The vaccine could reduce incidences of type 2 diabetes and heart problems commonly associated with obesity.
An Italian team claims to have developed a vaccine that could protect against illnesses caused or exacerbated by modern western diets.
“Thanks to the growing popularity of the high-sugar, high-fat diet which predominates in western societies, we have seen a huge increase in the number of people exhibiting what is known as 'chronic metabolic syndrome',” explained doctor Filippe Carducci of Milan's Vita Salute University.
Typically, people with metabolic syndrome display a number symptoms, including a high percentage of excess body fat around the waist, high blood sugar, …show more content…
“The ompk6proein is created by the Enterobacteriaceae group of bacteria and has a wide range of harmful inflammatory effects on the body,” Carducci explained.
“And yet all mice who had been vaccinated showed almost normal levels of blood sugar and lower levels of insulin in spite of their diet,” Carducci explained.
High blood sugar and high insulin are two of the most important risk factors in the development of type two diabetes, the main causes of which are thought to be a diet high in sugar coupled with and inactive lifestyle.
Type two diabetes has been described as 'a new epidemic ' in the US, with more than 25 million Americans suffering from the disease which costs more that 225 million a year.
The number of people with the disease is growing too. Some 33 percent more children are diagnosed with the condition today compared to ten years ago, a fact experts put down to recent changes in our diet and lifestyle.
But the vaccine could also offer protection against diet-related heart problems …show more content…
APOE proteins, while they do not reduce the amount of harmful plaque that builds up inside arteries, prevent the fatty buildup from solidifying and breaking off, which is the primary cause of heart attacks and strokes.
More than 800,000 people die from heart attacks and strokes in the US, with cardio-vascular disease now accounting for more than 30 percent of all deaths annually across the globe.
“It is not an underestimation to say that this vaccine could protect against some of the problems caused by our modern diets. We really hope we will have the opportunity to try this on human subjects in the near future,” Carducci added.
Until more research is carried out there is, sadly, no cure for the western diet. Although Italy's traditional diet, based around fresh fruit and veg, olive oil, pulses and seafood might just offer the next best