Month: February 2018

LIST OF BEHAVIORS THAT REDUCE MICROBIAL EXPOSURE:

-Never eating raw food, bathing multiple times a day, washing one’s hands, never going outside, always wearing a particulate-filtering mask, wearing gloves all the time, minimizing contact with other people, refusing to come into contact with animals, never touching dirt, only drinking clean and sterilized water, undergoing medical procedures observing strict aseptic techniques, etc.

Free Write 1 – 5:15

I feel like this is a class where we cover things that most people at our standing in school are aware of, and maybe even think a fair amount about. But what makes this course so different is its way of framing topics and analyzing connections between circumstances that we may never have considered before in classes that only pay the microbiome the attention of a side subject. I think it’s this deep dive into an otherwise fringe topic that has really surprised me. From claims of the microbiome being an additional endocrine organ (which is a claim so bold that it still blows me away), to the idea that gingivitis or periodontitis can be closely connected to coronary heart disease , I think the newly emerging importance of the human microbiota is fascinating.

Free Write 2- 5:03

What makes this course so different is its way of framing topics and analyzing connections between circumstances that we may never have considered before. I know I’ve already mentioned it several times, but the claim that the microbiome is important enough to be considered an additional endocrine organ is a perfect example of this. With all of my studies so far being centered around medicine and the tangible causes of disease or physical complications, I’ve always had the mindset of finding one particular issue that is causing havoc on a much larger scale, but this course has made me start thinking about how minor imbalances in systems that most people consider largely unimportant (ie disbiosis in the microbial community) can open the door for exceedingly awful chronic conditions for which there is no known cure or clearly defined causative agent. It’s an interesting field that opens so many new avenues of consideration for me, and I’m really appreciating my new viewpoint on disease.

Looking at everything I’ve written hear and that has gripped me in the class so far, I think that the controversial issue I’m going to want to cover is whether or not the human microbiota can actually be considered an additional endocrine organ. If that doesn’t feel right, I’ll start researching phenomena where the microbiome is being connected to physically presenting symptoms (like a cardiovascular incident.)

During pregnancy and birth, The body of a mother undergoes exorbitant amounts of stress. Several stressors, ranging from the ingestation and injection of various drugs, to the physical distortion of carrying and forcing out a creature about as ergonomically designed as a Ford pinto, to the possibility of an active and surgical removal can all work together in forming inflammation and other environmental changes throughout the body. If last week’s readings taught me anything, it’s just how devastating critical conditions created by actions like those above can be on the microbial community in an individuals body, often resulting in disbiosis as the microbe balance is flipped on its head.

As far as the infant is concerned, its entire development thus far has involved floating in a hermetically sealed sac and absorbing nutrients that are identical to those being used by its mother. At the time of birth, this carefully maintained environment is finally shed, and the infant is exposed to an entire world of microbes just waiting to assimilate into his blossoming microbiota. At this point, unburdened by the large number of microbes that will follow him through the rest of his life, the infant is capable of hosting flourishing microbial communities, as they have little competition at the start of life.

As a side note, the place that an individual is born can also have a great influence on how their microbial balance is adjusted. In a sterile hospital setting, there may be very little transmission of outside organisms to the new mother and child, however, the same precess (involving two severely immunocompromised individuals I ay ad) taking place in an unclean and/or pathogen ridden place can have the opposite effect.

Antibiotics and their appropriate uses are something that have been drilled into me at every stage of life. Growing up wanting to be a physician, I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for medicine and its use. As such, I think that the discovery and production of antibiotics are some of the most miraculous achievements in human history, saving countless lives and the world of health all together. It’s my philosophy to only take antibiotics when I know that I’m infected with a bacteria, and not a virus. I also make it my personal mission to finish every course of antibiotics that I receive following any and all directions provided to me.  I know and have seen in hospitals just how dangerous antibiotic resistant diseases can be, and I also know that the overuse of antibiotics can greatly decrease their effectiveness, even on a society-wide level. Both of these are issues that can have deadly consequences.

There are so many choices throughout the day and in one’s diet that can affect the microbial communities and balance in an individual’s body. One which I think many people at this university may partake in in alcohol consumption. This is an activity that could very well hill many bacteria present in the gut, and could potentially result in the increase in abundance of any species which survived or thrived in the newly hostile environment, potentially resulting in a microbial imbalance (disbiosis). Additionally, I should probably do more than I already do to consume a more probiotic diet. With so many options out there tat fit the bill (from yoghurt to kombucha), I’m sorely lacking by only eating sauerkraut as a microbe-laden supplement.

All in all, I do little of what I should (diet-wise) to promote a healthy gut microbiome. I also have a penchant for fatty and unhealthy foods, which surely cause inflammation and irritation along my intestinal tract, causing damage to local bacteria. Fortunately, I’m also a fan of raw vegetables, which can be a source for consuming microbes and expanding microbial diversity.