Irish and Dutch researchers from the ISME Journal added to the evidence that pesticides produce a harmful effect on the human gut and human brain.
The gut-brain axis is considered the “second brain” due to the presence of nerve cells and the production of neurotransmitters.
The human gut hosts a variety of bacteria, fungi, viruses, yeasts, and more, the balance of which can be affected upon the introduction of pesticides.
By harmfully affecting the production of chemicals within the gut, the endocrine system is disrupted and interferes with reproductive hormones, as well as estradiol, cortisol, and testosterone.
The effects of pesticides in the gut have been linked to Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, autism, and digestive dysfunction, as well as neurological diseases.
One bacterial genus, Lactobacillus, may be able to offer protection against severe pesticide damage.
While its decreased presence in the gut as a result of pesticides contributes to damage within the gut-brain axis, Lactobacillus also has the capability to break down pesticides.
Reporting from The Defender:
Estimates of the total number of microbial cells in a typical human — about 39 trillion-exceed the number of actual human cells — about 30 trillion. This has led many scientists to adopt pioneering microbiologist Lynn Margulis’s proposal that humans and most other multicellular organisms should be viewed as “holobonts,” that is a single organism comprising a host and one or more symbionts — generally microbes. It would encourage a paradigm shift away from the pesticide industry’s assumption that its products’ effects are siloed and target only specific agricultural pests. Not even a monoculture field is free of trillions of microbes on its plants, in its soil, and in its water. Many of these are beneficial and may have their own ability to control pests.
