Eat your veggies, say scientists.
Australian scientists have found a "direct link" between
what we eat and how well our immune system operates, a
breakthrough that could explain rising rates of autoimmune
disease across the western world.
Professor Charles Mackay, working at Sydney's Garvan
Institute of Medical Research, identified how fibre in the
diet plays a major role in ensuring a person's immune cells
function properly.
His research, published in the prestigious journal
Nature, also signals the shift of what had been a
fringe concept into the scientific mainstream.
"This potentially explains all the previous data that no one
had taken that seriously," Prof Mackay told AAP.
"I think it's fair to say the broader immunological research
community has never really believed that diet affects immune
responses.
"This does provide a direct link for the way immune cells
work with the sort of things we eat."
Working along with PhD student Kendle Maslowski, Prof Mackay
investigated the operation of an immune cell receptor known
to bind with "short chain fatty acids" - what fibre is
reduced to once processed by bacteria in the gut.
This broken-down fibre was found to "profoundly affect immune
cell function", Prof Mackay said, and without it the immune
cells appeared more likely to go awry.
Autoimmune disease refers to disorders in which a person's
immune system mistakenly attacks part of the body, causing
inflammation.
"When (immune cells) go bad they cause inflammatory diseases,
so asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease
..." Prof Mackay said.
"We think one of the mechanisms for their normal control is
short chain fatty acids binding to this receptor.
"And if we were to speculate on the real significance of
this, we believe firmly that the best explanation for the
increase in inflammatory diseases in western countries ... is
our changes in diet."
A lack of dietary fibre could also be behind the rise in type
1 diabetes, Prof Mackay said.
The research suggests that having a healthy diet rich in
fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and seeds would reduce a
person's risk of autoimmune disease.
It also helped to explain why food supplements that affect
the balance of gut bacteria were known to reduce the symptoms
of some inflammatory conditions.
Prof Mackay said dietary fibre, or roughage, was otherwise
known to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and
certain cancers plus it ensures you will be regular.
"The role of nutrition ... is an exciting new topic in
immunology," he said.
Bookmark/Search this post with:
A name, residential address, and (preferably residential) telephone number is required from readers who comment on ODT Online. These details will not be visible to site visitors.