The people who inhabit the Caucasus Mountains of the former USSR are very long-lived, remaining healthy, vital and, legend has it, even becoming parents well into advanced old age. There are stories about some people living into their 160s. However, when researchers went there, looking to verify some these claims, it seemed that Shirali Musilov,…
Scientists say that a diverse gut microbiome is a healthy one, and it turns out that your lifestyle plays a huge role in shaping that. In a new study out of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands, researchers examined specific foods and beverages that either contributed to or impaired microbiota diversity, and found that…
Top scientists at Roche Holding AG and AstraZeneca Plc are sizing up potential allies in the fight against cancer: the trillions of bacteria that live in the human body. “Five years ago, if you had asked me about bacteria in your gut playing an important role in your systemic immune response, I probably would have…
More than half of the Australian population is overweight or obese. Yet, despite all the steps we’re taking to battle the bulge, we are still fat. We’ve tried cutting carbs, switching sugary drinks for diet varieties, saying no to fat and banning dairy. That, combined with vigorous exercise — and still nothing. As a result,…
Nearly half a million Americans get infected in a single year by Clostridium difficile, a dangerous bacteria that causes life-threatening diarrhea. It kills 15,000 people a year. It’s the most common cause of health-care associated infections in U.S. hospitals. Patients on antibiotics are at the greatest risk for developing C. diff infections. That happens when…
Right after birth, trillions of microbes rush into a baby’s gut and start to grow. Most of these critters come from the mom’s skin, birth canal and gut. But exactly which types of bacteria take up residence in an infant’s gut can depend on the mother’s DNA, scientists reported Thursday. The study, published in the…