Irish study shows institutional food damages the elderly's gut microbiota page

[Lewis]

From the Human Food Project:

"In a recent issue of the journal Nature, researchers studying the microbiota, or gut bacteria, of 178 older Irish citizens found they could group individuals based on the composition of their gut bacteria, which correlated with whether they lived at home, in a day-hospital, or in a rehabilitation or long-term residence care. ...

"... people living in their own homes had diets that were rich in “fiber, fruits, vegetables, grains, poultry and fish.” When they measured the composition of their gut bacteria, they found a greater diversity when compared to folks residing in assisted living facilities consuming the more institutionalized meals dominated by staples of mashed potatoes and porridge, puddings, sweetened beverages (several times a day), high-sugar ...

"... the folks living at home with a more diverse gut microbiota, scored significantly better on clinical tests measuring frailty and cognitive function. ..."

What can a 100-Year Old Irish Grandmother Teach Us About School Lunches? - Human Food Project

Look at the rubbish people are given to eat in hospital, too. Of course, all these places work on the basis of buy as cheap as you can get -- what the monkey-mind of the "Business Schools", which is so "clever" but which operates with such a limited imagination, approvingly calls "low unit cost".

Those elderly people who have almost to have their fingers prised off the door-jamb before they'll consent to leave their own homes are perhaps not so silly after all.

Here's the study:

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal...ture11319.html