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Now that you mentioned it, I took a look and behold, TIL! There are microbes in the small intestine indeed: https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Small_Intes

Now that you mentioned it, I took a look and behold, TIL! There are microbes in the small intestine indeed: https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Small_Intestine https://microbewiki.kenyon.edu/index.php/Small_Intestine And among many other non-digestive contributions, they do contribute to furnishing short-chain fatty acids and K+B vitamins from incoming substances. Glad I looked that up then =)

chiefalchemist 9y ago
Fwiw, the watershed moment for me was an article in the NY Times Magazine approx 3 yrs ago about gut bacteria. Blew. My. Mind. As a side note, one of the key takeaways I extrapolated from that article was bacteria have a direct effect on life expectancy. For example, they say, when you have a partner you're likely to live longer. But is that love, or because you get to swap bacteria? The same for having pets. They too help to strengthen the system within your body. And so on. Sometimes I wonder if we're more bacteria than we are human. That is, who is the host and who is the "parasite."
- dualogy 9y ago
  An interesting question with the partner or pet example for me is whether it's truly "win-win" --- do both "live longer" or one does and the other now lives less longer, unwittingly =)
  - pavel_lishin 9y ago
    I always assumed that most of the health benefits came from things like increased social interaction, and the simple fact that if you have a heart attack or stroke or a fall, someone's there to dial 911. I imagine that for the social aspect of it, it's only a win/lose if one person gets more stress than joy out of the relationship.
    - chiefalchemist 9y ago
      I think that's the standard interpretation (i.e., human interaction is the lifesaver). However, when you start to drill down on the whole (gut) bacteria thing, I think things change. Sure, emotions also have impact on the immune system, but so do bacteria. Love IS a powerful emotion. As bacteria are as well ;) The irony (?) is gut bacteria have also been linked to mental conditions / emotions. I love you...because your gut told my gut to say that? :)
  - chiefalchemist 9y ago
    To be clear, the article didn't connect those dots. I did. It did say current indications are gut diversity is a good thing. That such things impact life expectancy. It also said partners / family effect gut diversity, as do pets. I'm sure emotions also play a role (as - e.g., - depression is bad for the immune system). But, best I can extrapolate, the gut also plays a role. But the details science has been done. Yet.
chiefalchemist 9y ago
I think it's worth adding that, for me, gut bacteria are a MAJOR argument against GMOs. The gut is a VERY complex system, a system at this point that we have little true understanding about. We're just now scratching the surface. There's no telling how changes in food "makeup" can effect the gut. I don't want to get off topic but it was worth mentioning.

chiefalchemist 9y ago

Fwiw, the watershed moment for me was an article in the NY Times Magazine approx 3 yrs ago about gut bacteria. Blew. My. Mind. As a side note, one of the key takeaways I extrapolated from that article was bacteria have a direct effect on life expectancy. For example, they say, when you have a partner you're likely to live longer. But is that love, or because you get to swap bacteria? The same for having pets. They too help to strengthen the system within your body. And so on. Sometimes I wonder if we're more bacteria than we are human. That is, who is the host and who is the "parasite."

dualogy 9y ago
An interesting question with the partner or pet example for me is whether it's truly "win-win" --- do both "live longer" or one does and the other now lives less longer, unwittingly =)
- pavel_lishin 9y ago
  I always assumed that most of the health benefits came from things like increased social interaction, and the simple fact that if you have a heart attack or stroke or a fall, someone's there to dial 911. I imagine that for the social aspect of it, it's only a win/lose if one person gets more stress than joy out of the relationship.
  - chiefalchemist 9y ago
    I think that's the standard interpretation (i.e., human interaction is the lifesaver). However, when you start to drill down on the whole (gut) bacteria thing, I think things change. Sure, emotions also have impact on the immune system, but so do bacteria. Love IS a powerful emotion. As bacteria are as well ;) The irony (?) is gut bacteria have also been linked to mental conditions / emotions. I love you...because your gut told my gut to say that? :)
- chiefalchemist 9y ago
  To be clear, the article didn't connect those dots. I did. It did say current indications are gut diversity is a good thing. That such things impact life expectancy. It also said partners / family effect gut diversity, as do pets. I'm sure emotions also play a role (as - e.g., - depression is bad for the immune system). But, best I can extrapolate, the gut also plays a role. But the details science has been done. Yet.

chiefalchemist 9y ago

I think it's worth adding that, for me, gut bacteria are a MAJOR argument against GMOs. The gut is a VERY complex system, a system at this point that we have little true understanding about. We're just now scratching the surface. There's no telling how changes in food "makeup" can effect the gut. I don't want to get off topic but it was worth mentioning.