Famous ‘mythical' side effect of eating cheese is REAL, experts find in landmark study – does it affect YOU?
Experts reckon digesting dairy can cause gut pain that plays havoc with the sleeping brain.
Polls of 1,082 people found those with lactose intolerance reported overall worse quality sleep and significantly more bad dreams, like those with horror film baddie Freddy Krueger.
The researchers suggest even people without the condition might be affected.
They said it is possible that dairy causes ' gastrointestinal disturbance ' that can disrupt sleep.
Study author Dr Tore Nielsen, from the University of Montreal, in Canada, said: 'Nightmares are worse for lactose intolerant people who suffer severe gastrointestinal symptoms and whose sleep is disrupted.
'This makes sense because we know that other bodily sensations can affect dreaming.
'These findings imply that changing eating habits for people with food sensitivities could alleviate nightmares.
'They could also explain why people so often blame dairy for bad dreams.
"We're routinely asked whether food affects dreaming.
"Now we have some answers.'
Top tips to help you sleep better at night
1
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
43 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Jeannie Seely is dead at 85: Country music legend's 'dearest friend' Dolly Parton pays tribute
Jeannie Seely, the country music singer best known for her hit song Don't Touch Me, has died at 85. Seely died on Friday at Summit Medical Center in Hermitage, Tennessee, from complications brought on by an intestinal infection, according to People. Her death follows the loss of her husband Eugene Ward from cancer in December. Seely had been plagued by health problems since last year, and she announced in May that she had undergone multiple surgeries on her back to repair her vertebrae. The performer also said she had two emergency abdominal surgeries and developed pneumonia during an 11-day stay in the intensive care unit. 'Rehab is pretty tough, but each day is looking brighter and last night, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. And it was neon, so I knew it was mine!' she said at the time. 'The unsinkable Seely is working her way back.'
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Monarch butterflies' mass die-off in 2024 caused by pesticide exposure
A 2024 mass monarch butterfly die-off in California was probably caused by pesticide exposure, new peer-reviewed research finds, adding difficult-to-obtain evidence to the theory that pesticides are partly behind dramatic declines in monarchs' numbers in recent decades. Researchers discovered hundreds of butterflies that had died or were dying in January 2024 near an overwintering site, where insects spend winter months. The butterflies were found twitching or dead in piles, which are common signs of neurotoxic pesticide poisoning, researchers wrote. Testing of 10 of the insects revealed an average of seven pesticides in each, and at levels that researchers suspect were lethal. Proving that pesticides kill butterflies in the wild is a challenge because it is difficult to find and test them soon after they die. Though the sample size is limited, the authors wrote, the findings provide 'meaningful insight' into the die-off and broader population decline. 'The incident gave us a rare opportunity to directly document pesticide exposure and its impacts on monarchs in the real world,' said Staci Cibotti, the study's lead author, and an entomologist and pesticide program specialist with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. She added: 'Even though laboratory studies and population models have shown that pesticides are harmful to monarchs, it can be difficult to capture the impacts of pesticides in the field on wild populations. This study helps to fill that gap.' As much as 90% of the monarch butterfly population in some US regions has been wiped out in recent decades, and evidence has pointed to pesticides, climate crisis and habitat loss as the drivers. The butterflies were found adjacent to the Pacific Grove Monarch Sanctuary, one of about 400 wintering sites along California's coast that are crucial points in the monarchs' migratory and reproductive cycles. Xerces counted about 6,600 butterflies overwintering at Pacific Grove in November 2023. Though an investigation by a state agricultural official did not determine a source of the die-off, pesticide residues on crops, lawns and ornamental flowers are a poisoning risk for monarch larvae, and for adults eating nectar. Pesticide run off in shallow water sources near where high numbers of butterflies collectively drink present a risk for the type of mass die-off at Pacific Grove. All the butterflies showed high levels of the same three pyrethroids, a pesticide class widely used in California on agricultural and residential land. The residential applications are not reported, and Cibotti said the presence of the same types of pyrethroids in all the samples points to a nearby residential exposure as the source. Some of the pyrethroid levels found in the monarchs are known to be lethal, and researchers suspect the combined levels of multiple pesticides also probably contributed. Combinations of pesticides can have a synergistic effect that makes them even more toxic. The solution, Cibotti said, is less pesticides. 'These clustering events occur during especially sensitive phases of the migratory cycle, so reducing pesticide exposure during these times is essential not only to prevent immediate losses, but also to improve the population's chances of rebounding the following spring and support its long-term recovery,' Cibotti said.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Warning over common sweetener that could make cancer treatment less effective
A common artificial sweetener loved by millions weakens the effects of cancer treatments. University of Pittsburgh researchers discovered that sucralose, a zero-calorie sweetener, reduced immunotherapy effectiveness in melanoma and non-small cell lung cancer patients. Initially developed in the 1970s for people with obesity and diabetes to sweeten food while avoiding blood sugar spikes, sucralose, more commonly known as Splenda, has become ubiquitous. It's used in over 4,500 foods and drinks, including diet sodas and low-calorie foods. In the US, it accounts for 30 percent of the sweetener market. Cancer patients undergoing immunotherapy, which boosts the immune system to recognize and kill cancer cells, may reach for a diet soda or sugar-free baked good, believing they're making a healthy choice. However, sucralose kills some good bacteria that reside in the gut while allowing harmful strains to grow, impacting the body's ability to digest foods and break down fiber, train immune cells to fight pathogens, make vitamins like folate and B12, produce serotonin, and reduce inflammation. Senior author Dr Diwakar Davar, an oncologist and hematologist at UPMC, said in a statement: 'We found that sucralose impeded the effectiveness of immunotherapies across a range of cancer types, stages and treatment modalities. 'These observations raise the possibility of designing prebiotics, such as targeted nutrient supplementation for patients who consume high levels of sucralose.' The team used mouse models, some with lung cancer and some with melanoma, to test how sucralose altered their microbiomes, finding that the sweetener disrupted the delicate balance. This reduced key amino acids such as arginine, which are needed to fuel immune cells. It also led to dysfunctional CD8+ T cells, critical for fighting cancer, and blunted the effects of anti-PD-1 immunotherapy, a class of cancer treatments that includes popular medicines Keytruda and Opdivo. Lead author Dr Abby Overacre, an immunology professor at Pitt and UPMC Hillman, said: 'When arginine levels were depleted due to sucralose-driven shifts in the microbiome, T cells couldn't function properly. 'As a result, immunotherapy wasn't as effective in mice that were fed sucralose.' To assess the relevance of these findings for humans, they questioned 132 advanced cancer patients, including 91 people with melanoma and 41 with lung cancer, about their sucralose intake, as well as 25 people at high risk of their melanoma recurring. People reported drinking diet sodas, using the artificial sweetener in coffee and tea, and eating low-calorie snacks sweetened with it. A high amount of sucralose was considered anything above 0.16 mg per kilogram of body weight per day. For a 155-lb person, that's less than a single packet of Splenda. People with melanoma and lung cancer who consumed at least that much sucralose had a 3.2 times higher risk of their cancer progressing faster, as well as less tumor shrinkage in response to immunotherapy. People at risk of melanoma recurrence who drank or ate at least that much sucralose had a higher risk of their cancer returning after surgery and immunotherapy and fewer signs of a strong immune response to tumors. Experiments in mice revealed that disruption to the microbiome due to sucralose was the driving force behind alterations in their cancer-fighting T cells, which were starved of the crucial amino acid arginine. When scientists transplanted feces from sucralose-fed mice into untreated mice, the latter exhibited a similar poor immune response to immunotherapy. But when scientists supplemented their low levels of arginine using the amino acid citrulline, commonly found in melons, pumpkins, and legumes, T cells regained their cancer-killing ability, reversed their resistance to immunotherapy, and their tumors shrank. Their findings were published in the journal Cancer Discovery. Dr Overacre said: 'It's easy to say, 'Stop drinking diet soda,' but when patients are being treated for cancer, they are already dealing with enough, so asking them to drastically alter their diet may not be realistic. 'We need to meet patients where they are. That's why it's so exciting that arginine supplementation could be a simple approach to counteract the negative effects of sucralose on immunotherapy.' The researchers hope to launch a clinical trial investigating whether citrulline supplements, which boost arginine levels more than arginine itself, affect the gut microbiome and anti-tumor immune response in patients.
