YOUR Microbiome and I mean YOURS

[Heloise]

Have you connected your Hashimoto's to leaky gut and your immune system which is your flora and your internal ecological system? That is your Microbiome.

The Interconnected Series has added an interview with the host of the series AFTER he had the biome test done on himself. This is where ALL the dots are connected and very fascinating. They do offer a special on the test but there are other companies that have this technology so please don't be offended. What you will learn is worth just watching it. The video can only be accessed for the weekend I think

This is an RNA and not a DNA test. He finds out which foods he can digest well and several are vegetables so we can't generalize and say all veggies are good for you. It shows the different good and bad bacteria in your gut and also viruses that in his case are carried by plants. Viruses can only live in cells in your body.

Much of our condition is due to our own inflammatory response and they are usually connected to what we eat. This was just such a fascinating piece of information that gives meaning to what ails us. The price of this technology keeps coming down so hopefully we can all get a good look at what exactly is going on inside our bodies.

interconnectedseries.com/vi...

[Heloise]

She talks about the fact the low stomach acid is so prevalent in over forty age groups which then doesn't kill bacteria that may be in your mouth. Stomach acid is energy driven so metabolism is involved.

This man even with his career in health actually didn't do amazingly well with this test. That is how new some of this information is.

[Heloise]

We all worry about C Diff when we are hospitalized but it actually is contained in almost everyone and even this healthy individual, and if we use antibiotics it may kill off good bacteria and allow C Diff to multiply. He also had sulfites.

Prebiotics like inulin help. He had taken a lot of probiotics in his life.

Enzymes and HCL were recommended.

Our Microbiome is actually a better detoxer than even the liver.

[Marz in reply to Heloise]

Have watched the first 10 minutes - will get to the rest tomorrow hopefully. I joined the British Gut - and my sample was sent to the US. Never got around to having the results interpreted - must re-visit them 😊 - and see what is lurking.

Have read in a few places about pre-biotics being more valuable than pro-biotics ...

[Heloise in reply to Marz]

Can you look at this on your computer and put it on full screen? Then you can see the names of all the bacteria and the levels.

I've watched about half of it and it is AMAZING. Pedram is very knowledgeable about health....he was a monk at one time. But what they know about your immune system through this test seems to be the answer to everything if it is accurate. My daughter had it done but later learned that her problem is mold so all the efforts up to now have been rather useless although she has a few food issues. I hope treating the mold is really going to make a difference. But the mold did not show antibodies to my knowledge. I'll have to check on that.

[Marz in reply to Heloise]

Ah yes - one of the members here on the Forum has a poorly daughter and mould was one of her problems. She went to the US and saw Dr Neil Nathan. Another great guy. I will be watching the rest today & yes on the 'puter screen 😊

Yes I have followed Pedram for some time - The Urban Monk !

[Kipsy in reply to Heloise]

I did the Genova Total Effects GI test about 18 months ago. I was utterly shocked at what they found (SIBO, candida, rubbish amounts of good bacteria, huge amounts of the bad stuff to name just a few things) It took a long time to work on everything and I’ve lapsed in the last few months since starting T3 and feeling so well but I will try to watch this today as it will be a good reminder to look after my gut. Thank you Heloise

[Heloise in reply to Kipsy]

Did you use a hair sample. Pedram's is a stool sample. The doctor explains this enormous puzzle somewhat but I also wondered where do you start. This is the future of medicine I hope.

[Kipsy in reply to Heloise]

Mine was a stool sample. Think it was then flown to the US on dry ice...the mind boggles! Expensive but worth doing as without the results I’d never have thought my gut needed help.

[Heloise in reply to Kipsy]

On dry ice, lol. Boggles is right. Are you able to tell a difference if you've been following some of the guidelines? Would you recommend others take the test at the current cost?

[Kipsy in reply to Heloise]

I haven’t had chance to watch today’s video so can only respond based on my experience. To be honest, the cost of the tests (I did three different ones in total) was only the start of what I ended up spending. I saw a functional nutritionist who ordered the various tests (all Genova ones- GI, vitamins and minerals, and saliva cortisol) Her appointments were reasonably priced but the supplements that I had to buy (from a third party) in order to follow her protocols for about 8 months were prohibitively expensive. I supplement lots of things now such as B12, D3 etc etc but the strange ones I needed were mostly from the US and cost an absolute fortune by comparison.) Yes, I certainly cured everything that was wrong with my gut eventually and learnt a lot. Was it worth a huge chunk of my savings though? Probably not. In hindsight, I would probably have just followed the kind of advice you’ve posted today. It might not have solved everything but I’d be better off and less regretful. It’s great knowing the test results but you then have to have a way of funding a solution.

Hope that helps anyone considering using a functional practitioner. They are great but, at the end of the day, introducing T3 was what made all the difference to me.

[Heloise in reply to Kipsy]

Thank you, Kipsy. The interview going through the specifics of all the bacteria and the pathways with metabolites were mediated through other bacterial elements in foods. At least that is how it appeared to me. She did see why he would be bald according to the test and recommended propecia, lol. She didn't feel probiotics were that useful but will be when they design them for the individual. This is an RNA test and I think they make improvements as time goes on and then it will be more useful in regard to food instead of supplements.

I do agree that it might be better after you have prepared yourself for this test by getting thyroid straightened out, eat whole foods and don't take antibiotics or anything that would temporarily skew results. Really appreciate your insight.

[bookish]

Wow, that was fascinating! Just finished watching, many notes taken and things to ponder on. Thank you so much for posting Heloise and Happy New Year! I hope the mould treatment helps your daughter. Going to dig out my GI Map results later and see how much overlap of information there is between that (much smaller test of course) and the Viome test. Clearly need to be working more on improving my ability to digest, esp. protein.

[Heloise in reply to bookish]

How great to have that information. I was taking notes but it went off the internet.

Did you notice the serving sizes were 1 1/2 ounces? I have to do this test. I love pineapple and apples, now I have to think "should I eat them or not?"

I thought the information was priceless but needs a lot of interpretation. It's nice there is an app that you can refer to on your phone but long ingredient lists must be hazardous away from home.

I hope you're energized...... think of yourself as the maestro of a huge orchestra and make wonderful music.

[Heloise]

I tried to take notes after watching the video but it was removed so I only got a few. Two important options is intermittent fasting which allows good bacteria to grow and that butyrate is very healthful and could be supplement if you don't have the microbes that make it.

This test seems to measure the activity of microbes as low, medium, and high and what it causes such as mucous invaders that break down the lining of the gut but some microbes are buturate producers

. Some are protein fermentors which cause inflammation.

Microbes are used to clean up oil and plastics so they can do the same in your body

They control digestive efficiency

, the strength of the stomach barrier, they can produce energy, etc. etc. etc.

Microbes run the show it seems and now you can see it in black and white, or red, blue and green. I hope this turns out as competent as it seems and becomes the game changer in our health.

I thought Pedram was brave to expose his most personal part of his being and thank him in providing this information.

[wellness1 in reply to Heloise]

Very interesting! Thanks for posting and for your notes, Heloise. I agree, it was brave of him to share his results publicly as he learned them. It was surprising someone as healthy as he is had some of the issues he discovered. But he had been living on the road for some time making the Interconnected series and thought that could be a partial explanation. It's hard to eat well when we travel. He had a sulfate issue and thought perhaps that came from eating a lot of dried fruit. (they snacked on trail mix a lot)

The part about plant pathogenic viruses was interesting. We eat plants (that's a good thing!) and the then the viruses grow in our microbiome. There's a pepper virus that can elicit an immune response (and a lot of this is aimed at identifying sources of inflammation). They can cross the membrane even if you don't have leaky gut. But she doesn't recommend anti-virals and they don't know how long the viruses last. She advises avoiding those foods and retesting and focusing on the overall healthy ecology of the microbiome. She had one client who tested with no viruses then had a fecal transplant and ended up with a huge number of them. I thought it was interesting that they can measure evidence of antibiotic resistance. Pedram had taken a lot of antibiotics for for infections which probably upset the balance of his microbiome. They stressed butyrate in the original series and discussed it in this episode. I decided to get some potato starch for resistant starch based on the case they made, but I haven't had any yet. Good reminder.

Maybe this kind of individual analysis and advice is the wave of the future. But in the meantime, and for those who don't want to spend hundreds on testing, they did stress lots of the same general advice we've been hearing about improving the microbiome: eat diverse foods, lots of fiber, lots of colourful vegetables and fruits, avoid processed foods and include fermented foods. We should eat slowly and chew our food well. (Protein should be digested in the upper intestine to release amino acids. But when it's digested in the lower intestine it ferments and can make harmful byproducts.) Anyone considering buying the Viome test (it's $100 off through Interconnected) should ask for the newest version. She said they are making some improvements and expanding the advice on foods to avoid.

[Heloise in reply to wellness1]

Thanks for those additional comments, wellness. That coupon brings the test cost down to $299. For some that is affordable. My daughter used a hair sample and groupon offered the test for a mere $26.00. I saw her results and it covered a lot and she felt it was accurate because it coincided with past tests she had done.

Pedram did feel something after eating oxalates but didn't realize the cause. I had no idea some of these were oxalates:

Spinach.

Bran flakes.

Rhubarb.

Beets.

Potato chips.

French fries.

Nuts and nut butters

Wouldn't it be very advantageous to know how little to eat or what other factors would allow you to eat more?

I guess the more who who take the test, the better they can gauge ranges. More companies are coming up but I hope the competition doesn't dilute results.

You're so good going out and buying potato starch, my daughter's husband bought her some potato vodka, haha.

[wellness1 in reply to Heloise]

Lol, why didn't I think of potato vodka?! That wouldn't still be sitting in the cupboard unconsumed.

Yes, there needs to be a bigger number of samples to establish the ranges. He had a result in the 94th percentile, which sounds great, but he's being measured against other people who have taken the Viome test, so it may skew toward people who have health/digestive issues.

[Heloise in reply to wellness1]

Yes, more people and what about the lady who is doing the interpreting for Pedram. Is this a new area of functional medicine do you think?

Cranberries seem to be good for most people. I think that means that cranberry juice and vodka might make a very healthy drink😜.

[wellness1 in reply to Heloise]

Functional practitioners are big on testing, lots and lots of tests. I would think this would be added to the mix, but I don't know how it relates to things like GI-MAP and NutrEval and the Genova test Kipsy referred to. There may be some overlap.

Sounds like a nice medicinal cocktail. Cheers!

[Heloise in reply to wellness1]

I was looking at my daughter's results and they listed 23 metals. They were all low, even zinc. Is that good? Environmental sensitivity was only molderately mixed moulds and pollen. Sulfa had high reactivity. I think low reactivity meant her body could detox it fairly well. But then she had the mold test and two of them are very high so I don't know what to think. But that test identified four of them positively and tested for eight of them I think.

[wellness1 in reply to Heloise]

Well, it's great that her levels of toxic metals are low! But it could be a problem if nutrient elements are low. Zinc is an important trace element and it needs to be balanced with copper, so the ratio of zinc to copper should be looked at. Here's a little info on that.: drjockers.com/copper-zinc-i...

There's a toxic mold summit coming up that might be of interest. You'll see some familiar faces. toxicmoldproject.com/schedule/ I

I don't know anything about sulfa reactivity but I'm always interested to learn, so I had a quick look. Is that the same as a sulfa allergy? If so, she could react to sulfa-containing drugs, so that's good to know. healthline.com/health/sulfa...

[Heloise in reply to wellness1]

I guess the report was more about reactivity than actual levels so probably not a worry.

This is exciting me today. piriejonesgrossman.com/dr-j...

[bookish in reply to Heloise]

I thought the oxalates information was interesting too and have just been looking at a site (Thyroid refresh, new one for me) which says that oxalates can deposit on the surface of the thyroid and contribute to cysts. I had what I believe was a histamine reaction to spinach some time ago but Liz Schau on this site says spinach is high oxalate, salicylate, histamine and sulphur and all can be a problem. She points out

"If you suspect oxalates are a problem for you, keep in mind, you do want to reduce your intake very gradually because once you lower your intake a phenomenon called “dumping” will occur which is where oxalates will begin to rapidly exit the tissues, which can cause increased symptoms".

(The others can all be lowered immediately if you want to do a trial on each group).

I used to have cooked and cooled potatoes for resistant starch - wish I'd thought of the vodka! Now reacting to potatoes and they are a potential cross-reaction with corn, which I also react to, so both off the menu at the moment. Just had a nice dollop of cranberry sauce with my roast vegetables though!

[Heloise in reply to bookish]

THAT was very interesting. I don't know if I have an oxalate problem. I love greens and beans. So potato salad might be OK for many people. It cross reacts with corn? So if you don't eat corn which seems to be one of those things lots of people should avoid you can handle potatoes. I've talked several people into trying rutabaga or in the UK called swede since Tom O'Bryan recommended it to help with diversity

Good going, Bookish. I'm off to try making a cauliflower crust.

[bookish in reply to Heloise]

I heard that, too - I had some swede tonight and still 1/2 one in the fridge. Enjoy your cauliflower!

Potato is odd - Micki Rose says because corn is cross-reacted to potato, you may get your 'corn' reaction (symptomatic or not) when you eat potato. It could be a hidden inflammatory reaction that you may not feel. Dr Aristo Vodjani advises to remove all of the known cross-reactive foods linked to any found with an antibody on it when you test. I even react to tinctures made from potato. (I eat sweet potato to make up for it!)

[Heloise in reply to bookish]

Wow. This does become more complicated but it sounds as if the bacteria involved causes this, from Pedram's interview. Plus, he was gaining weight and I think she said it was due to the inflammation caused by the reactive food. And yet he had no idea. He looked pretty fit to me!

I suppose the potato vodka is out

[Kipsy in reply to wellness1]

Another good source of resistant starch is green banana starch. It comes in a powder and can be added to smoothies, porridge etc.

[wellness1 in reply to Kipsy]

I know green bananas are a source of resistant starch but I didn't know you could buy it as a powder. Thanks.

[Kipsy in reply to wellness1]

You’re very welcome!

theprebioticshop.com/produc...

[wellness1 in reply to Kipsy]

Cheers