The Exciting World Of The Gut Microbiota

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Featured Image In 2004, the Human Genome Project was completed. The goal of that project was to sequence the entire human genome, ultimately revealing the cause of a majority of ailments in the modern world. Instead what it revealed was that most of us share over 99% of our genetic code, and that 1% difference doesn't seem to explain many of our diseases. So if our own genetics aren't entirely responsible for if we are healthy or sick, what else potentially can be? The answer to that question came shortly after the development of 16s rRNA sequencing technology - technology which allows us, for the first time, ...

How We Wrecked Our Guts

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Featured Image There is great deal of evidence to show that our guts used to be in a much healthier state decades ago. For example, the Hadza in Africa, one of the last 'hunter-gatherer' species on the planet, appear to have 300% more bacteria in their guts than we do. It seems that over time we have lost many of these bacteria, and whatever functions they once provided. In terms of gut health, one metric that's often used is diversity. Similar to the environment, it's often thought that the health of any ecosystem is related to the number of species in it and their relative abundance. Harmony is basically where ...

How We Wrecked Our Guts

Published on
Featured Image There is great deal of evidence to show that our guts used to be in a much healthier state decades ago. For example, the Hadza in Africa, one of the last 'hunter-gatherer' species on the planet, appear to have 300% more bacteria in their guts than we do. It seems that over time we have lost many of these bacteria, and whatever functions they once provided. In terms of gut health, one metric that's often used is diversity. Similar to the environment, it's often thought that the health of any ecosystem is related to the number of species in it and their relative abundance. Harmony is basically where ...