat."
Working along with PhD student Kendle Maslowski, Prof Mackay investigated the operation of an immune cell receptor known to bind with "short chain fatty acids" - what fibre is reduced to once processed by bacteria in the gut.
This broken-down fibre was found to "profoundly affect immune cell function", Prof Mackay said, and without it the immune cells appeared more likely to go awry.
Autoimmune disease refers to disorders in which a person's immune system mistakenly attacks part of the body, causing inflammation.
"When (immune cells) go bad they cause inflammatory diseases, so asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease ..." Prof Mackay said. "We think one of the mechanisms for their normal control is short chain fatty acids binding to this receptor.
"And if we were to speculate on the real significance of this, we believe firmly that the best explanation for the increase in inflammatory diseases in western countries ... is our changes in diet."
A lack of dietary fibre could also be behind the rise in type 1 diabetes, Prof Mackay said.
The research suggests that having a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and seeds would reduce a person's risk of autoimmune disease.
It also helped to explain why food supplements that affect the balance of gut bacteria were known to reduce the symptoms of some inflammatory conditions.
Prof Mackay said dietary fibre, or roughage, was otherwise known to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and certain cancers plus it ensures you will be regular.
"The role of nutrition ... is an exciting new topic in immunology," he said.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/link-between-diet-immune-system/story-e6frf7kf-1225792288469
I have been following a strict diet with loads of fibre, seeds and nuts. Also fruit and vegetables ( raw).. My health has been so much better and my stomach issues have been reduced....thanks for posting thisThank you Bodak, I do feel better when eating my greens, veggies and fruits - ground flaxseed meal, too. I switched to small servings of nuts instead of energy bars and such. Didn't help my RA as much as stomach issues.
I've recently switched to oats in the morning and have notice a great improvement in the daily extraction process.
In reading about oats I have found info that says oats are good for the Cardiovascular system.
This changing to oats was a little bizarre as I was having pangs or craving to try something that was dished up regularly as a child.
The universe works in strange ways.
Pin, was that you who for a while was craving lettuce and ate several bags a day?Be careful if you're say 40+ with the seeds and nuts. Everyone has little out pouches off their colon called diverticulum. Get seeds or nuts in the diverticulum and you may get diverticulitis, an infection that left untreated may burst and cause perotonitis and even death. Ask your doctor before making changes, he/she may want you to try the OTC fiber powders instead. :)
Hi Stephen, porridge/oats are definately good for the cardiovascular system, one of the main benefits with me is they bring the cholesterol down, my GP says I have elevated cholesterol due to the pred, I never had these probs before, so its well worth a try. Good luck mate.