Over history, we believed that a god or gods were almighty rulers. We then moved to believe that our minds or brains are in charge. But what if it’s our microbes?

 

I mixed yoghurt, starch and glucose with soil and coated these icons with this concoction. I left them in an environment suited to growth of microflora and then photographed the result.

 

How bacteria in your gut interact with the mind and body

By American Heart Association News, Published: May 28, 2020

First, the number of bacteria in your gut is vast – 50 trillion or so, which equals about one for every human cell in our bodies. The makeup of this bacterial collection, or microbiome, is affected by many things, including diet, exercise and cultural influences.

Those bacteria interact with the brain and other organs in three ways. First, the gut and brain communicate by molecules carried in the blood, and microbes influence those chemical messages.

Microbes also interact with the gut’s special nervous system, called the enteric nervous system. It has a direct, two-way connection with the brain via the central nervous system.

Finally, the immune system of the gut wall and the body’s other immune components respond to gut microbes, affecting the brain and organs.