Microbiome Profiling Status
Rationale & Instructions
The human microbiome is
the collection of microorganisms that live in and on our body, such as bacteria,
viruses, fungi, and archaea. The microbiome is essential for our health, as it
performs various functions that affect our metabolism, immunity, digestion, and
even behavior. However, the microbiome is also influenced by many factors, such
as diet, environment, genetics, medication, and lifestyle. Therefore, mapping
our microbiome is an important component of an overall strategy for maintaining
good health.
Mapping our microbiome
means identifying and quantifying the different types of microorganisms that
inhabit our body, as well as their genes, functions, and interactions. Mapping
our microbiome can help us understand how it affects our health and disease
risk, as well as how we can modulate it to improve our well-being.
One of the benefits of
mapping our microbiome is that it can provide a more accurate assessment of our
health status than conventional biomarkers. For example, the gut microbiome can reflect the nutritional status,
inflammation level, and immune response of an individual better than blood
tests or physical exams1. Moreover, the gut microbiome can also influence the risk of chronic
diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer2. By mapping our gut microbiome, we can
identify the specific microbes and metabolic pathways that are associated with
these diseases and design personalized interventions to prevent or treat them.
Another benefit of mapping
our microbiome is that it can help us optimize our diet and lifestyle to
support a healthy microbiome. Different foods and nutrients can have different
effects on the composition and function of the microbiome. For example, dietary fiber can promote the growth of beneficial bacteria
that produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), which have anti-inflammatory and
anti-obesity effects3. On the other hand, processed foods and animal products can increase the
abundance of harmful bacteria that produce toxins and inflammatory compounds4. By mapping our microbiome, we can
monitor how our diet affects our microbial diversity and balance and adjust it
accordingly to enhance our health.
A third benefit of mapping
our microbiome is that it can help us discover new ways to modulate our
microbiome to improve its function and resilience. The microbiome is not static
but dynamic and adaptable. It can change in response to various stimuli, such
as stress, infection, or medication. However, some of these changes can be
detrimental to our health if they persist or become irreversible. For example,
antibiotic use can disrupt the normal flora and cause dysbiosis (imbalance) or
resistance in the microbiome. By mapping our microbiome, we can identify the
factors that alter our microbial community and develop strategies to restore or
enhance it. Some of these strategies include probiotics (live beneficial
bacteria), prebiotics (substances that feed beneficial bacteria), synbiotics (combinations of probiotics and prebiotics),
fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) (transfer of fecal matter from a healthy
donor to a recipient), and phage therapy (use of viruses that target specific
bacteria).
In conclusion, mapping our
microbiome is an important component of an overall strategy for maintaining
good health. It can help us understand how our microbiome affects our health
and disease risk, how we can optimize our diet and lifestyle to support a healthy
microbiome, and how we can modulate our microbiome to improve its function and
resilience. By doing so, we can harness the power of the microbiome to enhance
our well-being.
1 Robertson, R. (2023) How Does Your Gut Microbiome
Impact Your Overall Health? (healthline.com)
2 Anderson-Haynes, S-E. (2021) Diet, disease, and the microbiome
- Harvard Health
4 Ganguly, P. (2019) Role of microbes in human health and disease (genome.gov)
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Dataset
from direct-to-consumers (DTC) microbiome profiling companies |
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If you are already
engaged with one or more of the above microbiome profiling companies, and
know that your microbiome is healthy, score 0. If not score 1. |
Reminder:
Accumulated score of zero requires no further action. The user is encouraged to
discuss with a healthcare provider any line items scored as 1 and proceed with remedial
actions as appropriate. Save or print the table. All forms will reset to blank
state once the user exits the website.
"Prevention is better than
cure" Desiderius Erasmus