Saturday, March 26, 2005

Preventing Type 1 Diabetes

Article Description:
"Scientists have identified a way to prevent Type I diabetes in rats that are genetically prone to develop the disease. The discovery could one day lead to the prevention, and possibly to the treatment, of autoimmune diseases such as Type 1 diabetes."

The study was headed by Alessio Fasano, M.D., professor of pediatrics, medicine and physiology and director of the University of Maryland Mucosal Biology Research Center, who said:

"With autoimmune diseases, the body mistakes its own tissues as foreign, resulting in an attack and destruction by the body’s own immune system. These diseases are all characterized by an extremely permeable intestinal wall. We already knew that there was a distinct connection between an increase in zonulin levels and an increased permeability of the intestines. With this study, we’ve been able to identify a way to prevent zonulin from causing leakage from the intestines as it does in people with these autoimmune diseases."

By preventing the "leaky gut syndrome" that is apparently shared by Type 1 Diabetes, celiac disease and other autoimmune "diseases of civilization," these scientists have been able to prevent Type 1 Diabetes from occuring in susceptible rats. The underlying trigger for most or all autoimmune diseases is the consumption of modern foods by genetically susceptible individuals.