The division had a start when I read the Handbook of Physiology
of the American Society for Physiology, in 1967. I was
charged with the treatment of malnutrition and diarrhoea in
the University of Florence. I read the handbook to become
aware about mucosal digestion and absorption. At that time,
these points had to be diagnosed to treat malnourished children.
Before beginning any research, I intended to adapt intake
to intestinal physiology. I read that 50% - 60% or more
immune cells of the human body reside in the mucosa of
small intestine (Mowat, 1987, 44; Brandtzaeg et al., 1989;
Abrams, 1977). Bacteria grow in small and large intestine by
slow energy production without oxygen use. All fibers and
small amounts of sugars, carbohydrates, proteins, fats escape
intestinal digestion and provide energy for one bacterial replication
per day (Hungate, 1967).
Food avoided absorption due
either to excessive intake or to incapability to be digested. Fibers
like cellulose and pectin escape digestion and promote
slow growth of poorly immunogenic bacteria species and
prevent harmful microbiome developments. Bacterial growth
becomes immunogenic and harmful when energy dense
food is largely available. In the mammal intestine, bacterial
indiscriminate, harmful growth is proportionate to a positive
energy balance in blood and in body. Thus I studied bacteria
number on intestinal mucosa in time after last meal. A longer
interval from the meal produced a decrease in bacteria number.
An increase in mucosal and overall immune stimulation
is associated with bacteria growth on intestinal mucosa, with
preprandial blood glucose (BG) and with a slowdown of meal
absorption (Ciampolini et al., 1996; 2000). Energy balance directly
affects these correlated variables either increasing or
lowering the conflict between bacteria activity and mucosal
immune response. The initial hunger meal pattern (IHMP) was
devised to reduce bacterial growth and reduce the mucosal.
immune response at nutrient absorption. This conflictual state
between bacteria and mucosa has been confirmed (Cooper, Siadaty,
2014; Mccoy, Köller, 2015). The many successful cures of
gastrointestinal pathologies suggest that the conflictual theory
that was used for recovery was objective, i.e. reproduced the
events in small and large intestine. In this view, the question:”
what food provokes cancer?” is absurd. Malignancy needs to
be surveilled and prevented through an increase in efficiency of
immune system (Kristensen, 2017). Lower intestinal stimulation
may be the way to achieve higher immune efficiency also in the
body (Abrams, 1977; Brandtzaeg et al, 1989; Ciampolini et al,
1996; Kubes, Meahl, 2012; Lynch, Pedersen, 2016).
Thus health(general immune efficiency) follows the relation between energy
intake and expenditure. Hundreds or thousands of bacterial
species live and multiply in the intestine, 5% - 15% of the species
elicit IgG production, the intestinal mucosa responds with
an immune reaction and, lastly, the immune stimulation by bacterial
antigens spreads of to all body tissues (Overall Subclinical
Inflammation). Thus, many observations sustain the conflictual
view for the absorption of every energy dense food. Unfortunately,
a different, confounding opinion may be repeated by a
high number of researchers and become the dominant view.
Now, hundreds of scientific Journals ask me for submitting articles.
I am alone and cannot produce hundred articles that are
new and different each other to repeat the statements about
the conflictual absorption and the IHMP solution for health
maintenance and recovery. Yet, the upsurge of malignant and
vascular risks, not to mention malnutrition that affects one billion
of malnourished people, impose to spread the awareness
on this “ghost aim”.
