A confession: I’ve often been at odds with my gut. Sometimes, it behaves like a bucking bronco and drags me into eerily lit bathroom stalls straight out of a David Lynch movie. When I recently ate a portion of my husband’s salad that included ingredients foraged by a person named Tanya in her upstate ​“food forest,” (Huh?) my GI tract revolted … for days. After this experience and watching a documentary about the microbiome, I had a gastrointestinal revelation — I need to treat my microbes better! So, I decided to find out where they come from and what makes them happy. 

Did you know that when you’re still in your mother’s womb, microorganisms start colonizing your gut? Then you get slathered with more microbes during your trip through the birth canal (babies born via C‑section are seriously missing out). By the time you’re an adult, you have trillions of these tiny critters inside you. Together, these microbes, around 90 percent of which are bacteria, weigh about three pounds. And, more importantly, they’re essential for survival and unique to you, like the whorls and ridges on your fingers and toes.

Not only is your microbiome one of a kind, it helps break down food and toxins, makes vitamins, and trains your immune system. When it’s out of whack, so is the rest of your body. GI issues are linked to mood and neurologic disorders, allergies and obesity. Because of our highly processed Western diets, antibiotic overuse, obsessive cleanliness and some other factors, our gut bacteria are less diverse. This is making us sicker. Put very simply, people who have less diverse bacterial communities in their intestines are more prone to disease and other health issues. 

We must keep in mind that most gut microbes are friends, not foe (I’m looking at you, Tanya). And I want to have a better relationship with mine. So, I will follow researchers’ advice and eat between 20 and 30 different kinds of fruits and vegetables each week — a gourmet meal for a good gut microbiota. I’ve also signed up for an exercise class. I’ve heard that bacteria enjoy Pilates.