The Digestion Blog

Researchers at Utah State University are working hard to map the digestive tract’s ecosystem.

Utah State University is moving forward with further research into the different types of bacteria that live in our digestive system & how the foods we eat impact them. The study, called “Gut Check”, will be inviting residents of Cache County in Utah to participate. Participants help by answering a health survey, getting basic blood tests, keeping a detailed food diary(including pictures) for 4 days & then finally submitting a stool sample. In return they get free lab work & $20 buckaroos. The bacteria within the stool sample will be genetically analyzed to find out what type it is. Once all the stool samples are analyzed the data will then be reviewed looking for relationships between food eaten & the bacteria present. Continue reading “Utah State University’s Enterotype Research With “Gut Check”” »

Research mapping the digestive system’s bacterial flora seems to suggest that most people fall into one of only three different “gut types”.

A recent study published in Nature has found that our gut’s bacterial flora may not be as diverse or unique as once thought. Researchers deciphered the microbial life within each test subject’s fecal samples. What they found was that the test subjects fell into one of three different “enterotypes” (microbe ecosystems). Factors such as age, weight or nationality did not matter as far as who ended up with what enterotype. Essentially what this means is that it appears the life forms living inside of us aren’t as random as we might have thought in the past. Continue reading “Knowing Your “Gut Type” May Soon Be Like Knowing Your Blood Type” »