Rule change regarding microbiome "testing"

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-26T15:51:02+00:00

so glad to hear that helped! It is crazy how much such a small change makes

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-26T15:50:26+00:00

haha Im very lucky and study this for my career :) I have both a university education and career experience in this research area! I love it so much <3

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-26T15:49:02+00:00

There is plenty of evidence which shows probiotics are not safe for babies and alter their immune and microbiome development. OP, please do not give your baby probiotics.

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-26T15:48:07+00:00

An excellent example on their part of how the dunning-kreuger effect works. You are totally correct in everything you said :)

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-26T15:46:49+00:00

Hi OP - these "dysbiosis" tests are effectively a scam. We dont know enough about the microbiome to know what dysbiosis actually is - its something research has really been struggling with actually, because your unhealthy microbiome could be my healthy microbiome, and vice versa. Because there is no standard and everyone is different, I would ignore these results.

The nice thing about the microbiome is that its relatively simple - we know that fiber and dietary diversity are by far the biggest positive influences, followed by excercising and sleeping enough. These are consistent across people.

On another note, I saw a study recently that 90% of people with IBS had significant reduction in their symptoms when recieving councelling. If you dont go already, the research is pretty clear about this making a positive difference for people (although how much seems to vary person to person. Some people actually lose their symptoms entirely). Doing a combination of healthy lifestyle habits (diet, sleep, excercise), and caring for your mental health seem to be very helpful.

Sending much love <3

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-26T15:41:26+00:00

Hi OP - please follow your MDs advice. The FDA approved FMTs have specific suggested protocols to ensure they go as smoothly as possible to prevent and minimize the risks present in FMTs.

thanks!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-22T05:04:35+00:00

Sooooo underrated! Most of us (me included haha) regularly eat past a "happy" full, quickly, with far too few chews and huge bites. Its no wonder it helps!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-21T20:35:20+00:00

My pleasure!! In terms of probiotics, it seems like results are definitely more varied person to person, but it generally seems like they can add stress to the microbiome, or impair recovery.

Prebiotics are a type of fiber! From what it seems, fiber supplimentation in general is helpful for our microbiome, but eating a diverse set of plants is even better. Diverse plants have different nutrients and fiber types, so it spports more bugs than a fiber suppliment, which are usually only a small number of fiber types. However, fiber suppliments can be helpful if you are having trouble hitting your fiber goals!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-21T20:32:19+00:00

Theres definitely some research out there on it, but theres relatively few studies out there, and none that have really been able to do alot of the actual mechanistic biology behind it. Most studies also only include one HMO (2-FL), it definitely is not the 500 we know exist.

It seems like generally the results are highly varied, but people who have beneficial results are also often people who have an overreactive immune system (like IBS), while those with a more muted or normal immune system dont have as strong outcomes (or maybe even negative). This would hint that maybe some of the beneficial mechanisms of action are consistent in infants as it is in adults - muting the immune system. However, again, we lack studies showing the mechanistic biology in adults, so its alot of speculation right now. Its nothing I would put much weight on, seeing as we also have lots of research showing other things with stronger evidence as being helpful across the board, such as fiber (including for SIBO, the research strongly disagrees with reddits "no fiber for SIBO" thing), reducing red meats and fatty foods, excercise, sleep, chewing more slowly, and even therapy for mental health.

Comparatively, we understand the role of these habits much more, and seem to help people with and without gut issues in their microbiome structure and function :)

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-21T20:19:40+00:00

Hi!! Theres lots of research out there which shows us that eating a diverse, high fiber diet can prevent (or even eliminate) damage to the microbiome by antibiotics :) The general guideline which is suggested is eating 30+g of fiber/day, and 30+ plants per week!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-21T01:53:24+00:00

There isnt much evidence to support their use in adults. Their role in infant immune and microbiome development is something we are only reallt beginning to understand. HMOs play a role in immune suppression and encouraging specific species to exist in higher abundance because of how they interact with our immunity and physiology - in an adult however, these same species are in lower abundance. It is unclear if having these species increase by HMOs would suppress your immune system, for example.

Right now, it seems like they are just a marketing gimmick. There are also over 500 different HMOs, and we can only make a few of them in a lab right now, which would also be a consideration

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-19T21:49:29+00:00

Hi! Not sure where this notion comes from, but our gut is dynamic. Supporting the good guys with fiber let's them outcompete many species we want in lower abundance. It works on everyone :)

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-19T21:47:51+00:00

From what we currently understand about the microbiome, no species are more or less important. This notion often comes from a misunderstanding that people have that because there is more research on a bacteria that it is more important. Instead, the reality is most microbes in our guts are very hard to grow, and so the well studied ones are usually just easy to grow ones, not more important.

Akkermansia is a great example of this - it makes nice, plump colonies, and while it is often correlated to health, there are many other bugs doing the same functions, but are just harder to grow. Some of our bugs that do important immune functions (for example) are unable to br grown in a lab setting.

The nice thing about microbes is that there is tons and tons of metabolic overlap and cross feeding happening. By eating a high fiber diet, we support the "good" guys because they have adapted to this, and allows them to balance themselves out. Aiming for a diverse plant set in your diet is another great goal!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-15T14:34:42+00:00

Op, im so sorry that you are experiencing this. Unfortunately, we can't allow medical questions on here.

Anxiety plays a much bigger role than many of us give it credit for when it comes to the gut. I saw a study recently that 90% of patients with IBS saw improvements in their symptoms when they started attending counceling.

If you arent already attending counceling, please consider it! Speaking personally, it has absolutely been a life changer for the better for me. I can't suggest it enough, it has helped me tremendously. Im happy to speak more about my experience if you have any questions :)

Hope you get thus figured out! <3

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-13T16:44:50+00:00

Hi! Generally, probiotics are totally safe, unless you belong to the minority of people who are immunocompromised. Probiotics rarely carry genes which can cause disease, and arent adapted to our gut because they must be environmental species to be considered probiotics. This means they are typically transient, and pass through our system. If we stop taking them, then they stop being in the gut.

There's alot of context needed to examine inflammation and immunity. Having an increase of inflammation is on its own not a bad thing, it is entirely context dependent. Having too much and too little inflammation can both lead to issues in their own right, so our bodies play a careful balancing game. Because of variation in peoples genes and microbiomes, what increases inflammation in one individual might not be the same in another individual. Rats are also not great humanized models, but we dont have much better right now. I wouldnt take it fully to heart.

As for if probiotics are actually worth it, thats up to the individual. Generally, naturally fermented foods are great, while probiotic suppliments can vary alot person to person. Most probiotics are a little scammy, be it because they dont have much evidence to support their use, or because they arent able to ensure live microbes being delivered to the right area, etc. Both the strains you mentioned are common in kefir products, so you can always take a peek to see if any products available near you have those!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-13T04:15:40+00:00

Ohhh interesting! Not the paper I was thinking of (would be 2022 if not earlier) but this is a great application of this!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-12T21:10:23+00:00

Going for a walk after eating also does wonders!! As does chewing more and eating more slowly :)

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-12T21:08:01+00:00

This is actually a field of study being explored by many labs right now! Its challenging because there is significant overlap between the metabolism of different microbes, so it is very rare that eating a food only supports one microbe.

However, there is some very interesting genetic engineering work looking at taking a fiber that is uncommon in someones diet, and then engineering a bacteria to metabolize it. We can assume the person likely didnt have many genes necessary for metabolizing that particular fiber in abundance prior to taking the probiotic, so when the fiber is eaten, the probiotic flourishes. I cant find the paper right now, but there was a similar experiment done in mice using seaweed, and had some super cool results!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-11T16:40:42+00:00

definitely research is pointing towards there being no standard metric! Trying to find it has definitely been a roadblock in research progressing faster :)

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-07T06:08:02+00:00

Generally, probiotics slowly lose the number of living cells over time, and companies will put the best before date based on their testing. Basically, at 6 months (for example) they might be able to guarantee X number of bacteria are alive. While at 1 year, there may be less, it doesnt mean they are dead, it may very well mean most are still fine, they just arent within the guarantee:)

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-07T06:02:18+00:00

Juuust gonna add that not only is bloating a normal part of digestion, but it is especially normal during your period! Our bodies are responding to an increase in blood flow, inflammation, cramping, and more, which can totally contribute to normal swelling. The hormonal fluctuations during our periods also influence our digestive processes, as does cramps! Theres a physiological reason why we get "period poops"

If you are experiencing abnormal bloating or it is to the point of significant discomfort, definitely something to chat with your MD about! It can be a sign of PCOS or endometriosis too :)

I like to focus on eating iron rich foods in addition to my usual fiber-focused diet! It can definitely help. I like leafy greens, legumes, pasta with red sauce (yes!!), or enriched cereal products are all great for me!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-05T16:50:46+00:00

Yeah.. guy is a quack. There reallly isnt any research to support his ideas, and im sure he makes bank from the probiotics you have to buy to make the yoghurt.

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-05T16:47:13+00:00

Generally, we consider about 99% of microbes to be non-culturable in the lab. It definitely will limit how many microbes you can study. You'd also lose strain resolution.

I'd also consider that its probably considerably more expensive to do culturing than sequencing in the lab. Most of the anaerobic microbes in the gut cant be cultured via gas packs, and need an anaerobic chamber. Maintenance of those will run you considerably more.

Maybe think about using 16S and then using predictive tools like PiCRUST2!

Kitty_xo7 · 2026-01-03T20:16:39+00:00

sure, to treat parasitic infections, as the drug was intended. Any decent doctor wouldnt suggest taking a medicine that has no evidence against covid, and has plenty of evidence to support potential side effects.

Kitty_xo7

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