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Japanese Guts Are Made For Sushi

Posted by samzenpus on from the weed-eaters dept.

cremeglace writes "Americans don't have the guts for sushi. At least that's the implication of a new study, which finds that Japanese people harbor enzymes in their intestinal bacteria that help them digest seaweed, enzymes that North Americans lack. What's more, Japanese may have first acquired these enzymes by eating bacteria that thrive on seaweed in the open ocean."

2 of 309 comments (clear)

  1. Sigh...some of you are dumb by magamiako1 · · Score: 4, Informative

    The article states clearly that:

    Gene transfer from the living bacteria transferred into the Japanese people's genome that produces enzymes in the gut that make breaking down seaweed easier (i.e. they get more from it).

    They didn't say you couldn't eat seaweed and that it was bad for you if you don't have these enzymes, just that it's better for you if you do.

  2. Born with Steril Gut. Get flora from Environment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    Primarily the Mother - in cases of vaginal birth. Breastfeeding, touching, etc add more. The infant is pretty well colonized within 1-6 months.
    Wikipedia article on Gut Flora
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gut_flora#Acquisition_of_gut_flora_in_human_infants