LGR Holistic Wellness

Perhaps you have considered bacteria to be a negative, rather than a positive when it comes to influencing your health. As far as your gut health is concerned, the bacteria in your gut plays a key role in assisting with your digestive functions. That is, it is predominantly a good thing.

The condition of your gut microbiota affects many aspects of your body’s functioning, including mood, focus, memory, cognition, digestion, weight, and your immune system.

Although bacteria populate different parts and organs of the body, which include your ears, nose, genitals, and skin, most bacteria are found in the gut.

There are approximately 10,000 different species and there are many trillions of microbial cells that populate the human gut. These microorganisms are collectively called the gut microbiota, and their number is greater than other human cells. If you think about it comically, and we are made up of more bacteria than anything else, we are bacterial super-beings!

The Interconnection of the Gut Microbiota and Immune System

Of course, our body cells interact with the gut microbiota. Through time, our cells have evolved, living closely with bacteria and other microorganisms. They have formed a mutually beneficial, symbiotic relationship, to a point where the gut microbiota influences many physiological processes in the body.

The biodiversity and condition of these microbes in our gut impact our health in many ways. If we maintain a healthy balance of good and bad bacteria in the gut, this will impact the overall condition of our health, including the immune system.

The interaction of the gut microbiota and the immune system begins very early in life. During birth, the body passes through the birth canal where bacteria are found, and this event begins the initial encounter.

Over time and throughout a person’s life, other factors help determine the biodiversity of the gut flora such as a person’s lifestyle, diet, and physical environment. The immune system continually shapes the gut microbiota’s diversity, and likewise, the gut microbiota’s condition influences the immune system’s strength.

The gut microbiota and immune system evolve throughout a person’s life in mutual symbiosis.

‘Symbiosis is a term describing any relationship or interaction between two dissimilar organisms. The specific kind of symbiosis depends on whether either or both organisms benefit from the relationship.’ Source

Through symbiosis, the immune system becomes closely interconnected with gut bacteria. The majority of microbes in our body can be found in the gastrointestinal tract and within the gut, and so does 70% to 80% of our body’s immune system. As they evolve together throughout life, both ensure that the body is protected from harmful pathogens and overall health is maintained.

A great example of this is when the gut microbiota teaches the immune system cells to identify pathogens and foreign invaders that come in contact with human tissue. If pathogens attack the cells and antibodies can’t protect them sufficiently, the immune cells, or T-cells, step up and destroy the infected cells through a process called cell-mediated immunity.

The Condition of the Gut Microbiota Affects the Immune System

As they are interlinked, if the gut is healthy, so too is the immune system. If it is not, then neither is working the way it should.
The immune system also aids in populating the gut with good healthy microbes that promote good health and stronger immunity from infections. When the gut microbiota and the body’s immune system are running smoothly, our bodies are well-equipped to handle potentially damaging bacteria or pathogens that our bodies come in contact with naturally.

Any time a problem occurs between the gut microbiota and the immune cell’s communication with each other, this causes the body to provide less immunity from infections. If the delicate lining of the gut is weakened, a reduced immunity signals a threat to our overall well-being. This can likely lead to the development of illness.

It is vitally important to maintain a healthy lifestyle and diet. Your efforts will help to facilitate biodiversity in the gut microbiota and replenish healthy microbes in the gut. This nourishes your body’s health and creates a stronger immune system, which will protect you from attack when you need it.