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Many people have small pouches in their colons that bulge outward through weak spots. Each pouch is called a diverticulum. About 10% of Americans older than age 40 years have diverticulosis, which, when the pouches become infected or inflamed, is called diverticulitis. The main cause of diverticular disease is a low-fiber diet.
When blood is deoxygenated and flowing back to the heart through the veins, it is dark reddish-blue in color. Blood in the arteries that is oxygenated and flowing out to the body is bright red. Whereas arterial blood comes out in spurts, venous blood flows.
More than 30% of American adults, and about 12% of children utilize health care approaches that were developed outside of conventional medicine.
The average human gut is home to perhaps 500 to 1,000 different species of bacteria.
In 1864, the first barbiturate (barbituric acid) was synthesized.