The Power Of Gut Microbes

THERE IS A MULTITUDE OF ORGANISMS RESIDING WITHIN YOUR BODY. Trillions of invisible creatures, known as microbes, cover your insides and outsides. They are not only in your intestines, but also in your mouth, nose and ears. They are, in fact, all over – on every inch of your skin.

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MICROBIAL GUESTS

Scientists have over the years managed to pinpoint some 10,000 distinct species of microbes. Each individual microbe contains its own DNA, which means more than eight million genes. For each and every human gene in your body, there are at least 360 microbial ones.

According to researcher Dr. Dave Perlmutter, most of these organisms live within a person's digestive tract. “While they include fungi and viruses, it appears that the bacterial species that make their home inside you dominate and take centre stage in supporting every conceivable aspect of your health.”

What Perlmutter refers to is the microbiome – 'micro' meaning small, and 'biome' referring to a naturally-occurring community of flora occupying a large, relatively speaking, habitat.

Gut microbiomes vastly differ from person to person. Even identical twins don't have the same microbiome. These microbial guests have adapted and changed in response to the environment humans have created for them. “Even the expression of our genes in each and every one of our cells is influenced to some degree by these bacteria and other organisms that live within us.”

GOOD OR BAD?