My Own Microbiome - Results and Lessons Learned
“Ok, so what the hell is a ‘Microbiome’ and why do I care?” you are thinking. Totally understandable.
Well, it is one of your body’s most important organs. Yes, I said organs – like the liver or kidney! Projects like The Human Microbiome Project and The Human Food Project are helping us to learn at an increasingly fast pace about the importance of the massive ‘cloud’ of microbial life surrounding us (essentially little bacteria bugs that are found all over our body). This cloud seems to have massive implications for our own health, and conversely our actions impact the health of this cloud of bugs.
Well, as a former environmental microbiologist, I wanted to have my microbiome sampled and analyzed. And, luckily enough, American Gut (a part of the Human Food Project) and uBiome now running a project to get as many samples of gut flora from Americans (and humans in general, in the case of uBiome) as they can. I am participating in both, because that's kind of how I roll. More data is better (sometimes)!
Because the project is looking for correlations between our health, our actions, and the health of our microbiome, they are interested in my diet as well as my microbiome sample. So, I will be tracking my diet over the next several months (using CRON-O-Meter), and I encourage you to check out what types of stuff I eat if you are interested! I will be posting graphs, lists, and charts to keep you updated so follow along.
Then, my microbiome will be sampled in February (American Gut) and in May (uBiome), and I will post the results of those tests along with analysis. If you are getting a microbiome sample and are interested in sharing your results on my site, let me know! If you are not signed up to get one, what are you waiting for? Quantify yourself and take charge of your life!
Well, it is one of your body’s most important organs. Yes, I said organs – like the liver or kidney! Projects like The Human Microbiome Project and The Human Food Project are helping us to learn at an increasingly fast pace about the importance of the massive ‘cloud’ of microbial life surrounding us (essentially little bacteria bugs that are found all over our body). This cloud seems to have massive implications for our own health, and conversely our actions impact the health of this cloud of bugs.
Well, as a former environmental microbiologist, I wanted to have my microbiome sampled and analyzed. And, luckily enough, American Gut (a part of the Human Food Project) and uBiome now running a project to get as many samples of gut flora from Americans (and humans in general, in the case of uBiome) as they can. I am participating in both, because that's kind of how I roll. More data is better (sometimes)!
Because the project is looking for correlations between our health, our actions, and the health of our microbiome, they are interested in my diet as well as my microbiome sample. So, I will be tracking my diet over the next several months (using CRON-O-Meter), and I encourage you to check out what types of stuff I eat if you are interested! I will be posting graphs, lists, and charts to keep you updated so follow along.
Then, my microbiome will be sampled in February (American Gut) and in May (uBiome), and I will post the results of those tests along with analysis. If you are getting a microbiome sample and are interested in sharing your results on my site, let me know! If you are not signed up to get one, what are you waiting for? Quantify yourself and take charge of your life!
