The Weekly Dose - Episode 51

The Weekly Dose...

... the latest from Dr Karan

  Here is your weekly dose...  

Hi all!Here is your weekly dose of the Sunday Six! A few things I found interesting this week. If you enjoy this please feel free to forward this to friends. families and enemies alike!If you've enjoyed any of my content over the years, I know you will enjoy my new book "This Book May Save Your Life", available to pre-order here: My First Ever Book!If you enjoy interesting conversations and podcast, check out my brand new podcast "The Referral With Dr Karan"!**You'll find more in depth analysis of some of these subjects on my social platforms in the links just below, including Dr Karan Investigates! for deep dives into interesting topics on my YouTube channel.**

How To Stop Melting...

British people love and hate the sun.We love and yearn for the sun in those windy autumn days and cold winters but once we've got it, its "too hot".To be honest, the temperature in the UK over the past few days has been scorching and crossed 30 degrees on several occasions. My inner Mumbai kid loves it but make sure you also stay safe in the heat (this bit is applicable whether you're in Scunthorpe or Sao Paulo):Three unusual signs of dehydration: 1) you start craving something sweet: this happens because you're so dehydrated your liver struggles to breakdown glycogen into glucose so there's less glucose in your blood2) dry eyes: your body produces tears for more than just crying! Tears are also for lubricating and cleaning your eyes. So dehydration means dry eyes that are easily irritable3) bad breath: dehydration means less saliva production and its associated anti-bacterial properties so you're oral cavity experiences a boom in bacteria...more bacteria = more funky breath.And for good measure, here are some wildly unusual ways to stay cool:1) eat something spicy: Now you'll know why people in warmer climates embrace spicy food. The fiery chemical capsaicin found in spicy food binds to the heat receptors throughout your body raising your internal temperature. This increases blood circulation and sweating. As the sweat evaporates from your body it removes heat, thus cooling you down.2) have some mints: menthol binds to a protein in your body that sensitive to the cold. So it tricks your brain thus giving it the illusion of a cold sensation...and you can slay dragon breath at the same time!3) go for green: find some plants to seek respite from the heat. Plants (trees) don't just block the sun to give you shade, they are actually natural air conditioners! Plants take moisture from the soil and then exhale it through their leaves - you have evaporative cooling! 

Secret Gut Viruses That Help You Live Longer...

In honour of the incoming Tuesday episode of my podcast with Prof Tim Spector where we chat about all things epidemiology, microbiome and health data, I wanted to shine a spotlight on an under appreciated star of our gut microbiome.People generally focus on bacteria while overlooking viruses when it comes to gut bugs. There is now a growing body of research that suggests people who live past age 100 have a greater diversity of bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) in their intestines than younger people. These viruses aren't just silent passengers; they can alter bacterial metabolism in such a way that may increase our resistance to pathogenic microbes and help support the integrity of your intestinal mucosa (the lining of the intestines).Our intestines contain billions of viruses living inside bacteria, and no offence...but they could not care less about your puny human cells; instead, they infect the bacterial cells. So far scientists have explored these bacteriophages through the lens of 'phage therapy' - i.e using viruses that infect bacteria to kill pathogens. However, bacteriophages can also enhance the bacteria they infect; they can provide genes that help their bacterial host attack other bacteria, protect against certain disease states and so on.The next will be to discover which viruses exert beneficial effects and on which species of bacteria and how they exert these effects, we could try to figure out how get these bacteria and their viruses to move in with the people who do not have them and widen the scope of microbiome driven therapies.I bet even now as I'm writing this, there are scammers out there who'll try to see if they can sell you "viral probiotic drinks to boost your gut viruses.."  

What You Should Watch...

"Arnold" - Netflix 

Whether you're a fan or Arnold Schwarzenegger or not (how can you not be), this 3 part documentary is an incredible watch.It charts his rise in the body-building world from a country boy in a small Austrian village to Hollywood superstar and later political heavyweight.The man with the golden touch, an absolute terminator in real life, he has crushed every ambition and goal he has set his mind to.I thought when I watched this, I'd mainly be interested in the first 2 parts; his bodybuilding era and acting arc but what captured me most was the last political reincarnation of Arnie.His life isn't without scandal and controversy which is explored more in the series but go add this to your watch list now and binge! 

You're Eating Bananas Wrong...

Let me guess, you never eat the stringy bits on bananas. Me too, usually...but what I'm about to reveal might change your mind.The stringy extras are known as phloem bundles and are both perfectly edible and surprisingly nutritious. The phloem is basically the plumbing of a plant, its circulatory system and sewage pipe. These tubes pump the sugars and other products of photosynthesis around to wherever they are wanted.Since these tubes need to be sturdy to perform these crucial tasks, they’re formed of a more complex types of fibre compared to the rest of the banana so would have a slightly different nutritional profile too. So eat the strings and all with the smug knowledge you are consuming a type of fibre many others are discarding!

The Most Uncontacted Tribe In The World...

You know I love talking about the gut and the gut microbiome and I often wonder how unique the gut microbiome of these uncontacted tribes would be; free from the vices we surround ourselves in the modern societies that cage us.There are about a 100 or more uncontacted, isolated tribes around the globe and probably the most isolated would be the Sentinelese. This tribe lives on North Sentinel Island, a small patch of land netween India and Myanmar in the Indian Ocean. In fact, they are under protection of the Indian government and it is illegal to go within five nautical miles of the island. This is done to respect their traditional way of life and protect them from external diseases, to which they likely have little to no immunity.If you stepped into their community, assuming you weren't speared to death, a simple flu virus could wipe them out and render their people extinct.We know very little about their way of life, their language, customs or even what they call themselves! Estimates from previous contacts and what can be gleaned from afar suggest they lived in three separate bands of people totalling 100 inhabitants.Contact with these tribes have been attempted a few times in the 90s by the Indian government, which eventually failed and by one Christian missionary in 2018 who was speared to death.Its understandable why they want to be left alone especially given their history of bad encounters with the outside world. One particularly fateful encounter was in 1880 when the British Royal Navy captured several members of the tribes and took them to the nearby Andaman Island where a few of the elderly tribespeople died (likely of communicable disease).I hope no-one every makes contact with this tribe or any other isolated tribe. It's good to know there are a few unspoiled oases in our world.

Bask In the Glory Of The Basque Language...

Speaking of uncontacted, isolated tribes...this brings me onto the Basque language.The Basque language (also known as Euskara) is one of the most unique languages still spoken in the world. The language is unrelated to any other existing language on the planet!The language comes from the Basque Country, a region on the western edge of the Pyrenees mountains between the borders of France and Spain. Out of a population of around 2.1 million in the Basque region, only one-third can speak the language today and this number continues to dwindle toward extinction as more people use Spanish or French in their everyday life.  What's unique about Basque is that it is a "language isolate", meaning it emerged from a completely separate branch of the family tree from every other language currently used on Earth; meaning it is not derived from an Indo-European language like English, Italian, Spanish, Hindi or Russian.  There are specific Basque language schools which aim to prevent this piece of heritage and culture erode into the archives of history but the increasing globalisation of our world still threatens its existence.Bizi Euskalduna! (Long Live Basque! - according to google translate) 

As always, please give me feedback on Twitter. Which of this weeks Sunday six is your favourite? Is there something you want more, or less of? I'm open to any suggestions so please let me know! Just send a  tweet to @drkaranrajan and use the hashtag #theweeklydose at the end so I can find it!

Have a wonderful week, all.

Much love,

Karan