Exploring the Gut-Brain Connection and Photosensitivity

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KarenB said:
A hypothalamic hamartoma is a congenital birth defect -- like cleft palate or whatever. It doesn't develop.

But other types of hypothalamic inflammation can develop --
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22417140
"Under conditions of brain and hypothalamic inflammation, which may result from overnutrition-induced intracellular stresses or disease-associated systemic inflammatory factors, extracellular and intracellular environments of hypothalamic cells are disrupted, leading to central metabolic dysregulations and various diseases"

So...it seems that overeating is one culprit in hypothalamic disorder, along with inflammation from disease.

Which leads back to treating epilepsy through treating inflammation.
Click to expand...

That's an interesting paper and, like so many others, skips over the best part: microbial overgrowth. The term overnutrition is not about overeating as commonly thought, connected with obesity. It's not what we eat, but what we can absorb. Absorption and subsequent biosynthesis relies on microbes. Similarly, in the fairly new science of Nutrigenomics, the word bacteria cannot be found as they ascribe genetic changes to food without mention of microbial fermentation. It's as if we're unwilling to take responsibility for the web of life . . . while we pour raw sewage into coastal waters. Epilepsy, autism, obesity and related cancer, Alzheimer's, heart disease, etc., are environmental issues where environment includes the fetal gastrointestinal tract (crucial to brain development) now considered sterile by modern science, a fallacy for which there is no empirical evidence and should be disproved as soon as possible.

This is illustrated by the fact that diabetes is hardly confined to fat people. There are millions of thin diabetics, including thin children and infants, where health risk is greater than their obese counterparts:
http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/09/health/obesity-paradox-thin-diabetes-time/index.html
http://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/type-2-diabetes
http://articles.timesofindia.indiat...6733_1_diabetic-kids-diabetes-capital-insulin
http://www.thehindu.com/news/states...-common-among-children-too/article3952071.ece

The 39 page, December 2011 paper you found, Karen, is fantastic stuff, of course: Hypothalamic inflammation: a double-edged sword to
nutritional diseases , without mention of microbial toxins, aldehydes and ammonia increasing permeability of the blood brain barrier, leading to inflammation and leptin/insulin resistance via endotoxins. Like so much published science, it's about shortcuts and developing drugs which inhibit the body's natural systems, i.e., enzyme inhibitors which is how all the leading pharmaceutical drugs exert their effect, missing the microbial target, the origin of the problem. This is true whether it be in the non-sterile womb or poor eating habits. Children are now born predisposed to epilepsy and obesity. It's not about diet and exercise as these things are secondary to flora.

Related to inflammation and cancer, the 2011 paper cites this 1997 paper about TNF-alpha (tumor necrosis factor) regulating insulin resistance:
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v389/n6651/full/389610a0.html

1985 paper shows TNF relationship to endotoxin:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18566363

TNF blockers treating diabetes, arthritis and psoriasis are big business with lots of health risk. Like the controversial statin drugs, the largest selling drugs in the history of pharmaceuticals, there's also much "research" (industry flack) touting benefits:
http://centennial.rucares.org/index.php?page=Tumor_Necrosis_Factor
http://www.pnas.org/content/102/44/15995.abstract
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/...-tfn-blockers-amgen-enbrel-abbott-health-news
http://www.internalmedicinenews.com...proved-for-refractory-ulcerative-colitis.html
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=121930
http://www.empowher.com/rheumatoid-arthritis/content/tnf-blockers-miracle-drugs-or-minefields
http://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm107878.htm
http://www.medpagetoday.com/ProductAlert/Prescriptions/28396
http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/Newsroom/PressAnnouncements/ucm175803.htm
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/14/us-fda-tnf-idUSTRE73D7LB20110414

TNF binds significantly more to gram negative bacteria where overgrowth is known in SIBO:
http://iai.asm.org/content/61/3/830

Here's the drug industry developing shortcuts to obesity problems via hypothalamic inflammation caused by overnutrition:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2586330/

And here, a 2012 paper detailing how gut-brain is a two-way street, inflammation "particularly in the hypothalamus" which I believe begins in the gut, everyone's gut, including and especially a mother's gut:
http://www.impactaging.com/papers/v4/n2/full/100431.html
 
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More on bacterial toxins (lipopolysaccharides, endotoxins) of gut origin and seizure:
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1582-4934.2009.00976.x/full
"Interestingly, a recent in vivo study has shown that acute application of lipopolysaccharides (the major toxins of gram-negative bacteria inducing inflammatory response in the central nervous system (for review see [128])) induces aberrant neuronal activity in the rat somatosensory cortex [129]. Notably, lipopolysaccharide-induced pathology manifested itself in a potentiation of somatosensory evoked potentials as well as epileptiform discharges and seizures. This aberrant cortical excitability was prevented by an interleukin-1 receptor antagonist, suggesting that interleukin-1, released by activated microglia, provokes neuronal hyperactivity."

129 - re: lipopolysaccharides and seizure:
http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/content/132/9/2478.full

128 -Bacterial lipopolysaccharides and innate immunity.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11581570
 
I believe the "thin" diabetics generally have Type 1 -- that's the one that children get, and has little to do with obesity and is quite hard to control. Type 2 is the one that usually pops up mid-life and is related to obesity, and can often be controlled with lifestyle and dietary changes.

Will have to read through those links as time allows.

Sterile gut in the fetus -- I remember reading somewhere about that...I believe what they did is kept new-born mice in a sterile "bubble" after birth (apparently by c-section, because passing through the birth canal introduces bacteria), and then after a period of time, checked their gut for bacteria.

Don't know how a mice womb compares to human. I do know that the developing fetus ingests the contents of the fluid in the uterus, which would include its own stool (but if the fetus gut is sterile, then the stool would be sterile).

I believe that the bacteria in a newborn's gut comes from what is picked up from birth canal, and breast feeding. In other words, bacteria from the mother's body. But this is the good bacteria -- the stuff that's supposed to be in the GI tract -- that protects against the harmful bacteria. At least that's my understanding.
 
Thanks so much for reading and responding, Karen. Please invoice me for reading. :rose: There's plenty of evidence as of this year indicating the fetal GI tract is far from sterile. With all the new microbial DNA detection technology, probes which identify genes (microarray), what was once thought sterile is no longer true as previous methods simply could not reveal life. Meconium is not sterile, nor the placenta, amniotic fluid . . . even urine thought to be sterile is not. This should be headline news. Wake up, world! Stop treating the body as would an auto mechanic! Parts are parts, but we're not the only part. Apparently, this new technology is causing problems for expectant mothers, called "toxic knowledge":
http://health.usnews.com/health-new...l-test-presents-dilemmas-to-expectant-mothers
http://www.news-medical.net/news/20...-prenatal-chromosomal-microarray-testing.aspx

And type 2 diabetes is now a major global epidemic. Here in the USA, it's projected as many as 1 in 3 will be diabetic by 2050, enough to cripple our economy based on cost of health care. How many amputations will it take before we begin to respect our status as superorganisms?
http://www.cdc.gov/media/pressrel/2010/r101022.html

I just stumbled this morning on a product having a lot of association with this discussion about hypothalamus and photosensitive seizure, including gut origin. Familiar with the antihistamine cinnarizine? It's not available in the USA, probably because this antihistamine is associated with onset of Parkinson's: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinnarizine

Here's a new study showing it's beneficial in asthma which is of gut origin:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1429430/

An older, 1975 study showing anticonvulsive property:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1242663

2010 study about seizure control:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3043329/

I don't really understand this, but as calcium blocker, would this mean it increases intracellular calcium? This is known to decrease bacterial loads in tuberculosis. Calcium channels in bacteria have not yet been well studied, but should be in light of rising antibiotic resistance.

Here's a 2011 study showing significant antimicrobial activity:
http://jac.oxfordjournals.org/content/66/7/1533.short

So the antihistamine effect may be due in large part to killing microbes which produce their own histamine via biosynthesis. They also regulate histamine release from our mast cells.

From Palm Beach County, Florida, USA With Love
 
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I also don't understand how the calcium blockers work -- haven't read up on that yet.

We are sinking into the abyss here...diarrhea is worse --very explosive. I think it's the Keppra putting him over the edge (all 3 of his AEDs can cause diarrhea), although his neurologist disagrees.

And he's having a lot of very bad seizures. And extremely lethargic. Probably the diarrhea is keeping him from absorbing the meds and vitamins and supplements.

I was wondering -- when AEDs have diarrhea as a side effect -- how, exactly, do they cause diarrhea? Both Zonegran and Keppra also squelch the appetite -- wondering how that happens. Are they acting on the hypothalmus? Or irritating the stomach and gut lining?

It seems like his seizures are almost as bad now as before we started all these meds that are causing horrific side effects.
 
I really think we're just going to start weaning off the drugs. It seems to be a choice of:
1) Having seizures
or
2) Having seizures + manic behavior + self-harming behavior + super-hyperactivity + extreme diarrhea + refusal to eat + acidosis + insomnia + depression + aggression

The only thing is that one of the drugs (either Zonegran or Diazepam) stopped the really bad clonics, and we don't know which one, because they were both started at same time. I'm pretty sure that it was the Zonegran.

The other thing is that it will take months to safely wean off all this crap, and which drug to start with?
 
Diarrhea has so many causes -- often more than one at the same time -- but you have to start somewhere, and the anti-seizure meds are a likely culprit. (Drugs that modulate neurotransmitters can affect smooth muscles of the GI tract, one of several ways that they can trigger diarrhea) So go with your instincts. Start with reducing the Keppra, then perhaps the Diazepam, observing closely how he does as the medications leave his system. Drug-induced diarrhea should begin to resolve with the reduction and withdrawal of the offending med. Fingers-crossed.
 
We have a call into his neurologist right now, and gave him Clonazapam, and will probably take him into hospital.

We were thinking of dumping the Keppra first, since he's only been on it for 9 days, and can take it out fairly quickly without significant withdrawal (I hope). However, we did have 2 days of no tonics over the past weekend after starting Keppra. So...that leaves us wondering...is it possible the Keppra will work if the diarrhea isn't an issue? So...maybe dump the Diazepam first, since he's not supposed to be on it for more than 3 months anyway?

Diarrhea seems better today, so far, but he's had 3 bad seizures this morning. Wondering if he hasn't gone into acidosis (he was already at the brink) from the diarrhea? Trying to give lots of fluids and his buffer (Cytra K).
 
Karen, going to be praying for you and Jon. So sorry he is suffering so much.
 
Karen, for what it's worth again, you can probably find gelatin imported from Japan or Germany in stores. In tablespoon doses a few times/day it will soothe/condition the gut lining and trap toxins, if present. It also contains amino acids important for brain function, especially glycine and it has a lot of alanine which is the building block for carnosine, known to calm kindling in amygdalas.

Here are some people talking about it in Thailand at a few stores:
http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/466499-gelatin-leaves-fishs-glue/
"Gelatine leaves are also available in Lotus. Also Gelita brand. Yellow packaging." Gelita is from Germany. Their products are used in numerous applications: http://www.gelita.com/

And here's a bulk product imported from Japan by a Thai company; maybe it's repackaged there in smaller quantities. http://www.alibaba.com/product-free/105319600/Gelatin_150_bloom_250_bloom.html

It should be dissolved in cold water and shouldn't be boiled. You can simply add it in powder form to smoothies. I've never used it in leaves or sheet form; same product, just a different form.
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2009/04/how-to-use-gelatin/
 
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Interesting new article about high dose niacin (vitamin B3) where deficiency is associated with photosensitivity, diarrhea and violence:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/a...-violent-crimes.aspx?e_cid=20121021_SNL_Art_1

Niacin comes in a few forms and I need to learn more about the differences, i.e., non-flush versus other types in terms of effect in the brain. There may also be differences regarding cholesterol lowering property. Some people want to avoid the flush property, yet there may be benefit to the flush.

Niacin is antimicrobial which I believe is the mechanism in lowering cholesterol. Cholesterol is not normally associated with microbes, yet they make it, eat it and live on it in slimy biofilm communities. Sometimes they make too much in self-defense, but other times we cause them to be enzyme deficient and/or kill them, leading to low cholesterol seen in the worst forms of Alzheimer's, autism and Celiac. Probiotics are known to lower cholesterol.

Niacin is thought to lower cholesterol better than statins and and I believe the mechanism is antimicrobial:
http://journals.lww.com/amjmedsci/p...=9000&issue=00000&article=99228&type=abstract

Niacin boosts innate immunity:
http://www.jci.org/articles/view/62070?search[article_text]=vitamin+b3&search[authors_text]=

Niacin regulates bacterial metabolism:
http://nar.oxfordjournals.org/content/36/6/2032.full

Niacin regulates yeast metabolism:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3296958/
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100708141617.htm

Niacin modulates histamine H3 receptor:
http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v16/n7/full/nm.2175.html

Niacin is not just a matter of diet as it's synthesized in the liver via tryptophan. "60 mg of tryptophan are considered to be 1 mg of niacin equivalents" where tryptophan biosynthesis is bacterial (hardly just about eating turkey). Tryptophan synthetase is an enzyme that catalyzes the final two steps in the biosynthesis of tryptophan, found in bacteria, archaea, protozoa, fungi and plants (not in animals; we rely on microbes to make tryptophan).
http://www.biocarta.com/pathfiles/tryptophanpathway.asp
 
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Article/study on tryptophan deficiency causing inflamed intestines due to flora imbalance which changes given increased tryptophan in diet:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120725132133.htm

The body converts tryptophan to niacin in the liver . . . and serotonin in the intestines. Then serotonin is converted to melatonin. Tryptophan is thought to be dietary only, though it's also known microbes make it. It's also known gut microbes eat tryptophan, causing depletion, probably the case in SIBO.
 
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OK, back from 3 days in hospital. Seizures got really bad -- he was having a seizure every 2 hours for 2 days straight. The neurologist concurred with what I was suspecting --that he wasn't absorbing the meds (and probably the Keto diet was skewed as well, because his blood ketone levels were really low when he was admitted). However, the neurologist disagreed with me that the meds were causing the diarrhea -- he believes it was viral in nature.

What we learned:
1) Diazepam (Valium) is no longer working for Jon's seizures --even by IV. When he went into Status a year and half ago, it pulled him out, but not now -- possibly because he's been taking it daily for about 2 months. So...doc decided we will wean that drug (which was on my agenda anyway).

2) Keppra does seem to work when given by IV in higher doses, and without causing additional diarrhea or psychological symptoms for Jon. Its efficacy was a little questionable at first -- he had a seizure within 30 minutes of completing the first two IV courses, but after the 3rd dose, he didn't have any more seizures (except one shortly after his MRI, but that was probably due to the carbs in the sedative). He was getting huge doses of Keppra, but it didn't make him depressed or angry -- in fact, once the seizures finally stopped and he started feeling good again, he was his old self -- smiling, and taking a walk around the ward and flirting with the pretty nurses. What we'll have to see if if his gut can tolerate taking the Keppra by mouth.

3) Zonegran was temporarily increased, but doc afraid to leave it at higher levels too long because of adverse effects.

4) MRI did not show any lesions -- on hypothalamus or elsewhere. In fact, apparently some of the foci in white matter that was there previously has resolved (or else the radiologist just didn't mention in his report). Perhaps because of the Ketogenic diet? His only brain abnormality is Cavum Septum Pellucidum (we knew of this already) -- this is something that all newborn babies have, and then it closes up in 90% of children, but Jon is one of the 10% that still has the cavity. Both his neurologist and epileptologist don't think it's the cause of his seizures, because a lot of people have this with no neurological effect. However, my research shows that 9% of people with epilepsy have this defect, and 22% of people with this defect have epilepsy -- so there does seem to be some sort of relationship.

5) Gut health is definitely going to the be key in controlling Jon's epilepsy. There seems to be a chronic issue with absorbing meds because of diarrhea, and also it is skewing the Keto diet. It makes me wonder if he's really failed meds in the past, or if they might have worked if he was absorbing them better. So...yes, we're going to give the gelatin a try, but I'm going to make my own I think.
 
So sorry to hear about the hospital trip and seizures Karen. Wishing you and Jon much success in getting it under control.
 
Thank you Bernard. He was 24 hours seizure free in hospital (on IV meds), but has had 2 seizures since discharged -- they're coming about every 30 hours. Diarrhea has cleared up.

Too bad he can't get his meds by IV all the time. His neurologist wants to try that forehead patch thing when it becomes available here.
 
Maybe Keppra's mechanism is via inhibiting intracellular calcium release where intracellular calcium provokes immune response/inflammation:
http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/content/313/2/720.full

It's also known to cause significant reduction in brain taurine:
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1038/sj.bjp.0704141/full

I often wonder if science is measuring levels and finding them to be high when actually they are deficient. Toxicity and deficiency are the same thing in many cases such as biounavailable copper . . . so maybe somehow Keppra is actually making Taurine available as it's strongly associated with eye health and seizure prevention. Extracellular vs intracellular?

Moreover, taurine is involved with histamine in the hypothalamus (histaminergic neurons):
http://physrev.physiology.org/content/88/3/1183.full
http://www.springerlink.com/content/x114400u80323483/

Taurine's involvement in the gut may illustrate mechanism in the brain associated with histamine where it stimulates secretion of gastric acid and it's not about digestion:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20968044
(this may be connected to seizures around meals, even while eating)
 
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Interesting ..seizures around meal time...that seems to be a time when gelastic seizures often occur for some kids. This hasn't been a key seizure time for Jon, however. In fact, sometimes when he starts getting wound up for a seizure (either super hyperactive, or going into what we call "autism mode" where he's all tense, doing this repetitive grunting sound, and shaking his right hand or both hands) -- we've found that giving him something to eat calms him down. Perhaps it has to do with blood sugar or ketones, since he's on the Ketogenic diet, but we actually also noticed this prior to going on the diet.

I had a thought last night -- what if his diarrhea is actually a type of seizure? I was reading that some kids with a certain type of photosensitive epilepsy have autonomic seizures -- where they vomit. Jon doesn't vomit, but maybe the diarrhea is a type of seizure or related to the seizures -- caused by seizures rather than reverse. Interestingly, since he's been on higher doses of Keppra AND Zonegran (which causes loss of appetite), he hasn't had a single bout of diarrhea, and he seems to have a slightly improved appetite -- this morning he ate all his omelet and zucchini in a normal amount of time -- rather than trying to leave the table or holding food in his mouth.

So...interesting to see if this increase in meds helps the diarrhea. Of course, at hospital, they were tackling the diarrhea -- put him on 10 hour fast, and then a special formula for 2 days. But now we've been gradually getting him back to regular diet, holding our breath, but so far so good. I've been thinking the diarrhea was caused by the meds, which was then causing absorbtion issues with meds and skewing keto diet, but maybe it's the other way around -- seizures are causing diarrhea? Still need to think that through and research.

Will read those link about taurine.
 
I read the study on Keppra and calcium. I still don't have a good understanding of this whole thing with calcium and seizures. Still need to study that. But I do know that we keep Jon's calcium levels on the low side (normal but low normal) on purpose -- to avert kidney stones (side effect of both the Keto diet and Zonegran).

Taurine is believed to help seizures by inhibitory action. But...perhaps with certain types of epilepsy it has the reverse effect, if Keppra reduces taurine in brain? Maybe thats why it seems to help some and cause more seizures in others? Need to read all those studies more carefully -- gotta run now.
 
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