4 ms·

I absolutely agree with this. My great grandmother had Alzheimers as well as Hidradenitis suppurativa, which I have inherited from her. I switched to a yeast an

I absolutely agree with this. My great grandmother had Alzheimers as well as Hidradenitis suppurativa, which I have inherited from her. I switched to a yeast and wheat free diet many years ago to relieve symptoms of HS. Not only did it resolve my HS, but also migraines and many other inflammatory issues. Looks like there is research around Alzheimer's and Dectin-1 signaling which is involved in innate immunity to fungi, including bread yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). It's absolutely insane to me that people eat a pathogen that triggers an innate immune response. A inflammation response to yeast is coded into our cells, if it weren't we'd be killed by unbaked bread. Why then do most processed foods contain it? We're taxing and confusing our immune systems by eating it.

micro_cam 5y ago
This isn’t a well understood area at all but the idea that yeast / fermented food consumption helps us regulate our immune system in a good way has also been studied.
- noyeastguy 5y ago
  Yep, it's kind of a double-edged sword. On one hand an over-active immune response can be great for fighting cancers and opportunistic infections possibly. But too much inflammation will wear down our bodies and trigger auto-immune responses.
klipt 5y ago
Is there less Alzheimer's in cultures that don't eat bread (e.g. where rice or potatoes are a staple instead)? Maybe in bread heavy cultures it's not a widespread issue because the majority of people have evolved some kind of resistance?
- ejolto 5y ago
  You tend to get Alzheimer's after you are done having children, so resistance wouldn't evolve.
  - klipt 5y ago
    If that were true humans would die much sooner after becoming infertile. The fact we stick around for so long is because having healthy grandparents is still beneficial to grandchildrens' survival.
kortex 5y ago
That does not really make sense. Yeast from bread is not really a pathogen. Everything you eat, not just bread, is covered in wild yeast. Fermented foods, which are largely considered good for heath, are full of yeast. So you could refine that last bit to > We're taxing and confusing our immune systems by eating. if that were truly the case.
- TremendousJudge 5y ago
  > We're taxing and confusing our immune systems by eating. Well this is not wrong. I'm no expert, but it seems as though not eating (or drinking) would result in less need for inmune system activity, at least in the digestive track. Of course, you'd die, but maybe that was the cost of healthy living all along
- noyeastguy 5y ago
  This diet is hard to follow because yeast cuts through a lot of foods, especially in fermented foods as you've mentioned. A non-exhaustive list of yeasty foods looks like: Non-distilled vinegars, non-distilled alcohols, dried fruits, naturally-fermented soy sauce, cheese, many savory packaged goods, most vegan meat replacements, some dried spices, bread, etc. Fermented foods and mushrooms can be good at fighting cancer precisely because they ramp up the immune system. In fact yeast is used as an adjuvant inside of vaccines for this purpose. What's insane is that it is both known and not known that yeast causes inflammation by science. Used as adjuvant, used to "boost" immunity, yet not understood to be a cause of general low-grade systemic inflammation when in our food supply. Opportunistic Strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae: A Potential Risk Sold in Food Products https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4705302/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4705302/
  - BenjiWiebe 5y ago
    Most cheese, if not all, doesn't have yeast in it. It's bacteria that ferment it. Though I guess it will have as much wild yeast land on it as any other food in your plate but I don't think that's what the parent comment was referencing. Source: I've been involved in small commercial cheese making for years.

micro_cam 5y ago

This isn’t a well understood area at all but the idea that yeast / fermented food consumption helps us regulate our immune system in a good way has also been studied.

noyeastguy 5y ago
Yep, it's kind of a double-edged sword. On one hand an over-active immune response can be great for fighting cancers and opportunistic infections possibly. But too much inflammation will wear down our bodies and trigger auto-immune responses.

klipt 5y ago

Is there less Alzheimer's in cultures that don't eat bread (e.g. where rice or potatoes are a staple instead)? Maybe in bread heavy cultures it's not a widespread issue because the majority of people have evolved some kind of resistance?

ejolto 5y ago
You tend to get Alzheimer's after you are done having children, so resistance wouldn't evolve.
- klipt 5y ago
  If that were true humans would die much sooner after becoming infertile. The fact we stick around for so long is because having healthy grandparents is still beneficial to grandchildrens' survival.

kortex 5y ago

That does not really make sense. Yeast from bread is not really a pathogen. Everything you eat, not just bread, is covered in wild yeast. Fermented foods, which are largely considered good for heath, are full of yeast. So you could refine that last bit to > We're taxing and confusing our immune systems by eating. if that were truly the case.

TremendousJudge 5y ago
> We're taxing and confusing our immune systems by eating. Well this is not wrong. I'm no expert, but it seems as though not eating (or drinking) would result in less need for inmune system activity, at least in the digestive track. Of course, you'd die, but maybe that was the cost of healthy living all along
noyeastguy 5y ago
This diet is hard to follow because yeast cuts through a lot of foods, especially in fermented foods as you've mentioned. A non-exhaustive list of yeasty foods looks like: Non-distilled vinegars, non-distilled alcohols, dried fruits, naturally-fermented soy sauce, cheese, many savory packaged goods, most vegan meat replacements, some dried spices, bread, etc. Fermented foods and mushrooms can be good at fighting cancer precisely because they ramp up the immune system. In fact yeast is used as an adjuvant inside of vaccines for this purpose. What's insane is that it is both known and not known that yeast causes inflammation by science. Used as adjuvant, used to "boost" immunity, yet not understood to be a cause of general low-grade systemic inflammation when in our food supply. Opportunistic Strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae: A Potential Risk Sold in Food Products https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4705302/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4705302/
- BenjiWiebe 5y ago
  Most cheese, if not all, doesn't have yeast in it. It's bacteria that ferment it. Though I guess it will have as much wild yeast land on it as any other food in your plate but I don't think that's what the parent comment was referencing. Source: I've been involved in small commercial cheese making for years.