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Western diets are rapidly spreading due to globalization, causing an increase in obesity and diseases of civilization. These Western diets are associated with changes in the gut microbiota related to intestinal inflammation. This review discusses the adverse effects of Western diets, which are high in fat and sugar and low in vegetable fiber, on the gut microbiota. This leads to gut dysbiosis and overgrowth of Candida albicans, which is a major cause of fungal infection worldwide. In addition to an unhealthy Western diet, other factors related to disease development and gut dysbiosis include smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, lack of physical activity, prolonged use of antibiotics, and chronic psychological stress. This review suggests that a diversified diet containing vegetable fiber, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins D and E, as well as micronutrients associated with probiotic or prebiotic supplements can improve the biodiversity of the microbiota, lead to short-chain fatty acid production, and reduce the abundance of fungal species in the gut. The review also discusses a variety of foods and plants that are effective against fungal overgrowth and gut dysbiosis in traditional medicine. Overall, healthy diets and lifestyle factors contribute to human well-being and increase the biodiversity of the gut microbiota, which positively modulates the brain and central nervous system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Observational studies have linked Mediterranean Diets (MedDiets) and organic food consumption with positive health outcomes, which may be explained by higher mineral micronutrient and phenolic intake and lower dietary exposure to toxic compounds. Objectives We aimed to determine the effects of diet and food type (organic compared with conventional) on urinary excretion (UE) and/or plasma concentrations of mineral micronutrients, phenolics, and toxic metals. Methods Healthy adult participants were randomly allocated to a conventional (n  = 14) or an intervention (n  = 13) group. During a 2-wk period, the intervention group consumed a MedDiet made entirely from organic foods, whereas the conventional group consumed a MedDiet made from conventional foods. Before and after the intervention period, both groups consumed their habitual Western diets made from conventional foods. The primary outcome was UE and/or plasma concentrations of selected mineral micronutrients, toxic metals, and phenolic markers. In addition, we monitored diets using food diaries. The participants were aware of study group assignment, but the study assessors were not. Results Changing from a Western Diet to a MedDiet for 2 wk resulted in significant increases in UE of total phenolics and salicylic acid (by 46% and 45%, respectively), the mineral micronutrients Co, I, and Mn (by 211%, 70%, and 102%, respectively), and the toxic metal Ni (by 42%), and plasma Se concentrations (by 14%). However, no significant effects of food type (organic compared with conventional) were detected. Redundancy analysis identified vegetables, coffee, wine, and fruit as positive drivers for UE of phenolic markers and mineral micronutrients, and fish consumption as a positive driver for UE of Cd and Pb. Conclusions Although small effects of food type cannot be ruled out, our study suggests that only changing to a MedDiet with higher fruit and vegetable, and lower meat, consumption results in a large increase in phenolic and mineral micronutrient intakes. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03254537. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In modern lifestyle, stress and Western diets are two major environmental risk factors involved in the etiology of neuropsychiatric disorders. Lifelong interactions between stress, Western diets, and how they can affect brain physiology, remain unknown. A possible relation between dietary long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), endocannabinoids, and stress is proposed. This review suggests that both Western diets and negative stress or distress increase n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio in the phospholipids of the plasma membrane in neurons, allowing an over-activation of the endocannabinoid system in the limbic areas that control emotions. As a consequence, an excitatory/inhibitory imbalance is induced, which may affect the ability to synchronize brain areas involved in the control of stress responses. These alterations increase vulnerability to neuropsychiatric disorders. Accordingly, dietary intake of n-3 PUFA would counter the effects of stress on the brain of stressed subjects. In conclusion, this article proposes that PUFA, endocannabinoids, and stress form a unique system which is self-regulated in limbic areas which in turn controls the effects of stress on the brain throughout a lifetime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public health courses are emerging as popular undergraduate offerings, especially at universities with schools of public health. It is important to note that evolution has shaped the burden of disease in the modern world in which we practice and educate for public health. Human cultures and technologies have modified life on Planet Earth and have co-evolved with myriad other species, including microorganisms, plant and animal sources of food, invertebrate vectors of disease, and intermediate bird, mammal, and primate hosts. Molecular mechanisms of evolution have produced differential resistance or susceptibility to infectious agents, including malaria, plague, smallpox, TB, measles, and diarrheal and respiratory diseases. The domestication of sheep and cattle led to natural selection in favor of human populations able to digest milk throughout life through persistence into adulthood of lactase enzyme expression in the intestine, a major story of anthropology. The emergence of a 'Western diet' of dairy, refined cereal grains, refined sugars, vegetable oils, alcoholic beverages, salt, and omega-6-rich meats has dramatically altered glycemic load, fatty acid composition, macronutrients, acid-base balance, sodium/potassium ratio, and fiber content. This is a major story of nutrition and disease. The results include epidemics of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, certain cancers, and bowel, inflammatory, and autoimmune disorders. Another interesting phenomenon is the selection of excessive hemostatic activity from platelets and the plasma clotting proteins; what was protective against death from bleeding after injuries among hunter-gatherers or from pregnancy-related hemorrhage now contributes to thrombosis underlying heart attacks and strokes. Conversely, there is little pressure against hemostasis and thrombosis since deaths from these causes occur mostly after the reproductive years of life. Learning about evolution over millennia for humans and over hours or days for microbes enlivens the experience of understanding evolutionary biology in public health context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]