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Should We Blame Colon Cancer on the Intestinal Bacteria?

The bacteria that inhabit our intestines have a huge impact on our health. The most recent revelation is that people with colon cancer have a different mix of bacteria than healthy volunteers, with more nasty strains and fewer beneficial ones. Some of the deleterious microbes, such as Fusobacteria, are associated with inflammation.

[Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Dec. 6, 2013]

The only difficulty with this fascinating information is how to change the ecological pattern of gut bacteria from an unfavorable one to a more favorable profile. Our microbial inhabitants do change depending upon what we feed them, so that might be the first place to start. Feeding them plenty of vegetables and relatively little red meat or highly processed food seems logical, though we have not seen this tested in a clinical trial.

Another possibility that has gotten some attention lately, and even has studies to back it up, might be fecal transplantation. This sounds fairly yucky, but it has saved lives.

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About the Author
Terry Graedon, PhD, is a medical anthropologist and co-host of The People’s Pharmacy radio show, co-author of The People’s Pharmacy syndicated newspaper columns and numerous books, and co-founder of The People’s Pharmacy website. Terry taught in the Duke University School of Nursing and was an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology. She is a Fellow of the Society of Applied Anthropology. Terry is one of the country's leading authorities on the science behind folk remedies..
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