self-healing concrete with limestone producing bacteria

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20121303

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3139635/

“In most people, C. albicans is just another member of the body’s flora, harmlessly coexisting with other microorganisms in their host. Bacteria in particular are important competitors that keep its spread in check. However, if the environment suddenly changes, causing bacteria to die off, C. albicans quickly adapts and takes over. Usually the effects are minor. Elderly people who use dentures may experience a dry or burning mouth condition known as “thrush.” Women who suffer from irritating yeast infections and most babies fussing over diaper rash are the victims of an overaggressive population of C. albicans. However, if the patient’s white blood cells have been compromised, say because of chemotherapy or an aggressive steroid treatment, the effects can be devastating. Serious complications arise if the fungus enters the bloodstream, perhaps through a catheter, which C. albicans can only do while in the more benign yeast form. However, once in the bloodstream, the fungus can deposit throughout the body as invasive hyphae. At that point it becomes known as “hematogenously disseminated candidiasis,” which proves fatal in 40% of cases, even with the best modern treatments.”

“A new look at the biological formulation of the germ theory seems warranted. We need to account for the peculiar fact that pathogenic agents sometimes can persist in the tissues without causing disease and at other times can cause disease even in the presence of specific antibodies. During the first phase of the germ theory the property of virulence was regarded as lying solely within the microbes themselves. Now virulence is coming to be thought of as ecological. Whether man lives in equilibrium with microbes or becomes their victim depends upon the circumstances under which he encounters them. This ecological concept is not merely an intellectual game; it is essential to a proper formulation of the problem of microbial diseases and even to their control.”

Seth: Thanks. Yeah, I saw it. After I read it again I may post about it.

Great anecdote and very plausible theory. But I’m not sure the anecdote fits the theory, since the ketogenic diet on which she recovered is presumably more restrictive (less varied, even lower in carbs) than the diet on which she got sick.

To me that suggests that what we need is a story of diet-microbe equilibria, in which there are multiple microbiomes that can be in equilibrium with any diet, and you can get stuck in a bad equilibrium. Dietary changes can depopulate an overgrown species, leading to a new equilibrium which may be more healthful. Then probiotics/fermented foods may enable a shift back to the original diet but with a different microbial equilibrium.

So this view is not “good bacteria / bad bacteria” but “good microbiome / bad microbiome” as in your theory; but it is not a story simply of “diversity good / nondiversity bad” even though it is a story of overgrowth of a nondiverse flora causing problems. The ketogenic diet may be have created a nondiverse flora that is not abundant, so the symptoms disappeared.

Best, Paul

Or maybe you were only referring to gut bacteria, not to nasties directly injected into the bloodstream by insects or contaminated medical equipment.

Seth: You mean “on faulty immune systems and too little microbial diversity”? Dosage also matters: Exposure to a large amount of Bacteria X may cause illness, exposure to a tiny amount may be safe. I am less convinced than you that exposure to tiny amounts of the bubonic plague bacteria would be dangerous if one had a well-working immune system and plenty of internal microbial diversity. At the time of the Black Death, people may have eaten narrow diets, low in some vital nutrients. Living conditions may have also caused first exposures to the bubonic plague bacteria to be large (dangerous) rather than small (safe). On the other hand, I think you’re right. We can be exposed to a large amounts of certain bacteria without harm (e.g., the bacteria in yogurt) yet exposure to a large amount of certain other bacteria is dangerous. In that sense some bacteria are more dangerous than other bacteria.

Probably not, and they are probably a good idea even though they will do a number on my internal flora. The concern with joint replacements is deep infections under or around the implants that can’t be effectively treated because of poor blood supply deep in the joint. So the docs want to avoid them at all costs.

What’s more annoying is that after you have a joint replacement, you have to take antibiotics before dental work – for life, apparently. Supposedly nasty bacteria from your mouth can get into the bloodstream during the dental activities. They can supposedly get deposited around the implant and cause one of those hard-to-treat deep infections.

I’ve had a hip replacement for 20 years. Four years ago when I moved, I didn’t find a new dentist and didn’t have my teeth cleaned or examined for all that time. I had fixed my acid reflux by adopting a low carb diet, and I didn’t want to undo that work by use of antibiotics.

Finally I had to go to the dentist because I am required to get a dental clearance for the knee surgery. I had an exam and cleaning. Even though I have a lot of gum and bone recession extending back over more than 30 years, after those four years my teeth were fine and my gums were in better shape than four years earlier.

What had changed? 1- low-carb diet. 2- stopped using toothpaste having a lot of glycerin (most of them … for a while I brushed my teeth with Ivory soap). 3- I stopped flossing and started to clean between my teeth with a little “proxy” brush instead – I had found that flossing would start infections in my gums, and that doesn’t happen when I use the proxy brush instead.

So – no dentist, no flossing, no standard toothpaste but plenty of attention to cleaning my teeth safely, reduce carbs which cause lots of crud to build up on the teeth. Better results. Hurray!

We should also draw a distinction between soluble and insoluble fibre. It is the soluble fibre we really want – which gut bacteria ferment into short chain fatty acids, among other things- and this can come from many sources other than beans.

The focus on “healthy whole grains” has led to many people getting too much insoluble fibre, which causes problems of its own, in addition to gluten and other grain proteins.

But your general point of more (soluble) fibre is in the mark, as are your points 2 & 3 (4). It is amazing how much we are prescribed things that do not cure our ills, but prolong them.

These things we do know, at least based on recent research:
1. Fiber is good food for gut bacteria, so eat lots of fiber from things like beans, which also have lots of protein.
2. Antibiotics disrupt the gut bacteria, so try to avoid antibiotics.
3. Antacids and proton pump inhibitors disrupt the gut bacteria, so try to avoid antacids.

And here’s the most important lesson: Doctors love antibiotics and antacids, so try to avoid doctors.

Seth: Yeah. Antibiotics are said to be the most important medical advance of the last 100 years. Yet it is plausible they do more harm than good. What does that say about all the other “advances”?

Of course a diet of junk/processed food will most likely breed a population of junk food junkie flora who are very good at their job – maybe, too good.

Cheers

Pax on both houses (summarizes the PLOS publication below)
http://paxonbothhouses.blogspot.com/2012/10/fecal-transplant-to-treat-clostridium.html

Bacteriotherapy Resolves Relapsing Clostridium difficile Disease in Mice
http://www.plospathogens.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.ppat.1002995

Tending the Body’s Microbial Garden
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/19/science/studies-of-human-microbiome-yield-new-insights.html?pagewanted=all

How Microbes Defend and Define Us
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/13/science/13micro.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

I’m especially interested in this since I’m about to have major knee surgery and the docs will insist on hitting me with big jolts of antibiotics.

Seth: Thanks for the links. I didn’t know knee surgery led to antibiotics. Can you refuse the antibiotics?