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I’m back with the Five-Minute Friday episode! Today, we talk about travel, the gut microbiome and the ability to eat anything, anywhere in the world! I used to be a microbiologist, so today I’m going to nerd out a bit and uncover a little science.

The world’s most-traveled man, Mike Spencer Bown, told me that he believes his longevity, and the reason that he was able to travel for multiple decades, is his really good gut health. Without a strong gut microbiome, you may feel unhealthy, your digestive system may protest when you eat things outside your normal diet, and you may get sick more easily. To eat different foods comfortably, especially ones offered by the locals, I try to maintain a strong gut microbiome and eat a diet that supports that goal.

For those who do not know, our guts contain a community of thousands of species of microbes, including bacteria and single-celled organisms, known as the microbiome. Come to think of it, there’s way more bacteria in you than there are human cells! The community in your gut is really important for a lot of reasons. For example, it prevents disease and helps hormonal regulation in your body; it has even been called the second brain.

Diversity is used to assess the strength of gut microbiomes. When I had mine sequenced a few years back, I found that I had one of the highest rates of diversity. This was a good sign because it meant that nutrients and vitamins were being produced in my body which were helping to keep me healthy.

There are some key things you need to keep in mind when focusing on your microbiome health and diversity: prebiotics, probiotics, and eliminating irritants from your body.

Hopefully, whether you are a traveler or not, you found this episode interesting and helpful. I love being able to share some of my microbiology background and to tie it to adventure for you!

Let me know if you learned anything from this episode!