Gut Check...What's going on inside of you?

If I told you that your body was actually made up 37.2 trillion cells, each one a unique and individual building block of life you probably wouldn't be all that impressed. Sure, the way they all work togeather is incredibly impressive, but ever since high school biology we've been aware that we're made up of an unbelievable number of cells.

Now, what if I told you that your 37.2 trillion cells were vastly out numbered by other entities, or microbes, in your body? Just like your cells, they're individual and alive! What would you guess the ratio of your cells vs. your microbes are? Two-to-one, three-to-one, or maybe four-to-one? What if the number wasn't four-to-one, but actually more like ten-to-one! So, while we may think of ourselves as completely autonomous individuals, the truth is we're more microbe than human!

Luckily, most of the time these microbes work in a symbiotic relationship with our bodies. They help us properly digest food, absorb nutrients, and fight off disease. Sometimes though, our microbes get out of wack and that can cause problems.

A growing body of research seems to indicate that a lack of healthy microbes, or even worse, an abundance of unhealthy microbes, can influence everything from our mood, to our physical health, propensity for disease, and even the foods we crave.

So, what can you do to make sure you keep the good microbes flourishing and the bad ones at bay?

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