10/16/2024
Did you know your gut could have up to 500 species of bacteria which weighs about 3 pounds! 🤯
This bacteria is often called the microbiome and to be more specific the entire set of microorganisms in your microbiota — bacteria, fungi and viruses. They have a unique place and function inside your body. Bacteria make-up the majority of the cells, about 30-50 trillion.
Your individual microbiome is as unique as your body shape and size. Geography, gender, age, what you’re exposed to, diet, health, and basically everything that you are, experience and come in contact with. Hence, the microbes are always in flux.
Is your microbiome RICH and DIVERSE?
Most of the microbes are present in the large intestine and vary throughout the intestines. Common species found within the gut are Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Bacteroides, Clostridium, Escherichia, Streptococcus, and Ruminococcus.
When looking at WHO lives in your microbiome we use both the terms richness and diversity to describe them.
Richness = the number of total bacterial species
Diversity = the number of each type of bacterial species
The way I like to think about it is this way:👇
Think of a large group of people in a room. If we were to organize them by occupation, RICHNESS would indicate the total number of different occupations present. (Teachers, nurses, mechanics, etc)
DIVERSITY would be how many people of each occupation there were. (32 teachers, 96 nurses, 48 mechanics, etc)
Just as in a community, when both the richness and diversity is high, it is much stronger and more resilient. If there's a lot of people with different specialties, there's the perfect person for each job.
Different species of bacteria play different roles within the gut.
Some help:
✅ Control inflammation
✅ Reinforce your gut lining (protecting you against infection & pathogens)
✅ Support your immune system
✅ Digest certain nutrients
If you don't have enough richness or diversity, it can leave your body more susceptible to disease!
Want to know how you can test to see the RICHNESS and DIVERSITY of your microbiome? Send me a DM with the words: GUT TEST and I’ll share with you the best way to test your microbiome! ✨
