Biosa™ & more

Moving - See you there....

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 21:55:00 +0000

How green can my white Christmas be?

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 18:21:00 +0000

Many of this year's turkeys will have arrived via a 4,000- to 6,000-mile journey from either Thailand or Brazil, each with a carbon footprint of around 4.5kg. To add further ignominy, any Christmas dinner leftovers are usually sent to landfill; the extra waste from Christmas dinner contributes 160,000 tonnes. A bokashi bin can take cooked meat waste, or 2007 could be the year you try a wormery - www.wigglywigglers.co.uk uk carries Bokashi EmPowered buckets and wormeries, while www.nurturingnature.co.uk (01925 452819) specialises in wormeries.

The rest of the article is quite informative about the environmental cost of holiday dinners in the UK. Give it a read.
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Technorati Tags: bokashi, news, uk
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Yoghurt improves gut instincts

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 17:55:00 +0000

From NewScientist.com

Stomach ache? Try some yogurt to soothe the pain. Lactobacillus acidophilus, a "friendly" bacterium often found in yogurt and "probiotic" drinks, boosts the synthesis of receptors for opioids and cannabinoids, our natural painkillers, in gut cells.

A team led by Christel Rousseaux of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research in Lille saw the effect in human intestinal cells as well as in the guts of live rodents (Nature Medicine, DOI: 10.1038/nm1521).

Rats had a 20 per cent increase in their abdominal pain threshold - or twice that if they had irritable bowel syndrome. The team believes the bacteria could be a cheap, safe treatment for the 20 per cent of people who get serious abdominal pain.
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Technorati Tags: Lactobacillus, acidophilus, ibs, irritable, bowel, syndrome, pain, relief, probiotic, research
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Bacteria contribute to soil's quality

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 06:43:00 +0000

This article describes what is happening in soil. Friendly microbes can make the soil even more viable.

Bacteria contribute to soil's quality

What is in the soil?

Gardeners are always working to improve their soil, through the addition of compost, use of a fall planted cover crop, use of a green manure crop or turning under organic mulch.

The improvement of the soil in one's garden is accomplished by soil microorganisms that are involved in the mineralization of organic forms of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorous and other compounds and turning them into inorganic forms available to higher plants.

This process is essential for the maintenance of life on our planet.

A teaspoonful of soil may contain billions of living organisms. In fact, an acre furrow slice of fertile soil can contain 1,000 pounds of bacteria and an equal amount of fungi, protozoa and algae.

Plant growth, soil fertility and soil development are directly and indirectly dependent on soil microorganisms. Some microorganisms improve soil fertility by converting atmospheric nitrogen into nitrogen compounds used by plants to synthesize proteins.

Other microorganisms mineralize organic residues such as proteins into inorganic substances such as ammonium compounds and nitrates, making them available to plants. Generally, a high level of microorganisms in a soil indicates a healthy soil.

Few environments provide as great a variety of microorganisms as fertile soil. The number of bacteria, fungi, algae, protozoa and viruses may reach billions of organisms per ounce of soil.

The size and diversity of the soil microbial population is dependent upon a soil's physical and chemical characteristics, climate, whether or not the soil is cultivated and the type of growing plants. Other soil conditions, such as the amount and type of nutrients, available moisture, degree of aeration, temperature, pH and agricultural practices, also influence the population of microorganisms.

Bacteria are the smallest and most numerous of the free living organisms in the soil. It takes 25,000 bacteria to measure an inch. Despite bacteria's small size, their total weight in the top foot of an acre of fertile soil may be as much as 1,000 pounds or 0.03 percent of the weight of the soil.

Poorly aerated soils and sandy soils generally have few bacteria. Bacteria are very important in the capture of gaseous nitrogen, such as the Rhizobia or nodulating bacterial found on the roots of legumes.

Another of the microscopic organisms is called actinomycetes, which, in many respects, resemble bacteria. They can be found in most soils, but are only about 1/10 to 1/5 as numerous as bacteria. The actinomycetes are important in the decomposition and the humification of organic residues. They cause much of the aroma found in a handful of soil.

A sustainable garden system capitalizes on the knowledge that intricate biological processes exist within the soil. Since soil microorganisms play an indispensable role, cultural practices that damage the microorganism population must be minimized. The end result will be a healthy, diverse population of soil microorganisms contributing to soil fertility by increasing organic matter decomposition, mineralization of organic compounds, nitrogen fixation, soil stability, and tilth and reducing damage from soil pathogens through competition.

Bill Lamont is a professor and extension vegetable specialist in the Penn State department of horticulture and can be reached by e-mail at wlamont@psu.edu.
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Lactic Acid Bacteria: Zesty Microbes Enliven The Palate, Provide Better Blueprint For Biofuels And Specialty Chemical Production

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 08:04:00 +0000

Lactic Acid Bacteria: Zesty Microbes Enliven The Palate, Provide Better Blueprint For Biofuels And Specialty Chemical Production:

"With public concerns at a fevered pitch over the bacterial contamination of spinach, it is easy to lose track of how bland and deprived our world would be without the contribution to our food supply of such benign microbial players as lactic acid-producing bacteria.

Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI) and the University of California, Davis, and their colleagues have characterized the genome sequences of nine different lactic acid-producing bacteria, or LAB, and have published their findings in the October 17 edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The small LAB genomes encode a diverse repertoire of genes for efficient carbon and nitrogen acquisition from the nutritionally rich environments they inhabit and reflect a limited range of biosynthetic capabilities promising broad industrial applications.

Lactic acid-producing bacteria play a key role in the production of fermented foods and beverages, accounting for tens of billions of dollars in sales annually. Products constituting a fine repast, such as wine, salami, cheese, sourdough bread, pickles, yogurt, cocoa, and coffee are all enhanced by LAB, which ferment six-carbon sugars, or hexoses, to produce lactic acid."

Read it all....

Technorati Tags: lactic_acid, bacteria,fermentation

Al's pleasantly scented compost solution

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 11:51:00 +0000

Susan's Super Citizen Showcase

A week ago, I bought a system from Al, who surprised me by arriving at my house with the whole set-up bungeed to the back of his bicycle – two 15-litre buckets and a one-kilo bag of Bokashi. It was with great delight that my six-year-old son inaugurated the bucket with its first handful of Bokashi, followed by the first piece of compost fodder: a half-eaten banana. Since then, we’ve been carefully following Al’s instructions to throw in our kitchen waste, compress it with a plastic bag, and sprinkle a handful of Bokashi onto every three centimetres of food.

So far, no stink, which pleases me immensely. In fact, it smells great – unlike some of my past, well-intentioned composting experiences. I still have a deep-seated olfactory memory of reluctantly opening the lid of a traditional kitchen compost, psyching myself for the wall of warm, steamy stench that seems to announce “party time!” to all flies lucky enough to be in the vicinity. It’s like the opposite of aroma therapy… aroma trauma! (Actually I’ve often wondered if there could be a market hole for aroma trauma…)

While a traditional compost decomposes food using heat and exposure to air (hence the stinkiness we tolerate in the name of recycling and being good to the Earth), the Bokashi system is anaerobic, doing its magic in an air-tight container. The Bokashi, which smells like sweet vinegar, is fermented by Biosa – a mixture of photosynthetic bacteria, lactic acid bacteria, and yeast.

According to Al’s literature, these micro-organisms occur naturally worldwide but in recent years, there are less of them in many soils due to over-farming and the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Hence here’s another advantage to the Bokashi system: it gets these helpful microbes back into the soil where they can assist plant growth and disease-resistance.

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Read it all...

Technorati Tags: biosa, bokashi, compost, composting, fermentation, kitchen, food, waste

From January 1, 2005 - Accent on EM technology in hygiene management

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 00:17:00 +0000

"Accent on EM technology in hygiene management"

By Our Staff Reporter

TIRUCHI, DEC. 31 . The use of Effective Micro-organisms (EM) technology in hygiene management and solid waste composting was explained at a workshop held here on Tuesday to coordinators involved in Total Sanitation Campaign (TSC) across the State.

Lucas Dengal from Auro Annam in Auroville said the adoption of EM technology would hasten the process of composting garbage.

There were millions of microbes on earth most of which were helpful and beneficial to humans. Effective micro-organisms had been used by farmers in their farms with good effect, he said, adding that these microbes could also be used for hygiene management and solid waste composting.

Not only do the effective microbes hasten the process of composting bio-degradable waste, it also prevents development of foul odours and fly nuisance. The use of effective microbes technology would also result in a high-quality compost beneficial to crop yield and quality.

Dr. Lucas Dengal said composting with effective microbes could be done in windrows or in closed containers. Use of activated effective microbes solution in public toilets, bathrooms, and women sanitary complexes would eliminate unpleasant odours, flies and ensure hygiene and cleanliness. Terming EM technology as a cheap technology, he said it was easy to use and safe to handle.

T. Murugan, Additional Director, Rural Development, asked the TSC coordinators to use the EM technology as a pilot project in any four girls' schools and six women sanitary complexes in their respective district.

M. Subbaraman, Director, SCOPE, a non-governmental organisation, said garbage could be made to good use only if only it was handled in a proper manner.

The coordinators involved in TSC campaign from all over the State participated in the workshop, which was conducted jointly by the District Rural Development Agency, SCOPE and Auro Annam.

A demonstration on preparation of activated effective microbes solution was conducted to the participants and the ways to use the solution in hygiene management as well as solid waste composting was explained to them.

© Copyright 2000 - 2006 The Hindu
http://www.thehindu.com/2005/01/01/stories/2005010117170300.htm
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Yoghurt could help fend off HIV - 07 October 2006 - New Scientist Space

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Mon, 09 Oct 2006 05:43:00 +0000

Yoghurt could help fend off HIV - 07 October 2006 - New Scientist Space:

"YOGURT may soon be enlisted in the battle against AIDS. Lactobacillus, a harmless bacterium that helps turn milk into yogurt, has been engineered to make HIV-fighting microbicides. Eating yogurt containing these bacteria could provide a way for women to fend off HIV if no other means are available.

As well as appearing in yogurt, lactobacillus naturally inhabits the human vagina. It survives passage through the gut and can easily traverse the short distance from the anus and colonise the vagina. Once there, the bioengineered bacteria would churn out compounds that inhibit transmission of HIV, thus helping prevent infection."

Urban Wilderness: Whats It Mean To Be Green (from York Press)

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 21:58:00 +0000

Urban Wilderness: Whats It Mean To Be Green (from York Press): "Article from York, UK about how someone used bokashi for composting.

Whats It Mean To Be Green (from York Press):

'It made a significant impact on how much rubbish we threw away. But I was still concerned about all the cooked food, dairy products and leftover meat and fish that went in with the regular rubbish. These can't be composted because of the smells and the vermin they would attract."

That's now changed, thanks to the Kitchen Composters or Bokashis I have been trialling for York Rotters. They are squat lidded bins (you need two) which, together with a special compost activator, effectively neutralise odours and make it possible to safely compost all food scraps and leftovers, prepared foods, stale bread and even meat bones.

I have to admit, I was sceptical at first.

Read more...

Getting enough good bacteria in your belly? - Today: Food - MSNBC.com

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 06:05:00 +0000

Getting enough good bacteria in your belly? - Today: Food - MSNBC.com

Getting enough good bacteria in your belly?

Probiotics, or 'good bacteria,' can do a lot to keep you healthy.
‘Today’ food editor Phil Lempert shares the skinny, plus a list of products that can help

By Phil Lempert

"Today" Food Editor

Updated: 1:34 p.m. PT Sept 19, 2006

The term probiotic literally means “for life”. Elie Metchnikoff, a Russian physiologist and Nobel-prize winner is credited for inventing probiotics and was the first to suggest (in 1907) that consuming bacteria could have a beneficial effect.

His theory, based on the long life span and good health of the Bulgarian people who regularly consumed yogurt, was that the acid-producing organisms in fermented dairy products could prevent what he called “fouling” in the large intestine, and as a result, if consumed regularly, would lead to a longer and healthier life.

....

Some of the benefits that have been shown by research so far:

Allergies: Probiotics in some people positively impact the mucosal barrier of the intestinal tract.

Cholesterol: Probiotics can raise the level of HDL — the good cholesterol.

Colon Cancer: Probiotics help maintain a healthy intestinal microflora and promote a healthy intestinal environment.

Constipation: Probiotics help shorten long intestinal tract transit time and can improve regularity.

Diarrhea: Probiotics maintain the level of “good bacteria,” which balance bacterial and virus infections that can cause diarrhea.

High Blood Pressure: While more research is needed to reach a consensus, several studies have suggested that fermented dairy products may have a positive effect on blood pressure.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS): Probiotics help restore the balance of bacteria and can eliminate the abdominal pain, gas or constipation.

Immunity: 70 percent of the body’s immune system is located in the digestive tract. The microflora acts as a physical barrier to help fight diseases. Probiotics as they regulate the balance of bacteria and increases the “good bacteria” reinforce this barrier.

....
Look for Lactobacillus acidophilus or Bifidobacterium in the ingredient listings to verify the product does contain probiotics. [VitaBiosa does.]

Read it all...

Bokashi in the news: East Sussex [UK] council is offering residents half price kitchen composters small enough to fit under their kitchen sinks.

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 18:16:00 +0000

Bokashi in the news:

letsrecycle.com - News and information for the Recycling and Waste Management Community:

East Sussex [UK] council is offering residents half price kitchen composters small enough to fit under their kitchen sinks.

The 18-litre capacity composters are manufactured by Straight plc from 12% recycled plastic, and allow residents to compost green vegetable-based waste and small amounts of cardboard and paper. A grain-like material called Bokashi must be spread on material deposited in the composter to prevent odours and speed up the composting process.

The pack is £25 [$52 Cdn/$47 US - Al] for residents and comes with a two composting bins and a 600g [others provide 1kg - Al] bag of Bokashi. The composting process takes just two weeks, after which material can be used in the garden. A spokeswoman for East Sussex Council explained: 'The more options we provide people with the more inclined people will be to try home composting.' "
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Technorati Tags: bokashi, UK, compost, composting, kitchen, home

Filipino owned company, pushes for the latest healthy way of loosing weight through its 3-A-Day Dairy Program.

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 17:49:00 +0000

Health marketing via the media in The Philipines. Of note is this paragraph which mentions an ingredient found in Biosa:

Although, milk serves the same purpose like that of other dairy products, yogurt still has the advantage since it has more protein content and had yogurt cultures (Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus bulgaricus) in the yogurt of BTIC. The combination of calcium and other dairy components participate in the natural regulatory system of the body to burn fat, thus supporting weight management.

Biosa, of course, has a combination of micro-organisms that makes it even more effective as a probiotic for people, animals and the earth.

Guardian Unlimited - Study links autism to gut microbes

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Tue, 05 Sep 2006 02:33:00 +0000

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Study links autism to gut microbes

Study links autism to gut microbes

James Randerson
Monday September 4, 2006

Guardian Unlimited
A study linking autism with bacteria in the gut today raised hopes that the condition could be treated using probiotics.

The result are very preliminary, but the scientist responsible, Professor Glenn Gibson of the University of Reading, said he was "cautiously optimistic" about them. He added that the study did not suggest any connection between autism and childhood vaccinations.

Prof Gibson told the annual British Association Festival of Science in Norwich that autistic children often suffered with bowel problems such as diarrhoea and constipation, suggesting that they may not have a normal collection of microbes in their guts.

His team compared the bacteria in faeces samples taken from 50 autistic children with those taken from 50 non-autistic subjects, and found that the samples from autistic children had raised levels of the bacterium clostridium.

"Whatever is going on there, [it] is not doing these children any good, and I think almost certainly explains their gastro problems," said Prof Gibson.

More speculatively, he said that some species of clostridium could produce toxins that affected the brain, possibly causing autistic symptoms. But he warned: "The problem with these kinds of studies is, you never know whether it is cause or effect."

To find out, the team set up a trial of a probiotic treatment to reduce the level of clostridium. The trial involved 40 autistic children aged between four and eight. Half were given a harmless bacterium naturally present in the gut, called lactobacillus lantarum; half were given a placebo.

The probiotic was administered as a gramme of powder each day containing around 1bn bacteria. Without being told which group their children were in, parents were asked to record their symptoms.

The results are inconclusive because around half of children dropped out. Some parents withdrew their kids because they did not want them to be swapped on to the placebo.

"Some of the parents worked out that their child was on the [probiotic] and didn't want to move on to the placebo because they were seeing some positive results," said Prof Gibson.

Parents reported that their child's concentration and behaviour had improved, and one mother said it was "heartbreaking" to be told to move on to the placebo.
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Technorati Tags: autism, probiotic, clostridium, lactobacillus

First All Natural Cleaner Using Effective Microorganisms Technology™ In The United States Released By EM America

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Wed, 30 Aug 2006 05:24:00 +0000

While Biosa competes with EM America, we acknowledge that the friendly microbe products come from the same source. [See "Friendly Microbes Explained" link on the right sidebar.]

So we congratulate EM America for their innovation in marketing and product development, and remind people that Biosa can and does provide the same benefits through similar use.

First All Natural Cleaner Using Effective Microorganisms Technology™ In The United States Released By EM America

The fine art of food waste

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Mon, 28 Aug 2006 03:43:00 +0000

The fine art of food waste

"A article about bokashi making in Washington State:

The Washington State University Kitsap County Extension is sponsoring a composting workshop that is intended to help people in high density areas create a more efficient food waste and fertilizer process.

'This is about creating a more sustainable environment,' said Kathy Morse, who will help to conduct the workshop. 'And to pass the planet to your offspring in better shape than you found it.'

The compost process, called 'Bokashi,' was developed in Japan in response to the increase in both population density and gardening interest.

'It helps to keep stuff out of the landfill,' Morse said. 'You don't have to buy compost or haul away garbage. You support a more sustainable environment.'

Participants will mix their own Bokashi, and learn to compost their kitchen waste with no foul odors. Aside from vegetables, the process accommodates meat and protein.
The Bokashi created at this event uses molasses, effective microorganisms and fermented wheat bran. It takes two months to create ready-to-use compost, with no odor or flies.

'The best part of this is how quickly it works,' Morse said. 'When it is applied directly to the soil it provides the right mix of microorganisms and you can plan"

Friendly bacteria in chewing gum that bites back

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 20:39:00 +0000

Friendly bacteria in chewing gum that bites back

A chewing gum containing good bacteria that can destroy the bad bacteria that cause tooth decay could be in the shops soon reports Marina Murphy in C&I. The gum is one of several products being developed by German chemical company BASF using the bacteria Lactobacillus, which is normally found in live yoghurt.

BASF discovered a new strain of lactobacillus called L. anti-caries, which binds to Strepptococcus mutans, the bacteria responsible for tooth decay. S. Mutans sticks to the surface of teeth, where it produces an aggressive acid that breaks down the enamel. The friendly bugs in the gum will make the S. Mutans clump together, preventing them from becoming attached to the tooth surface. Tests reveal that the chewing gum can reduce the amount of bacteria in the mouth fifty times.

Stefan Marcinowski, executive director of research at BASF said that a Lactobacillus product is due to hit the supermarkets in 2007, but would not confirm whether it is the chewing gum. Marcinowski says that the chewing gum 'has been tested on large numbers of people and demonstrated the ability to significantly reduce bacterial levels.' A new range of toothpastes and mouthwashes using L. anti-caries are also in the pipeline.

Chewing gums containing the artificial sweetener xylitol, which has antimicrobial properties, have also been shown to suppress the bacteria that fight tooth decay.

Other potential uses of Lactobacillus include the prevention of body odour. BASF are looking into producing a deodorant based on L. aladoris, which can inhibit odour-producing bacteria in the armpit. Similarly, tests have shown another strain, L. ala-odoris can reduce odour formation in feet.

Technorati Tags: Lactobacillus, tooth+decay, cavities, prevention

Probiotic drinks - not all brands live up to claims

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 17:02:00 +0000

Probiotic drinks - not all brands live up to claims

According to experts as many as half of all probiotic health drinks do not contain the healthy bacteria they claim on the label.

A panel of British microbiologists from British warned yesterday that though established brands such as Yakult, Danone, M?or Nestlé do not try to mislead consumers, as many as 25 products many of which are sold on the web - either do not contain the right bacteria, or contain it in too small quantities.

The experts say consumers should be suspicious unless the probiotic drinks and capsules state they contain lactobacilli or bifidobacterium and stipulate a minimum of 10 million bacteria per bottle.

The panel comprising Glenn Gibson, professor of food microbiology at the University of Reading, Sandra McFarlane, a microbiologist at Dundee University, and Christine Edwards, head of human nutrition at Glasgow University, say consumers need to be aware of these facts.

It seems the "healthy bacteria" account for 10-15% of the bacteria in the gut in adults, but become depleted through poor diets containing too much fatty, low fibre, preservative-laden food, environmental factors, antibiotics and stress.

Probiotic products attempt to redress the balance, and consumers are increasingly buying into the idea of replenishing their supplies of "healthy bacteria" with probiotic yoghurt drinks and yoghurts; a market said to be worth £307m a year.

Probiotics are thought to aid digestion and cut the risk of stomach upsets and some research suggests they help prevent bowel conditions such as ulcerative colitis, protect children against allergies, and may even reduce the risk of colon cancer.

The Food Standards Agency in the UK says that research shows that some probiotics do reach the gut but out of 35 bacterial strains in 12 commercial products, only lactobacillus was sufficiently robust to survive the whole digestive process.

Professor Gibson, who led the research, warns that half of the 50 products available in the UK contained the "wrong" bacteria and were of no benefit but there is no legislation to protect consumers against this.

As an example he notes a powder called Acidophilus that contains an organism called clostridia, makes spores that can be resistant to antibiotics.

The scientists also advise that anyone over 65 should take the recommended products as with age the number of healthy bacteria decrease 1,000-fold to around just 2% of the gut's natural flora.

Probiotic are also advised for anyone taking antibiotics and for people going into hospital in the hope that it might help ward against hospital-acquired infections such as MRSA or clostridium difficile.

Professor Edwards says the ideal would be for people to look at their entire diet, but with only 8% of Britons eating a healthy diet, functional foods such as probiotics may be necessary.

A bacteria a day keeps a cold away

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Thu, 20 Jul 2006 16:26:00 +0000

A bacteria a day keeps a cold away
By NELLIE AYRES
Tuesday, 18 July 2006

The University of Newcastle Department of Immunology and Microbiology Professor Robert Clancy are fronting the local team – the Mucoca Immunology Group.

It has discovered that a daily dose of a healthy bacteria (probiotic lactoacillus acidophilus) capsule over a month can reverse a problem in immunity in fatigued athletes.

Probiotics are safe bacteria that live in everyone's stomach and can be found in a number of foods, including fermented-milk products such as yoghurt and cheese.

Prof Clancy said everyone had heard of probiotics, but previously there was no evidence that supported the positive effects probiotics were claimed to have.

"Although wild claims have been made as to the health benefits, it is only in recent years that an understanding of their action and potential health values has become clear."

In the Mucoca Immunology Group's trial 18 healthy athletes and nine athletes with recurrent sore throats and impaired performance were tested.

Prof Clancy said this study had shown that an athlete's fatigue was linked to intense training and there was reduced concentration of a natural chemical in the saliva (interferon), which is produced by the body to help fight infections.

After one month of taking the capsules daily the level of interferon in the fatigued athletes had increased to normal levels.

It is the first study to show fatigued athletes had less secretion of interferon from T cells than healthy athletes and that probiotics could increase the secretion to that found in healthy athletes.

The world first results were published in the Journal of Sports Medicine in November 2005.

Prof Clancy said the study was based around the concept of overturning an impaired immunity in athletes using probiotics.

Now, Prof Clancy has extended the study to see if a daily capsule of lactobacillus acidophilus would lead to fewer coughs and colds in 'normal, everyday people'.

He needs 200 people, who are prone to the odd cough or cold, for a three-month study.

So far about 30 people have volunteered.

Volunteers would have a sample of their saliva taken to measure the amount of interferon, and then they would be given lactobacillus acidophilus capsules to take daily for three months.

They would also need to fill out diary-type forms each day.

The study is being conducted in conjunction with 20 Newcastle pharmacies.

Professor Clancy hopes once the study is finished probiotics will become more readily available.

After this study the Mucoca Immunology Group will work with Griffith University in Queensland, to discover the effects of probiotics on nurses, who do shift work.

For more information on how you can participate and to get the name of your participating local pharmacy call Janet on 4923 6135.

Technorati Tags: research, immune_system, probiotics, lactobacillus, interferon

NPR : Getting the Goods on 'Good Bacteria'

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Thu, 20 Jul 2006 16:13:00 +0000

NPR : Getting the Goods on 'Good Bacteria'

Probiotics are the latest health buzz. The "good bacteria" are found in foods like yogurts and kefirs, and are also packaged as pill-form dietary supplements.

"By definition, a probiotic is any substance containing live organisms that, when ingested, have a beneficial effect on the host by altering the body's intestinal microflora," says physician Robynne Chutkan, Associate Professor of Medicine at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. The theory is that certain strains of these live organisms -- or good bacteria -- can displace bad bacteria in the gut. The challenge is figuring out which combination of bacterial strains -- and at which doses -- might be effective.

Read it all....

Technorati Tags: research, probiotic, gut, yogurt, health, colon, biosa

Flu vaccines get a shot in the arm

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Mon, 29 May 2006 08:00:00 +0000

Flu vaccines get a shot in the arm:
By Julie Robotham Medical Editor
May 29, 2006

COMMON harmless bacteria like those found in yoghurt and cheese could boost the effectiveness of flu vaccines, say Sydney researchers who are recruiting 300 people to join a trial of a probiotic pill.

Ron Penny, a leading immunologist, will head the study into whether a probiotic tablet called PCC - formulated from a strain of lactobacillus bacteria - can enhance the body's response to flu vaccine, making it less likely the immunised person would develop an infection. Flu vaccines do not provide complete protection against the virus.

Professor Penny, who is Emeritus Professor of medicine at the University of NSW, will take blood samples from people before and after they receive their flu shot, to see whether the production of antibodies is higher in those who also take the pills before and after the injection.

If that were the case, the technique might be particularly useful in any future bird flu vaccination program, Professor Penny said, because there are likely to be continuing world shortages of a bird flu vaccine for humans, even if an effective vaccine is developed.

Professor Penny, who is a director of PCC's manufacturer Probiomics Ltd, said he had initially been sceptical about the potential of probiotic therapy - which aims to restore a healthy balance of bacteria with the body.

'So many of the products on shelves are marked as stimulating the immune system, however there's been no data to support it,' he said.

But previous research on PCC - which promotes the growth of one of many lactobacillus strains - had shown it could reduce eczema symptoms in children and also altered their underlying immune response, as measured in blood tests."
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Technorati Tags: lactobacillus, probiotic, research, avian+flu, avian, influenza, pandemic

Lactobacillus Fermented Foods Made of Sesame, Soybean and Konbu May Enhance Resistance to Harmful Bacterial Infection

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Fri, 26 May 2006 13:53:00 +0000

Tokyo, May 25, 2006 (JCN) - Suntory delivered a presentation on Gozugon, a food made of sesame, soybean and konbu (dried kelp) and fermented by plant-derived Lactobacillus pentosus S-PT84*, at the 60th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Nutrition and Food Science.

The company reported that, in experiments on mice, an intake of Gonzugon helps increase resistanceto cholera toxin and salmonella. In particular, the intake results in an increase the production of immunoglobulin A (IgA), activating gut immunity.

The company concluded that Gonzugon has the potential to protect the body from harmful bacterial infections.
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*Lactobacillus pentorus is not an active ingredient of Biosa™, but shows the benefit of lactobacillus as a probiotic for human and animal health.

Bacteria Can Keep Their Kin in Check

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Sat, 20 May 2006 16:13:00 +0000

A follow-up story to this one:

Bacteria Can Keep Their Kin in Check

Science News

Ben Harder

Our intestines contain a metropolis of living, thriving bacteria. About 500 species crowd into the large intestine's unique ecosystem, for example. Most of them are harmless to us—most of the time. But even these ordinarily benign, or commensal, bacteria may contribute to certain bowel disorders, past research has suggested.

Now, scientists have evidence that the mammalian gut can be fortified to resist the occasional disruptions of resident microbes. To keep bacteria in check, Mary H. Perdue of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, and her colleagues fed laboratory rats a special dietary supplement.

Its key ingredient? Yet more bacteria.

Such beneficial bugs, called probiotics, are the focus of a booming field of medical research. Findings suggest that certain bacterial strains can guard the body against a variety of ills. (For examples, see "Flora Horror," "Germs That Do a Body Good," and "Spray Guards Chicks from Infections.")

In the new study, Perdue's team used commercially available strains of Lactobacillus helveticus and Lactobacillus rhamnosus that are sold together in powder form. The researchers dissolved the powder in water and made sure the organisms were alive.

Then, for 17 days, the team gave the mixture to some lab rats and sterile drinking water to others. Both groups of animals ate normal lab-rat chow throughout the experiment. A week into that regimen, the researchers began subjecting the rats to what rodent researchers call water-avoidance stress.

They placed each animal on a small platform in the middle of a small pool. The animals weren't in danger of drowning, but during each hour-long test they also couldn't leap to dry land from their island of safety.

"Rodents have a natural aversion to water, and they become very anxious if they can't escape," Perdue says. The water-avoidance exercise, she says, "is a purely psychological stressor."

The rats experienced the stressful test each day for the final 10 days of the experiment.

Stress and sickness

Psychological stress can have negative effects on people's intestinal health. Stress has been linked to irritable bowel syndrome and symptoms of Crohn's disease. Long-term stress is also associated with relapses of ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disorder.

Perdue says that stress encourages commensal bacteria to adhere to the intestinal wall and alters the wall's permeability, making it "leaky." When bacteria slip out of the gut and reach other tissues, the body may overreact with a damaging inflammatory response.

Perdue's team designed its study to probe whether probiotics might bolster the gut's protection against the effects of stress. After giving the rats the probiotic mixture or plain water for 17 days, the researchers inspected the animals' guts.

In animals that had drunk plain water, about 100 bacteria clung to each square millimeter of the tissue's inner walls. By comparison, in rats that had received probiotics, two portions of the intestines had 14 and 21 bacteria, on average, per square millimeter, the researchers report in an upcoming Gut.

Rats that hadn't been subjected to stress had no bacteria adhering to their intestinal walls, the researchers report.

Perdue and her colleagues also removed and dissected lymph nodes to which gut-escaping bacteria tend to migrate. Animals that had received the probiotics before and during the period of chronic stress had no bacteria in the targeted lymph nodes. By contrast, the corresponding nodes from other animals contained an average of more than 1,000 germs.

"The probiotic bacteria that we gave the animals completely prevented the penetration of commensal bacteria through the intestinal wall," Perdue reports. "The probiotics appear to be forming a protective layer over the surface of the intestine."

"The probiotics are protecting the intestine from the dysfunction that arises from stress," agrees gastroenterologist Michael Camilleri of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

But the coating effect that Perdue describes may not be the main contributor to the reduction in bacterial escape, Camilleri adds. Rather, probiotics may increase intestinal cells' production of mucus or of immune-system proteins called immunoglobulins, he says.

Data from the study indicate that stressed animals' intestines remain leaky regardless of whether the animals receive probiotics, he notes. Further research will be needed to explain the apparent discrepancy between that fact and the protective effect of the probiotics, he says.

The research has potential clinical applications in inflammatory disorders such as Crohn's disease and pouchitis, which can be a complication of Crohn's or ulcerative colitis, Camilleri says.

"There is increasing evidence of a minor inflammatory state in irritable bowel syndrome," he says, so probiotics might make a difference in that condition, too.

"We don't want to make too big a jump," Perdue cautions. "But it's certainly possible" that probiotics might help people with irritable bowel syndrome.

Products that claim to contain probiotics are widely available, but Perdue offers some caveats.

"Most of them have not been tested in a scientific manner. And a lot of them probably don't do anything because the bacteria might be dead or might not be present in sufficient numbers," she says.

On the other hand, she adds, "probiotics don't do any harm." Eventually, she predicts, "we'll have different mixtures of probiotics to treat different conditions."

Composting secrets uncovered - New Zealand

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Sat, 20 May 2006 06:33:00 +0000

Hawkes Bay Today

Composting secrets uncovered

20.05.2006

JONATHAN DOW

The Beauty of Compost Heaps - isn't an avant-garde art competition entry, but Marion Thomson's view of a working, waste-reducing heap.

To Mrs Thomson, co-ordinator of the Environment Centre HB, putting anything organic into a compost heap rather than a landfill is "the supreme environmental act".

Wipe out Waste and the Sustaining Hawke's Bay Trust have organised workshops where people can learn about composting.

Many people did not know that 45 percent of the average household rubbish bag could be composted, she said.

"If everyone with the facilities had their own compost heap, worm farm or bokashi bucket system working, we could reduce landfill use tremendously and also avoid burying valuable nutrients and trace minerals so deep in the ground to be of any use at all."

Dominic Salmon, waste minimisation officer at the Hastings District Council, said 26 percent of the average rubbish bag was food waste, 19 percent was garden material, and 23 percent paper.

Some people think composting is old-fashioned, but Mr Salmon said "it doesn't have to be hard work".

-30-

Microbial Solution treats septic systems., Natural Environmental Systems L.L.C.

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Fri, 19 May 2006 14:56:00 +0000

This company probably uses the same technology as Biosa, but does not indicate on its product label what the ingredients are. If they have nothing to hide.....

Microbial Solution treats septic systems., Natural Environmental Systems L.L.C.

"Natural Enviro 2000 is a 100% all-natural solution of billions of microorganisms that have been aged and fermented using a natural biological process."

The friendly microorganisms in a bottle of Biosa are dormant and the best way to make use of Biosa and related technologies is to do the fermentation after purchase to increase the microorganism population. This is what makes Biosa so economical - the finished product can be diluted with water as low as 2%. Even then, the fermented live culture has a short shelf life: one month at the most.

Since - according to their website - the product is ready to go straight out of the bottle, I wonder how they are able to keep the microbes viable during transit and storage.

It's all rubbish, really.

noreply@blogger.com (Al) — Fri, 19 May 2006 05:55:00 +0000

It's all rubbish, really from Guardian Unlimited: News blog: "Of all the activities to try to convince people to spend their hard-earned cash and precious time on, composting has to be one of the hardest. I can sum the problem up in four words. Rotting. Worms. Philippa Forrester.

For it is she of Robot Wars and Tomorrow's World fame who is the face of Recycle Now's Home Composting Campaign for 2006, crowned by this week's Compost Awareness Week.

Despite a celebrity endorsement, and a compost bus touring the country (the mind boggles, but apparently it's not a bus full of worms and semi-decomposed lettuces, as I'd first imagined, but an open-top bus on which the top deck is a garden), Recycle Now faces an uphill struggle in promoting composting to the two-thirds of the population who aren't already harvesting their potato peelings. I suspect that if you haven't already been swayed by strenuous campaigns by local councils to convince you to compost by offering cut-price or free compost bins, you're unlikely to be softened by the sight of Forrester and family feeding their heap.

So what to do? I'm not convinced this year's campaign - or indeed previous campaigns featuring an accusatory Monty Don sending gardeners who don't compost on a guilt trip - will work. So I've concocted my very own top three reasons to get composting. If this doesn't convert you, compost nay sayers, nothing will:

Stave off a burgeoning existential crisis
As Bette Midler, actor and compost advocate (how did we end up with Philippa Forrester?), has put it: 'My whole life had been spent waiting for an epiphany, a manifestation of God's presence, the kind of transcendent, magical experience that lets you see your place in the big picture. And that is what I had with my first [compost] heap.' Taking control of what happens to the waste you create can be strangely empowering.

Composters - the next must-have gadget
Composting technology has come a long way in the last few years. Forget your iPod - technophiles everywhere should be getting their hands on a Bokashi composter that's at the leading edge of composting. It uses specially selected micro organisms to speed up the composting process and produce an odourless fermented waste that breaks down extremely quickly once put into the soil. [In Canada and the USA see: Great Day Bokashi]

Or, if you prefer to have a little absurdity in your life, you can't go far wrong with the Rolypig composter. (I have no idea why it's a pig, but you roll it around to speed the decomposition process.)

It could save you money and keep you out of court
Things are going to get tough for anyone who doesn't take recycling seriously. As this article from the Guardian in January points out, Barnet in north London threatens people with ?1,000 fines if they do not recycle, while Thetford borough council has issued more than 500 'red cards' after which rubbish may not be picked up. It's likely that as pressure on landfills continues to grow, more and more councils will bring in punitive measures against those who fail to take responsibility for their waste, and some may even consider charging by the kilo for rubbish removal.

Start composting now, and you should be able to cut the amount of stuff that ends up in black plastic sacks by up to a third. And no more jumping up and down on your wheelie bin to squeeze everything in either."

The post was written by Jane Perrone.

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