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Immune system and inflammation

The gut as the body's largest immune organ. 7 chapters – expand
  • Level:Intermediate Immune system and inflammation The gut trains your defences and can also upset them unnecessarily. InflammationMediterranean dietFermented foodsSleepTests and diagnostics Promising How we rate the evidence Established Recommended in medical guidelines or supported by several consistent meta-analyses of randomised human studies. Well supported Several randomised studies in humans with largely consistent results. Promising Single randomised or controlled studies in humans, not yet independently confirmed — or many consistent observational studies. Plausible Two cases: first observational or pilot studies with small samples — or a settled basis that is not in dispute, such as movement, sleep or meal pauses. But not tested in humans for symptoms. Experimental Barely studied in humans. Mainly lab and animal studies or theoretical reasoning; whether it helps is open.
  • Level:Intermediate Eating against silent inflammation What is on your plate influences how agitated your immune system is. InflammationMediterranean dietAdditives Promising How we rate the evidence Established Recommended in medical guidelines or supported by several consistent meta-analyses of randomised human studies. Well supported Several randomised studies in humans with largely consistent results. Promising Single randomised or controlled studies in humans, not yet independently confirmed — or many consistent observational studies. Plausible Two cases: first observational or pilot studies with small samples — or a settled basis that is not in dispute, such as movement, sleep or meal pauses. But not tested in humans for symptoms. Experimental Barely studied in humans. Mainly lab and animal studies or theoretical reasoning; whether it helps is open.
  • Level:Intermediate SCD, GAPS and the autoimmune protocol: what strict elimination diets can and cannot do Diets with long lists of forbidden foods promise to heal the gut. What studies show about SCD, GAPS and AIP, and why a short, structured test is different from months of avoidance. InflammationMediterranean dietFODMAPPlant diversity Promising How we rate the evidence Established Recommended in medical guidelines or supported by several consistent meta-analyses of randomised human studies. Well supported Several randomised studies in humans with largely consistent results. Promising Single randomised or controlled studies in humans, not yet independently confirmed — or many consistent observational studies. Plausible Two cases: first observational or pilot studies with small samples — or a settled basis that is not in dispute, such as movement, sleep or meal pauses. But not tested in humans for symptoms. Experimental Barely studied in humans. Mainly lab and animal studies or theoretical reasoning; whether it helps is open. Community
  • Level:Intermediate Skin and gut: what there is to the gut-skin axis Acne, rosacea, eczema, psoriasis: which links to the gut are proven, where a real disease is behind it, and where the hype begins. InflammationCoeliac disease and glutenProbioticsAllergiesAntibiotics Promising How we rate the evidence Established Recommended in medical guidelines or supported by several consistent meta-analyses of randomised human studies. Well supported Several randomised studies in humans with largely consistent results. Promising Single randomised or controlled studies in humans, not yet independently confirmed — or many consistent observational studies. Plausible Two cases: first observational or pilot studies with small samples — or a settled basis that is not in dispute, such as movement, sleep or meal pauses. But not tested in humans for symptoms. Experimental Barely studied in humans. Mainly lab and animal studies or theoretical reasoning; whether it helps is open. Community
  • Level:Intermediate PEA (palmitoylethanolamide): the body's own inflammation brake in a capsule A fatty substance the body makes itself to calm mast cells and inflammation. As a supplement it is taken for gut and nerve pain. What studies show and where they are thin. IBSInflammationHistamineDiarrhoea Plausible How we rate the evidence Established Recommended in medical guidelines or supported by several consistent meta-analyses of randomised human studies. Well supported Several randomised studies in humans with largely consistent results. Promising Single randomised or controlled studies in humans, not yet independently confirmed — or many consistent observational studies. Plausible Two cases: first observational or pilot studies with small samples — or a settled basis that is not in dispute, such as movement, sleep or meal pauses. But not tested in humans for symptoms. Experimental Barely studied in humans. Mainly lab and animal studies or theoretical reasoning; whether it helps is open.
  • Level:Intermediate Autoimmune diseases and the gut: Hashimoto's, vitiligo, type 1 diabetes and more When the immune system attacks the body itself, the gut is often involved – as the place where the immune system learns, as a bystander that gets hit, and perhaps as a co-trigger. What is established, what has only been shown in mice, and what people affected can actually do. InflammationCoeliac disease and glutenVitamins and fatty acidsMedicationTests and diagnostics Plausible How we rate the evidence Established Recommended in medical guidelines or supported by several consistent meta-analyses of randomised human studies. Well supported Several randomised studies in humans with largely consistent results. Promising Single randomised or controlled studies in humans, not yet independently confirmed — or many consistent observational studies. Plausible Two cases: first observational or pilot studies with small samples — or a settled basis that is not in dispute, such as movement, sleep or meal pauses. But not tested in humans for symptoms. Experimental Barely studied in humans. Mainly lab and animal studies or theoretical reasoning; whether it helps is open. Community
  • Level:Intermediate Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis: understanding inflammatory bowel disease In Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, the immune system permanently attacks the gut wall. What distinguishes the two, what role genes, smoking, antibiotics and gut microbiota play, why early treatment matters, and what diet, probiotics and faecal transplants really achieve. InflammationDiarrhoeaTests and diagnosticsMedicationAntibioticsNutrientsProbioticsFaecal transplantMediterranean diet Established How we rate the evidence Established Recommended in medical guidelines or supported by several consistent meta-analyses of randomised human studies. Well supported Several randomised studies in humans with largely consistent results. Promising Single randomised or controlled studies in humans, not yet independently confirmed — or many consistent observational studies. Plausible Two cases: first observational or pilot studies with small samples — or a settled basis that is not in dispute, such as movement, sleep or meal pauses. But not tested in humans for symptoms. Experimental Barely studied in humans. Mainly lab and animal studies or theoretical reasoning; whether it helps is open.