Microbiome research to date has been much like the parable of the blind men and the elephant. How much can be said about an elephant by examining just its tail? Researchers have studied what is most readily available – stool rescued from a flush down the toilet – but have been missing the microbial masterminds upstream in the small intestine. Until recently.
Likened by some scientists to another human organ, your microbiome is collectively the tens of trillions of microorganisms that live in interconnected populations on and in your body. They serve as miniature sentinels that help protect your body’s surfaces from pathogenic invaders. In the upper intestine, distinct microbial populations also aid in digestion, metabolism and even immunity.
I am a gastroenterologist who has spent the past 20 years studying the microbiome’s role in health and disease. Advances in technology are helping scientists investigate the small intestine microbiome and the promise it holds for better understanding and treating many diseases.
Certain members of the small intestine microbiome are linked to obesity and overweight, while other microbial members are linked to a healthy metabolic state. Indeed, small intestine microbes aid in digestion by turning certain simple carbohydrates into the molecular building blocks of a healthy gut and body.
While analogous in function to the colon, small intestine metabolites can be quite distinct from the fiber-derived metabolites of the large intestine microbiome. Some small intestine........