Microbiome: The non-human ecosystem living inside of you
A strange world of trillions of microbes helps to control many of your most import body functions. They can be your best friends, or your worst nightmares. You get to decide.
There’s more to you than just you.
In 2016 researchers in Israel conducted a study and determined that there are about 30 trillion human cells in your body. That’s a lot of cells. Can you rest assured that most of the cells inside your body are human?
Nope. The researchers also discovered that there are about 39 trillion bacterial cells in your body. Of course, the numbers vary from person to person, but it’s safe to assume that more than 50% of the stuff inside of you isn’t you.
That’s disappointing!
Sure, it’s unpleasant to think about. Just be glad that these things are microscopic. Imagine how gross your next colonoscopy would be for your GI doctor if she had look at trillions of bugs while searching your colon for polyps.
Also, we owe a debt of gratitude to the Israeli researchers. From the late 1970’s until 2016, the universally accepted belief was that bacterial cells outnumbered human cells 10 to 1. Imagine if you had to accept that 90% of you wasn’t you.
What is your Microbiome?
According to the Harvard School of Public Health your Microbiome is an ecosystem of all the creatures that live rent free inside of your body; “trillions of microorganisms…thousands of different species….bacteria, fungi and viruses.”
Harvard says that the microbes coexist peacefully in healthy people. The largest numbers are found in the small and large intestines. As a matter of fact, many researchers consider the Microbiome “a supporting organ because it plays so many key roles in promoting the smooth daily operations of the human body.”
You were probably first introduced to your onboard neighbors by your mom.
That’s right, mom transferred her bacteria to you when you exited the birth canal. Born by C-Section? No worries, you still received your fair share of microbes from breast milk. Not breast fed either? Well you’re screwed! No Microbiome for you!
Just kidding. You’ve been eating for years and you may have even been fond of playing around in the dirt when you were a kid. Hopefully, food and environment have helped you colonize respectable, diverse microbes in all the right places. Besides,
What do these microbes do?
When the good bacteria are in proper balance and effectively outnumber the bad bacteria, they keep you healthy. When the opposite is true, they can make you sick.
Here’s your Microbiome’s summarized, daily to-do list from Healthline:
Digest breast milk (when you were a little one)
Digest fiber
Help control your immune system
Help control brain health
Potentially affect weight gain
Ongoing research also seems to suggest that an out of balance Microbiome might negatively affect mental health and could be responsible for anxiety, depression and other mental disorders.
Microbiome’s roles in physical problems like irritable bowel syndrome, Crohn’s disease and other gastrointestinal maladies are well documented.
The bugs aren’t out to get you, but they are talking to you.
Did you ever hear of that fungus that infects ants and takes total control of their brains? Fortunately, none of the microbes in or on our bodies are capable of such malevolence, but they do communicate with us.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, “Gut microbes produce or help produce many of the chemical neurotransmitters that convey messages between your gut and brain.” They’re like on the scene journalists working the colonic beat. They send messages to your brain about conditions in your gut.
The wired network that they use, the vagus nerve, runs from your brain to your large intestine. There are actually two of these, one on your left side and one on your right.
The Cleveland Clinic says, “Your vagus nerve conveys sensory information about the conditions inside your gut…to your brain. In response, the brain conveys motor signals, or instructions back to your gut.”
The Gut Brain Axis - Suganya, Kanmani, and Byung-Soo Koo, Wikimedia Commons
That being said, it’s not always your first brain that’s calling the shots in your gut! Sometimes the gut has a mind of its own and handles things all by itself.
The second brain
“The Enteric Nervous System, or the Second Brain, is the neural network that operates within your gastrointestinal track and controls digestive functions,” The Cleveland Clinic says.
The Enteric Nervous System has the second most complex neural network, the most complex being your main brain. When necessary, the system can take action all by itself without any signals from Brain #1.
That’s unheard of anywhere else in your body. It’s like your circulatory system deciding to go rogue whenever it feels like it. “Go screw yourself brain. I’ll let you know if and when I want you to pump blood in and out of the heart!”
A proper discussion about the microbes that facilitate communication between the head brain and the gut brain is far too complex for the author of this newsletter. Check out this in-depth article at the National Library of Medicine.
Clearing up the confusion about Pre, Pro and Antibiotics
As we all know, antibiotics are drugs that are sometimes pretty good at killing harmful bacteria inside the body. Think of drugs like Penicillins and Tetracyclines. They might be necessary at times and only your doctor can prescribe them. Irrespective, antibiotics are almost always good at killing off the good bacteria in our digestive systems.
Then there are probiotics, beneficial bacteria and yeasts that we can ingest. Probiotic supplements are not considered drugs and are not regulated as such. So, you have to do your own research. They come in pill form, liquids and chewables. Fermented foods like yogurt, keifer and sauerkraut may also contain live probiotics.
Prebiotics, on the other hand, are usually tasty treats for you and for your beneficial microbes. The good bugs love garlic, onions, chicory root, asparagus, apples, oats and several other whole foods.
WELLNESS TIP: According to BBC Science Focus, good microbes are fueled by consumption of nuts, seeds, olive oil and green tea. These foods contain Polyphenols, antioxidants that help them thrive.
What else can you do to keep your Microbiome as healthy and balanced as possible? 🤔
Get enough sleep.
Avoid stress.
Eat a healthy diet.
Drink water.
Exercise regularly.
Practice mindfulness.
Our Thoughts:
First, we’re not doctors, so take these thoughts with a grain of salt, unless you’re watching your blood pressure. Then, skip the salt. We believe that one of the most significant, health-related advances in the last few decades is Microbiome research. Scientists, physicans and wellness professionals are just starting to scratch the surface of its beneficial implications.
We do everything we can to keep our Microbiome’s healthy. The effort has both immediate and long term benefits. Eating prebiotic and probiotic foods are glorious, gastronomical and gastrointestinal adventures. Finding quality probiotic supplements, for us, requires research and well informed experimentation. But, it’s been so worth the effort.
The Synergy newsletter is powered by Envisage Wellness. At Envisage Wellness, Ritu Chib-Eiven and Mitch Eiven approach psychotherapy and coaching a little differently. In both areas our objective is to give you the tools to discover your own healing or your own path toward achievement. This newsletter is designed to be an extension of that effort. We’ll keep it short, helpful and deliver it to your inbox at least twice a month.