For this writing exercise, I will be talking about aspects of my food and nutrition that impact my microbial communities.

There are many ways in which my nutritional choices might impact my microbial communities, both intentionally and non-intentionally. I often try to eat and drink many fermented goods such as yogurt and kombucha. These goods have live bacteria in them that can repopulate the gut with bacteria and/or modulate existing populations. When I’m eating these fermented foods, I’m fostering diversity amongst my gut microbiome.

I know when it comes to my diet sometimes, however, I eat what’s convenient, especially when I’m stressed out or short for time. On these days, I’m usually eating less fruits and vegetables, which means I’m consuming less indigestible fiber. This fiber, as we talked about in class, can be a prebiotic that fosters microbial communities in the gut. In this way, this lack of intake and nutrient diversity would cause a detrimental effect on my gut microbiome on these days.