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Jan 5, 2024 22 tweets 9 min read Read on X
THIS might just be causing your gut problems.

The FDA has swept these under the rug for decades.

We’re now waking up to the harms of these so-called “safe” ingredients, added to nearly every commercial food.

Let’s talk about it⬇️Image
The intimate link between food additives and gut health is a complex web we're only just beginning to unravel.

As our diets have evolved to include a myriad of packaged foods, these substances have woven their way into the fabric of our daily consumption.Image
The FDA classifies most of these ingredients as “generally recognized as safe,” a nice way of saying they get put into the food based on expert opinion with minimal study.

While food additives have long played a role in enhancing flavor, prolonging shelf life, and improving texture, recent studies suggest they may be double agents with hidden agendas in our gut's ecosystem.Image
Polysorbate 80 and carboxymethylcellulose are absolutely ubiquitous in foods and supplements.

In rodent studies, these emulsifiers cause dysbiotic bacterial overgrowth and support the genesis of COLITIS, i.e inflammatory bowel disease.Image
Specifically, Polysorbate 80 and carboxymethylcellulose seem to foster an environment ripe for mucus-degrading bacteria, degrading this layer of critical protection and paving the way for conditions like colitis and metabolic syndrome in animals.

Germ-free mice receiving fecal transplants from P80 and CMC-treated counterparts displayed similar microbial disruptions, demonstrating the cause and effect relationship.Image
Additionally, these substances have been demonstrated to drive a proliferation of inflammation-related pathogenic bacteria when direct contact with human-derived microbial communities is made, with the bacteria invading our mucus layer.Image
The detrimental effects extend beyond physical health.

P80 and CMC are implicated in altering behaviors.

Female mice, for instance, exhibited antisocial tendencies, while their male counterparts showed increased anxiety levels.

These behavioral changes align with identifiable shifts in the gut bacteria and levels of specific neuropeptides.

This should come as no surprise, the mental health connection to poor gut health is obvious and well understood at this point.Image
Another familiar food additive, maltodextrin, a thickening agent derived from starch, raises its own red flags.

It has been implicated in impairing gut homeostasis and promoting intestinal disorders, again by promoting the pathogenicity of certain gut bacteria.Image
Image
Alarmingly, maltodextrin administration in a preterm pig model heightened the incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis, a nasty and severe intestinal inflammatory condition, indicating a potential risk in the most vulnerable patients—newborns.

This is in your baby formula.Image
More disturbingly, maltodextrin (MDX) triggers a stress response in intestinal goblet cells, diminishing our intestinal mucus production, and sensitizes to inflammatory stimuli.

This paints a worrying picture of its impact on the gut's protective mechanisms.Image
Artificial sweeteners also don't spare the gut.

These sweeteners, found in numerous diet foods and beverages, are linked to glucose intolerance and gut dysbiosis in animal models.

One study highlighted that prolonged saccharin intake led to glucose intolerance and changes in the fecal metabolites of mice, suggesting that these sweeteners might instigate metabolic disorders through inducing gut bacterial overgrowth.Image
Concerns extend to sucralose, another artificial sweetener.

Six-month consumption once again induced dysbiosis in mice, contributing to the formation of endotoxin and subsequent liver inflammation, bringing attention to their broader systemic effects.Image
Disturbingly, artificial sweetener-induced bacterial disruptions correlate with impaired hepatic detoxification mechanisms in prenatally exposed mouse pups, raising serious questions about sweetener’s impact for future generations.Image
Food colorants, particularly titanium dioxide, are another culprit.

Used widely for aesthetic appeal, their ingestion can cause intestinal inflammation and contribute to dysbiosis, a critical root cause if you’re dealing with any type of lingering gut issue.Image
The damage from titanium dioxide manifests through altered epithelial barrier permeability, creating unwanted bacterial translocation across the gut into systemic circulation, making this a problem for the entire body.

IBD sufferers also have increased titanium in their blood.Image
Image
Alarmingly, evidence points toward titanium dioxide's role in the facilitation of colon carcinogenesis upon prolonged exposure, as seen in animal models, signaling a red flag for its presence in our diet.Image
This is far from a comprehensive look.

Other sweeteners like Splenda, additives like Silica and emulsifiers like the various gums, have shown similar effects.

There are literally hundreds if not thousands of these “safe” food ingredients out there just flying under the radar.Image
Image
It’s also recently been shown that the ubiquitous food dye, red 40 or Allura Red AC, can cause inflammatory bowel disease outright, you guessed it, by increasing gut serotonin.

This was mediated by inducing dysbiosis and subsequent inflammation in the gut, along with increasing intestinal permeability.Image
You can read more about serotonin’s impact on your gut here:
In regulatory circles, the FDA and EFSA have been basing food additive approvals on outdated safety testing from the 70s and 80s.

The increasing evidence of food additives’ negative impact on gut health cannot be ignored, with the FDA responding by calculating dietary exposure to emulsifiers and assessing their safety anew.

However, this FDA study has its limitations, looking retrospectively only up to 2010.

The quick pace at which the food industry and additive use are growing means regulations will likely never keep up.
It’s up to you to protect yourself.

If you’re going to buy food with ingredients, at the very least check the label. If something seems like it shouldn’t be in your food, it probably shouldn’t. Better safe than sorry.

Additionally, some of these don’t even make it onto the label at all!

For example, in skim milk, vitamins A and D are added, but they’re fat soluble so they require the addition of emulsifiers, but you won’t find them on the label at all!Image
Image
This may not seem like a big deal since they are in small quantities, but if you can avoid them I think it is optimal for your long term health.

Throughout my own experience and working with several others with gut problems, this can be a major cause of unexplained problems.

Be careful out there.

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More from @Outdoctrination

Jul 8
What your doctor won't tell you about improving bloating, gas, IBS, SIBO and healing your gut.

FIBER - why it might be the WORST thing you can eat for your gut:

(yes, even for constipation)Image
A zero fiber diet is incredibly therapeutic for the gut.

In this study, every single person was cured of digestive symptoms by cutting out fiber entirely.

In 2 weeks:

➠ Pain
➠ Bloating
➠ Bleeding

all completely eliminated.Image
Image
A zero fiber diet can fix constipation.

Those in the study who stopped fiber completely went from:

1 bowel movement every 4 days ➔ 1 per day.

Those who reduced fiber improved:

1 every 4 days ➔ 1 every 2 days

Those who kept eating fiber had just 1 bowel movement per WEEK.Image
Read 14 tweets
Jul 7
Your body is crying for help, but you're ignoring these 5 signs of high cortisol.

#1 Round face

This can from several factors, but one of the most common is high cortisol.

Cortisol directly drives fat deposition in certain areas of the body,

especially the face like this.Image
Here's one real life example.

This girl had a tumor on her adrenal gland causing her to produce excess cortisol.

Left - with tumor
Right - after removalImage
#2 You're always tired, but you also can't sleep.

Physically tired, but your body is in a state of fight or flight.

This is a sign of flattened cortisol rhythm - it's supposed to peak in the morning and be low the rest of the day.

This happens under chronic stress.Image
Read 9 tweets
Jul 5
You cannot underestimate the power of collagen - it's literally a fountain of youth.

Regenerates the skin, helps regrow hair - and is even huge for your heart, brain + gut health.

Here's why you NEED to implement collagen for optimal health:Image
Small amounts of collagen prevent aging of the brain.

Just 5 grams a day:

◇ Increased white matter in the brain
◇ Memory
◇ Learning ability

likely by:

◇ Increasing angiogenesis (blood vessel formation)
◇ BDNF (brain cell growth)
◇ Reducing inflammationImage
Collagen is an anti-depressant, reversing the negative effects of cortisol & increasing brain cell growth.

The intact peptides are absorbed and reach the brain, where they exert anti-stress benefits.

Impaired neurogenesis + high cortisol are two key players in depression.Image
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Read 19 tweets
Jul 1
Decades ago, a doctor cured THOUSANDS from conditions they were told were unknown & incurable.

The root cause? Hypothyroidism.

No bloodwork. No scans.

His diagnosis instead was based off of signs + symptoms.

Here are the 10 most common ones he documented (& how he solved it):Image
1. Weakness - in 98-99% of people with low thyroid.

Thyroid hormones have important actions on muscle cells:

➞ Increase energy production
➞ Promote differentiation into mature muscle fibers
➞ Stimulates type II muscle fibers
➞ Multiplies mitochondria

Without them, your muscles suffer, and you feel weakness.Image
Image
2. Dry / coarse skin - in 79-97% of people with low thyroid.

Thyroid hormones (mainly T3) stimulate epidermal proliferation.

With hypothyroidism, skin cells renew more slowly, leading to:

➜ Accumulation of dead skin cells
➜ Thickened stratum corneum (outer skin layer)

Giving a rough, flaky, dull appearance.Image
Read 15 tweets
Jun 29
"Eat less, move more" is one of the greatest scams of all time.

If it were that simple, then obesity wouldn't have quadrupled over the last 50 years.

The science behind why "eat less, move more" DOES NOT WORK & is even HARMFUL for so many:Image
The vast majority of weight loss attempts are failures in the long run.

In people undergoing supervised calorie restricted diets:

➜ After 2 years ~50% of weight is regained
➜ After 5 years >80% is

but why? Is it just because people are lazy and unmotivated?Image
Image
Reducing calories induces long term metabolic slowdown.

This is largely due to:

➜ Reductions in PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
➜ Lower thyroid hormone output

These are major issues.

How can you "move more" while intentionally reducing your body's ability to generate energy?Image
Image
Read 19 tweets
Jun 25
BRAIN FOG: It all comes down to ONE thing.

Brain fog wasn't something that was even recognized in medicine,

but that all changed over the last few years.

The amount of people complaining about brain fog became too much to ignore.

Now, we have the answer: Image
Brain fog is one of the most common + debilitating symptoms of long COVID.

This forced science to devote attention + resources to understanding it.

The causes of it were discovered:

1. Inflammation
2. A leaky brain

These issues are the driving force behind ALL brain fog. Image
Image
BRAIN FOG is INFLAMMATION.

People with it have higher inflammatory markers:

➜ IL-6
➜ IL-8
➜ MCP-1
➜ IL-13
➜ IL1RA
➜ IFN-γ

The more severe the fog, the more inflammation there is. Image
Read 21 tweets

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