Mucous: Gooey, slimy . . . and necessary

You probably don’t think too often about the mucous lining of your gastrointestinal tract, this mix of proteins and polysaccharides that provides a barrier between the gastrointestinal lining and gastrointestinal contents. Without it, however, and you would not survive for long. Inflammation, infection, and dysbiosis would proceed unchecked and you would promptly die. Mice bred to not produce mucous die within weeks. The gastrointestinal lining is therefore a vigorous producer of mucous that not only provides protection against pathogens, potential toxins, and foods as they are digested, but also otherwise highly toxic hydrochloric acid produced by the stomach and bile acids produced by the liver, either of which, without the protection afforded by mucous, would promptly destroy the intestinal lining. In short, we are all less than one millimeter of mucous away from intestinal destruction and self-digestion. You’ve likely seen some form of mucous: gooey, slimy, tough to rinse off your hands, as the mucins contained form complex polymers, long chains that are tough enough to be resistant to acid, bile, and most bacteria. Mucous is therefore a crucial factor in gastrointestinal health. Remarkably, the science exploring intestinal mucous is a relatively recent development that parallels exploration of the human microbiome. It is now clear that bacteria normally do not directly contact the intestinal lining, as the mucous layer provides a barrier, a crucial and necess...
Source: Wheat Belly Blog - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: Open Source Type: blogs