metabolic miracle
Treating cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndromes, cancer and liver disease with functional foods
Kefir has attracted the attention of doctors and pharmacists due to its health benefits including, antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, antimutagenic, anti-allergic, antidiabetic, hypercholesteremic, antiinflammatory and immunostimulatory and immune modulating effects.
Kefir is a synbiotic with ability to treat a myriad of conditions
While it is difficult to isolate the most beneficial properties of kefir as it is a fermented synbiotic product with a variety of host mediated response mechanisms, some isolates have been suggested to offer greater therapeutic potential. Among them are kefiran, lactic acid bacteria and beneficial yeasts.
Kefiran, the EPS (exo-polysaccharide) of kefir, has important physicochemical properties. Kefiran properties suggest its use as antioxidant, antitumor agent, antimicrobial agent, and immunomodulator, among other roles.
While infectious diseases were the most important health issue in the world until the beginning of the 20th century cardiovascular and metabolic diseases gradually became the largest contributors to global morbidity and mortality. These problems are expected to continue for several more decades. Research has confirmed that there is a reciprocal interaction between gut microbiota and the function of different organs. Gut dysbiosis contributes to the onset or worsening of systemic abnormalities. This current scenario has resulted in growing interest in probiotic nutraceuticals, which are known to maintain gut homeostasis and to prevent or reverse gut dysbiosis.
- Drug resistant cancers show kefir has significant anti-cancer properties
Some deadly cancers have become drug resistant, kefir bio activities have shown significant potential against these types of cancers due to the inability of cancer to evade or spread and the ability to increase this potential via various fermentation techniques while not harming normal cells.
- Diet associated conditions are becoming more deadly and costly
In recent years, people have changed their eating habits, and high-fructose-containing foods have become widespread. High-fructose intake is suggested to be a key factor that induces non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Recent studies have evaluated the effects of kefir peptides on high-fructose induced NAFLD and have shown great therapeutic value while proposing the mechanism of action which is as follows. Kefir’s superior anti oxidant potential is well above previous well known antioxidants in the form of vitamins or other common drugs and appears to work by amplifying inherent intracellular and mitochondrial responses of the host while not harming normal cells. Kefir has shown liver regeneration effects.
Beyond extensive nutritional value via modulation of the gut/immune system and further effects to the systemic immune system kefir has been shown to have bio active properties that address a myriad of costly health problems from metabolic syndromes to cardiovascular disease, liver failure and cancer. Increasing clinical results show its large scale potential as a viable nutraceutical.
date nut muffins
Date Nut Muffins are a classic British teatime treat made with sweet dates and toasted walnuts.
Date nut muffins are a handy variation on date nut bread, which originated in Great Britain (specifically Scotland) as a tea time treat. This recipe uses a small amount of brown sugar.
did you know?
Buttermilk safely lowers both serum and liver cholesterol and reduces high blood pressure. Unique bio active molecules in buttermilk Resulting from churning of cream, sweet buttermilk is a source of unique bioactive molecules capable of modulating cell signaling, lipid transport, metabolism, and immunity.
Unique bio active molecules in buttermilk Resulting from churning of cream, sweet buttermilk is a source of unique bioactive molecules capable of modulating cell signaling, lipid transport, metabolism, and immunity.
a healthy microbiome is necessary for cancer protection
Kefir as a probiotic-containing fermented milk product has been shown to exert cytotoxic effects on tumor cells. A notable decrease in tumor size and weight, a considerable enhancement in helper T cells and cytotoxic T cells as well as significant decreases in metastasis to lung and bone marrow were detected after kefir treatment.
LAB (lactic acid bacteria) can induce cancer cell death through the mechanism, apoptosis. There are two major pathways of apoptosis; these are the extrinsic and intrinsic pathways. The former is mediated by activation of death receptors and caspase 8, while the latter involves mitochondria and caspase. The mitochondrial pathway appears to be the main route for the induction of apoptosis against gastric cancer cells by different types of probiotics. LAB induces the mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis in myeloid leukemia as well.
lethal to tumor cells
A serendipitous observation in the year 1995 that a casein fraction from human milk blocked the binding of bacteria to epithelial cell and was selectively toxic to a lung cancer cell line, evoked tremendous interest in the characterization of the tumoricidal molecule. The active fraction was soon traced to the casein fraction of human milk, obtained by acid precipitation and was subsequently identified as oleic acid (OA)-bound partially unfolded α-lactalbumin (α-LA). The complex was given the acronym HAMLET (Human αlactalbumin Made Lethal to Tumor cells). HAMLET exhibited broad tumoricidal activity against carcinomas, melanomas, glioblastomas and leukemias derived from human and various non-human sources. Other studies showed that HAMLET like complexes with OA can also be prepared from bovine α-LA, which was designated as BAMLET, as well as from the protein derived from the milk of several other mammals. The tumoricidal effect of HAMLET and BAMLET has been observed also in vivo, in animal models and in a clinical investigation.
An exhaustive review provides arguments to show that OA (oleic acid) can exert nearly all cytotoxic effects reported for HAMLET/BAMLET-like complexes and leans to conclude that the protein does not possess toxic effect on its own. It is likely that OA facilitates the entry of α-LA (alphalactalbumin) in to the cells which after attaining a specific conformation may act to enhance the tumoricidal action. The exact mechanisms of HAMLET/BAMLET have yet to be discovered despite exhaustive worldwide research efforts.
did you know?
BAMLET is more effective than HAMLET. Acid or sour whey contains more galactose than sweet whey, galactose achieved by a necessary enzymatic breakdown of glucose contributes to the effectiveness of HAMLET AND BAMLET.
Although lifestyle changes and pharmacotherapy are main strategies to control MS (Metabolic Syndrome) progression, these actions show only partial success. It has been shown that healthy gut microbiota helps to control obesity and insulin resistance. The intestinal microbiome differs in lean and obese subjects and insulin resistant patients developed an improvement in the metabolic profile after transplantation with ‘healthy gut microbiota’ from lean donors.
Remember, no more than 6 teaspoons (25 grams) of added sugar per day for women and 9 teaspoons (38 grams) for men. The AHA limits for children vary depending on their age and caloric needs, but range between 3-6 teaspoons (12 – 25 grams) per day. Children under two should have zero grams of sugar per day.
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