This is such an important topic. We’ve known for a long time that the human body is covered with, and has living within the gut, an array of microbes. The current thinking is that this micro biome is incredibly influential in both our physical and mental health. An altered micro biome is thought to produce conditions ranging from allergies and autoimmunity to obesity, type 1 diabetes, asthma, gluten sensitivity, and even psychological and behavioral conditions.

The micro biome is unique to each individual. Micro biomes are also unique according to geographic area. It is thought that our collective micro biome in the United States is being altered due to 1) overuse of antibiotics; 2) the staggering changes in diet that we as a society have undergone; 3) the rise in the rate of cesarean births; and 4) the decline in breastfeeding.

Antibiotics are not only prescribed for health conditions. There is also contamination of conventionally produced dairy and meats because cattle are routinely feed antibiotics to prevent infections prevalent in due to their environment. In addition, there are residues of antibiotics in our drinking water due to the overuse of antibiotics described above. Our societal change is diet is due to the overwhelming consumption of food-like products rather than real food. Our great-grandparents would not recognize much of what we eat as food. The last two, rate of cesarean births and breast feeding, may seem puzzling to you so here’s the connection. Children who are born vaginally to a healthy mother have their gut flora populated from the reproductive tract of the mother as opposed to those who are born by cesarean. Microbes that populate the guts of this latter group are found living on the mother’s skin – very different organisms than the gut dwellers! Human breast milk has special carbohydrates that serve as prebiotics. If children don’t breast feed, they go without the gut fortifying benefits of these substances.

Check out this Ted Talk by researcher, Jonathan Eisen

What can we do to restore our gut health? Food composition affects the microbes we have in our gut. We can eat more vegetables and less processed food-like products. Eat fewer sugars (white sugar, honey, cane syrup, rice syrup, maple syrup, etc.) and starchy carbohydrates like potatoes. Eat whole foods; avoid grains that are refined and pulverized into flours. In addition to antibiotics, medicines we take like birth control pills, steroids, ibuprofen or acetaminophen, and acid blockers also adversely affect the micro biome. For chronic pain or acid reduction, try an anti-inflammatory diet rich in healthy oils and spices that help reduce inflammation. Eat probiotics like plain yogurt with live cultures and fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, pickled vegetables (not in vinegar), and miso. Don’t worry about using those anti-bacterial products and bathe with soap less often.

In short, we need to make peace with friendly bacteria that are supposed to inhabit our gut and the surface of our skin. We need to learn to coexist with the community of microorganisms that live on and in us.