Breastfeeding Could Save The Lives Of 1.3 Million Children a Year

(NaturalNews) Providing breastfeeding education and support to new mothers could prevent more than one million child deaths every year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Although the WHO recommends that infants start breastfeeding within one hour of birth and consume nothing but breast milk -- not even water -- for the first six months of life, less than 40 percent of mothers worldwide meet this goal. Insufficient breastfeeding is a problem in both rich and poor countries, the agency says.

Because breast milk provides the exact combination of nutrients that a developing infant needs, no artificial formula or adult food can match its nutritive value. In addition, breast milk provides important antibodies to the underdeveloped infant immune system, and helps children's immune systems develop in a healthy way. Even a formula that provides nutrition similar to that of breast milk does not provide this critical, immune-boosting function.

If 90 percent of women met the WHO breastfeeding guidelines, the agency says, 13 percent of global deaths under the age of five could be prevented, translating into 1.3 million lives saved per year.

Although many women start out breastfeeding, large numbers abandon the practice because they are unable to get the baby to latch on properly or do not know how to breastfeed without suffering unbearable pain or discomfort.

"When it comes to doing it practically, they don't have the practical support," said the WHO's Constanza Vallenas.

WHO Director-General Margaret Chan noted that during disasters, well-meaning donations of formula may encourage women to stop breastfeeding just at the time when the practice is most critical.

"During emergencies, unsolicited or uncontrolled donations of breast milk substitutes may undermine breastfeeding and should be avoided," she said. "The focus should be on active protection and support of breastfeeding."

Chan said that mothers in disaster zones need more support to be able to continue or resume breastfeeding.

Sources for this story include: www.reuters.com.

Parasites in Your Gut Actually Help Protect You From Allergies

(NaturalNews) Humans and gastrointestinal parasites might have co-evolved in such a way that the parasites actually help regulate to human immune system to prevent against allergies, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Nottingham.

Researchers believe that over the course of millions of years, gastrointestinal parasites have evolved an ability to suppress the human immune system as a survival mechanism. Because parasitic infestation has been so common throughout human evolutionary history, the human immune system has in turn evolved to compensate for this effect.

This means that if the parasites are removed, the immune system may actually function too strongly, resulting in maladaptive immune responses such as asthma, eczema and other allergies.

To test this hypothesis, researchers used drugs to eliminate hookworm infection in a 1,500 children between the ages of six and 17 who were living in a rural village in central Vietnam. This region was selected for its very low rates of allergies and high parasitic infestation rate. Two-thirds of all children in the area are infested with hookworm or other gastrointestinal parasites.

The researchers found that once the children were no longer infected with parasites, their rates of dust mite allergies significantly increased. This supports the hypothesis that parasites help regulate immune responses.

"The next step is to understand exactly how and when gut parasites program the human immune system in a way that protects against allergies, and for such studies, follow-up from birth will be essential," said researcher Carsten Flohr.

Researchers hope that understanding the relationship between parasites and the human immune system could lead to a better overall understanding of allergies.

"The prospects of further studies in this area are very exciting, as we could see groundbreaking treatments for asthma and other allergies developed as a result," said Elaine Vickers of Asthma UK, which funded the study.

Sources for this story include: news.bbc.co.uk.

Scientists create protein to help probiotics work more effectively

(NaturalNews) Researchers from the Institute of Food Research (IFR), part of the Institute of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Council, have materialized a protein that works with probiotic bacteria to help bind them to the gastrointestinal tract. This breakthrough research will help to further the viability of probiotics and to pinpoint the most beneficial strains for use in the body.

Dr. Nathalie Juge, a researcher from IFR, stated that in order for probiotics to be properly assimilated, they need to be effectively bound to the cells lining the intestinal walls. In order to help accomplish this, her research team derived a protein from the probiotic strain Lactobacillus reuteri, a lactic acid bacterium found naturally in the gastrointestinal tract. The proteins bind themselves to the mucus membrane and assist it by serving as additional catch points for bacterium to reside.

The mucous membranes found naturally in the body's largest immune system organ, the gut, help protect its lining and renew its cells by serving as a native fixation point for bacteria. Prior to the study, it was generally unknown what element was utilized by the mucous to make bacteria stick to it. Research published by IFR and the University of East Anglia in a Journal of Biological Chemistry paper revealed that specialized binding proteins are responsible for this important work.

Vital components of maintaining a healthy immune system, these proteins serve as catalysts for the metabolization of probiotic bacteria. They serve as human immunoglobulin protein receptors as well, indicating their crucial role in maintaining overall immune health.

Sources for this story include:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_relea...