Budding Microbial Sensations

Oh how far we have come. Just 10 or so short years ago, you would be hard-pressed to find any semblance of a public discussion on gut health. Now famous actors like Jamie Lee Curtis expound on television how products that emphasize digestive health help them stay regular—even going so far as to say “I am not afraid to talk about bowel issues” in a statement about her work as a promoter of Activa.

But positioning probiotic products as dietary aids that promote regularity is only the tip of the microbial iceberg. This subject is so fascinating to me since preliminary research into the microbiome—and our understanding of it—is still largely just emerging. A recent piece from The New York Times helps contextualize the massive scale and diversity of microbial populations (hopefully) thriving in each of us.

As we reported on this site a few months ago, the global market for gut health products is ramping up quite nicely. Although most of the activity is still in Europe, it’s bound to begin trickling onto these shores in due time.

This is one of the top subjects I’ll be scouting for during the upcoming IFT show in Chicago. The potential for using specially formulated foods to foster highly beneficial microbial environments in our bodies—and investigations into the depth to which microbial populations may impact our overall health—holds great promise.