OMH CAPSULE: Beer Helps Prevent Diabetes & Obesity

Only My Health brings you a quick round-up of all the latest health news that you need to know. 

Beer Is Good for Gut Health Helps Prevent Diabetes Obesity

A study has claimed that drinking beer is beneficial to the intestine and has the potential to prevent chronic diseases.

The study is conducted by the Center for Research in Health Technologies and Services, a non-profit research and development unit, in Portugal.

In this study, healthy men aged 23 to 58 were asked to drink 330 milliliters of beer daily for four weeks.

The study said that beer has certain elements that help in making the gut healthier. 

Polyphenols, which are present in the beer, are the key factor behind the beneficial effect of the drink. 

It added that consuming beer can improve the composition of the intestinal microbiota, a factor that can prevent chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and heart diseases.

The researchers point out that the benefits of polyphenols have already been proven in red wine.

Intermittent Fasting May Help Heal Nerve Damage

Intermittent fasting has many proven benefits for mental and physical health. 

 Now, researchers from Imperial College London have found out that intermittent fasting may be helpful in repairing nerve damage caused due to either reason.

According to research published in the journal ‘Nature’, the team conducted research on mice to understand the effect of intermittent fasting on nerve cells.

Fasting acts as a catalyst to increase the production of a metabolite named 3-Indolepropionic acid (IPA) that regenerates nerve fibers to initiate electro-chemical signals and aid nerve damage.

Researchers found out that the levels of IPA metabolites were higher in mice following intermittent fasting as compared to those with no diet restriction. And, nerve-damaged recovery was nearly 50% faster in fasting mice than those with no restrictions at all.

This mechanism was found to be responsible for nerve damage repair.

The IPA produced in the process was found to be capable of healing damaged nerves. 

The fasting method has previously been linked to new neuron growth and wound repair which made scientists hopeful for its possible positive impact on healing nerve damage.

However, it is not clear how long the patient should follow intermittent fasting.