Me and my microbiome
Tina Hesman Saey tries out new services offering clients a peek at their own bacteria
I first suspected I might be inhabited by traitors when I read a research paper linking gut bacteria to obesity. I was a newspaper reporter in St. Louis in 2006 when local researchers in Jeffrey Gordon’s lab at Washington University found that the mix of bacteria in the gut can help determine whether a mouse is lean or obese. I’ve been writing about the microbiome — the microbes that inhabit the body — ever since.
As an obese person, I’ve always suspected that I have fat microbes. But it’s also possible that my bacteria are lean and my genetics, diet and lack of exercise are holding them back from revealing my inner skinny person.