It may be that a “one-two punch” is required to initiate
an inflammatory process—first the erosion of the gut’s
protective layer, and then a reaction within the gut lining.
When the mucosa is compromised, gut bacteria—both the
beneficial, butyrate-producing ones as well as pathogens—
are able to infiltrate our gut barrier. This can lead to
inflammation of the gut as the normal bacterial inhabitants
breach the mucosa and come too close for comfort to our
o w n immune system. In the emulsifier study I just
mentioned, this is exactly what happened to the animals.^35
The critical new insight here is that it may not simply be
certain proteins (e.g., gluten, or lectins, another class of
plant protein that has caused a stir lately) that cause this gut
breakdown and inflammation in so many people. Rather, the
very act of consuming industrially processed foods—those
that have been stripped of fiber and made with agents like
emulsifiers to create a smooth mouthfeel—can
independently alter our microbiomes, strip our mucus
linings, and make more of us vulnerable to the effects of
those proteins.
We Breed What We Feed
The gut microbiome is much like an actual city in that there
are at least a thousand different species living in an
immensely complex and highly competitive environment.
There are beneficial, SCFA-and butyrate-producing bacterial
species, and there are problematic bacterial species,
including potential pathogens (bacteria that might actually