Unexpected Microbe Diversity on Human Skin

A new study of the skin’s microbiome—all of the DNA, or genomes, of all of the microbes that inhabit human skin—reveals that our skin is home to a much wider array of bacteria than previously thought. The accomplishment provides a new foundation for developing strategies to treat and prevent difficult skin diseases such as eczema, psoriasis, acne and antibiotic-resistant infections.
Photo of human skin.

The skin is one of the body’s first lines of defense against illness and injury. Its health depends upon the delicate balance between our own cells and the millions of bacteria and other one-celled microbes that live on its surface. To better understand this balance, NIH researchers drew on the power of modern DNA sequencing technology and computational analysis.

Scientists at NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the NIH Clinical Center took skin samples from 20 sites on the bodies of 10 healthy volunteers. They extracted DNA from each sample and sequenced a type of gene that is specific to bacteria, the 16S ribosomal RNA gene.

The researchers reported in the journal Science on May 28, 2009, that they identified, classified and compared more than 112,000 bacterial gene sequences. Previous methods, which involved growing microbial samples from human skin in the laboratory, had uncovered a far less diverse collection.

The greatest influence on bacterial populations appears to be body location. For example, the bacteria that live under your arms likely are more similar to those under another person’s arm than they are to the bacteria on your own forearm. There was also considerable variation in the number of bacteria species at different sites, with the most diversity on the forearm (44 species on average) and the least diversity behind the ear (19 species on average).

In general, dry and moist skin had a broader variety of microbes than oily skin. Dry areas include the inside surface of the mid-forearm, the palm of the hand and the buttock. Moist areas include inside the nose, armpit and side of the groin. Oily sites include beside the nose, inside the ear and the upper chest and back.

To look for changes over time, the researchers sampled some volunteers twice, with the samples taken about 4 to 6 months apart. Most of the resampled volunteers were more like themselves over time than they were like other volunteers. However, the stability of the microbial community was dependent on the site surveyed. The greatest stability was found in samples from inside the ear and nose. The least stability was found in samples from behind the knee.

"Our results underscore that skin is home to vibrant communities of microbial life, which may significantly influence our health," says Dr. Elizabeth Grice, a postdoctoral fellow at NHGRI and the study’s first author.

This study is among early research laying the groundwork for NIH’s Human Microbiome Project, which aims to characterize human microbial communities and their role in health and disease. Other efforts are sampling the microbiomes of the nose, digestive tract, mouth and vagina.
Related Links:

* Human Microbiome Project:
http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/hmp/
* Skin Diseases:
http://health.nih.gov/result.asp?terms=skin&disease_id=599

Source: http://www.nih.gov/news/research_matters/june2009/06012009skin.htm

Successful Weight Loss

The Medifast 5 and 1 Diet plan's banner says it all - helping you lose weight and helping you keep it off.

The Basics

The 5 and 1 diet is among the most popular weight-loss product by Medifast. This recommends 5 meal replacements and 1 real meal per day, a "lean and green" meal that is composed of lean protein, salads and two cups of vegetables to break the monotony of meal replacements.

The meal replacements are formulated to have very low calories, thus it is possible to achieve weight loss of 2 to 5 pounds per week by undergoing this plan. These meal replacements come in various forms including soups, bars, oatmeal preparations and shakes that come with varying protein proportions. Every day, participants of this plan consume approximately 800 to 1000 calories, a calorie intake that is barely enough to make your body pack extra fats.

The rule is to eat these replacements every 2 to 3 hours. According to the principles of maintaining metabolism, this is a sound plan as it allows the body with just enough to process to keep its metabolism at peak. This diet also advocates drinking of at least 64oz of water per day. On top of this, other fluids may be consumed as well.

Why it's effective in triggering weight loss?

Do the math. With a daily caloric intake of up to 1000 calories and meal replacements that are engineered to keep you off from weight-loss-busting goodies, this diet plan definitely takes you to a weight-gain proofed zone. Forget about the lean and green meal, which could attempt you to consume more foods than you are actually allowed.

It is noteworthy that this weight loss plan was created for overweight people. Though the methods it advocates are drastic (take note of ketosis and dehydration), it surely has helped many people with their weight problems.

Easiest Weight Loss Diet

Wouldn't it be nice to lose weight easily and quickly without all of the headaches for once? I have great news for you! Take just a quick two minutes out of your day to read this article here and learn more about the easiest weight loss diet to lose weight and burn fat lightning fast!

You know, the reason majority of these diet programs you see scattered all over the place today do not work is simply because they are based around improper dieting techniques that will end up slowing down your metabolism. Things such as low-fat, low-carb, low calorie simply just do not work!

The most effective online diet plan I have come across throughout my years of research is the calorie shifting program from Fat Loss 4 Idiots.

This diet is so powerful but yet so simple. The reason this diet works well is because it is based around getting proper nutrition and elevating your metabolism.

The way this diet works is you will firstly be receiving a diet generator that will create for you four meals you'll eat daily. Secondly, you will be shown a dieting technique called "shifting" which is where you will switch around the calories from the meals you are eating so that you can trick your metabolism into elevating to the peak. What this all will do is provide you with incredibly fast weight loss and fat loss 100% naturally throughout the entire day...and without diet pills, no strenuous exercise, and no fad diets!

So, if you would like to lose 9 pounds 11 days from now with an easy, powerful, and 100% natural diet, then I recommend you try out the calorie shifting diet today.

Master Cleanse A Creative Approach to Weight Loss

Are you tired of the same old diets? Do you get the results you want? How can you get more creative with weight loss programs is now available with the master cleanse detoxification system. This is a plan that will get you excited about weight loss. For once you will see noticeable result fast and easily afford the natural organic ingredients that anyone can get in their local grocer.

The best advantage of the natural detox system is that you do not have to spend a lot of money. This makes the program available to everyone and does not require one time fees of hundreds of dollars or even monthly membership dues to join a program. This is a program that you can easily incorporate into your budget and get the benefits of purifying your body and lose the excess weight fast. This is not a diet but can be implemented in your lifestyle daily regime. Used a couple of times a year, you can maintain the normal healing ability of the body, restore the natural balance within the body by reducing chemical and toxin accumulations. What most people want out of their diet or weight loss program is a stress free easy way to quickly shed those unwanted pounds and better looking body shape overall. The creative ways that you can achieve this goal is by detoxifying your vital digestive organs and cleanse the body of any blockages, sediments trapped intestinally and invigorate sluggish functioning of the organs to work better for you.

The master cleanse is responsible for hundreds of testimonials by those who have lost up to 20 pounds in two weeks and even more. But there are other results that surprised some when taking the natural organic fusion of fresh organic lemon juice, cayenne pepper, maple syrup mixed in a glass of pure water. Each glass holds the nutrients and natural sugars that the body needs and can absorb easily while flushing out the fat from your body.

While on the program, there is no way you can eat your regular diet which is usually known to contain some foods that you know is not a healthy dietary benefit. You will have to stop eating solid foods for a few days and drink the master cleanse sweet lemonade at least eight to twelve times each day. But there are many ways to enhance the program by supplementing with a salt water cleanser, or adding fresh fruit juices, raw fruit and vegetable after the first four or five days.

Weight Loss For body

One way in which people lose weight quickly is by fasting, or going through a body detox. Some people absolutely swear by it. But doing it right is the key. To truly do a cleanse right, you should employ some basic common sense measures. Consider the following top four tips for a cleanse.

Research

If you plan to purchase a cleanse product, you should do some research on it first. Not all are alike and each will have a different component and different intended results. Make sure that the product you choose will help you lose weight (which not all cleanse products are designed to do) and that it gets good reviews from those who have used it.

Consider your body

If you can't go without eating and just know that you'll get sick if you don't, choose a detox plan that will allow you some food, like fruits and vegetables. If you are trying to lose weight through a program of detox, you should consider how much weight you have to lose and be realistic about what a deotx can do for you.

If you want to lose 10 pounds, you might find that one detox series might take off those 10 pounds and you're done. If you have 100 pounds to lose, however, you might find that you lose 10 or 15 pounds on the detox, but that doesn't mean you continue to fast or you continue the cleanse program. Instead, you might use that as your weight loss jumpstart and continue a solid and healthy diet on your own.

Understand the cleanse

If you purchase a commercial cleanse product, understand how it works, what's in it and what it can do for you. The more you educate yourself, the better you will be able to handle what comes once you begin the program.

If you are doing a diet cleanse, where you follow a diet set out for you, read through it completely and understand what to eat, what to avoid and the like. As well, be aware of the side effects of doing a cleanse. You might find that you have to adjust your life a bit when you first start a cleanse.

Eat the right foods

If you aren't fasting, be sure to understand which food are best for a whole body cleanse. Some foods will naturally detoxify the body, so choose those foods so you can get the best benefit from the cleanse that you can. Some foods that naturally detox the body are:

Leafy green vegetables
Water
Lemons
Garlic
Green tea
Cabbage
Fruit

If you are careful, you might likely get excellent results and lose a good deal of weight while on a detox diet. Just do your research and follow through with the program.

Need Help For Fast Weight Loss

Millions and millions of people are currently seriously overweight all over the world and all of them need to help and they need it fast. Losing weight is easy but keeping it off permanently is almost impossible for most people. To lose weight fast and successfully takes a lot more then just a few tips about nutrition and exercise, you really need to learn so so much about nutrition and exercise to make it happen.

If you want to be a great guitar player then you have to practice for many many years and push yourself all the time right? But for some reason people thing that things are different with weight loss, but they are not. It takes a lot of time, effort and knowledge to lose weight and this does not happen overnight. Repeat this to yourself day in and day out.

And also you certainly will have periods when you will make a lot of progress and periods when you will gain weight. It is nearly impossible to consistently lose weight without setbacks, they do happen and you have to keep going and overcome them and not give up.

If you travel on a plane from point A to point B, then the plane will sometimes drift out of course or hit heavy turbulence, it does happen all the time. The pilot does not panic if the plane is a little of course, he or she just makes a few corrections to get back on track. The same is with weight loss, you will have small problems and setbacks, just do not give up.

If you want to get help to lose weight fast then you obviously have to know who to turn to. You can´t make it on your own. So you have get help from weight loss experts like natural bodybuilders. This the only way how you can lose weight fast without gaining it back again.

Weight Loss 'AHA' Moments

Have you ever had a sudden moment of clarity where a light-bulb goes off in your head and you think: 'AHA! That's IT!!'? These moments are very exciting and powerful, because they mean that you have experienced a subconscious shift. When you start to think differently about the things you have been doing this can inspire you to make powerful and positive changes not just with weight loss, but in all areas of your life. When you experience this kind of shift, you find that what may have seemed a foreign concept to you in the past, now just feels 'right'.

To give an example of what I mean, many people who come to see me are stuck in what I call 'rollercoaster' thinking. That is, they are accustomed to going on a diet and being 'good' for a certain number of weeks or months. But what happens at the end of this time? Well most people go right back to their original eating patterns. With the abandonment of the 'diet' come overindulgence, self-hatred and usually more weight gain. Not a great result for all that effort.

You see for most of us, it's pretty easy to be perfect for a short time. The problem is that when eventually we tire of this. We get sick of being 'good' all the time while others around us are being 'bad'. So eventually we crack; and then we find ourselves right back where we started; overweight and unhappy. This is the dichotomy of the diet; it doesn't change your attitude towards food. Yet many people are so used to being stuck in the 'diet rollercoaster mindset' that anything else is extremely foreign to them. Here are some of the most common elements of the diet mindset;

* I must follow my diet perfectly or not at all;

* There are either 'good' foods or 'bad' foods. I must avoid all 'bad' foods and eat only 'good' foods;

* If I have a small piece of chocolate, I have been 'bad', therefore I have failed and I must start all over again;

When 'Anna came to see me, her weight loss 'AHA' moment came after her second consultation. She realized that she held a very strong subconscious belief that no matter what weight loss program she tried, she could never expect to complete it in full or, as she put it, 'to do it properly.' As part of my weight loss program, I recommend that my clients eat some of the things they enjoy, without going overboard. I call this a 'free meal day'. This process is designed to assist clients to shift away from the 'all-or-nothing mindset and move into manageable lifestyle adjustment.

The problem is that many people fall into the trap of mistaking their 'free meal day' as a blunder or a slip up. When 'Anna' finally came to terms with her old outdated belief, she was able to embrace her 'free meal day' and enjoy it for what it was. Instead of punishing herself for being 'bad', or for not 'doing it properly', she began to look forward to this special day in the week. All along, 'Anna' WAS actually following the program properly; it's just that she wasn't used to allowing herself some of the foods she enjoyed. As you change your attitude towards food and eating, you will lose weight and you will be able to keep that weight off in the long term.

'Karina' was a beautiful and vibrant 45 year old woman who was stuck in the past. She had a strong belief that her body was not acceptable as it was, and that she 'must' look like a 15 year old model. She was approaching menopause, yet continued to chastise herself because she did not look the way had looked years ago when she was in her youth. 'Karina' was also stuck in the pattern of behaving like a young person; drinking too much, avoiding exercise and generally expecting her body to bounce back from the abuse she dished out in the same way it had when she was younger. When her 'AHA' came to her, she realized what she was doing. She began to accept her body and treat it the way it deserved to be treated; with care and respect.

Whatever your block to weight loss is, you can find the solution, and it all starts with self-awareness. Find out which beliefs or ideas are holding you back. As you do this, you will find many 'AHA' moments coming to you. These will allow you to move through your blocks and maintain a healthy weight for your age.