Staying Healthy Takes Guts Full of Microbes

Staying Healthy Takes Guts Full of Microbes
保持健康需要肠道细菌
Everywhere you go, the trillions of microbes in your gut go too. And that's a comforting thought. Because according to a new study, a more diverse population of intestinal bacteria is linked to better health. The work is in the journal Nature. [Emmanuelle Le Chatelier et al, Richness of human gut microbiome correlates with metabolic markers]
无论你走到哪里，你的肠道都携带着亿万细菌。这其实令人欣慰。因为根据一项新的研究，更多样的消化细菌与健康有关。这项工作发表在journal Nature. [Emmanuelle Le Chatelier et al, Richness of human gut microbiome correlates with metabolic markers]
Danish researchers gathered gut microbes from almost 300 obese and non-obese adults. The intestines of roughly one in four participants contained fewer and less diverse bacteria than average. And members of this group were more likely to be obese and to suffer from gut inflammation.
丹麦的研究人员从300多个肥胖和非肥胖的参与者那里收集细菌。四分之一的人肠道里包含的细菌多样性和数量低于平均水平。这累人更容易肥胖并且遭受肠道炎症。
By looking for only a few specific bacteria, researchers could predict whether a subject fell into the low-diversity group. Certain species could even indicate whether an individual was slim or overweight. And these microbial markers might also serve as signs of future health risks—because low-diversity participants who were obese were more likely to gain additional weight over time.
通过寻找一些特定的细菌，研究人员可以预测实验对象是否在低多样性组。特定的种类甚至可以表明个人是胖还是瘦。这种微生物标记或许也可以表征人们未来的健康风险——因为低多样性的参与者，通常也更肥胖，更容易随着时间的推移增加体重。
But a low-diversity gut won't necessarily doom your health. According to another study in the same journal, it's possible to increase microbial diversity by developing a decent diet. Remember, you’re eating for trillions.
但是细菌多样性低的肠道并不必然预示着你的健康会毁掉。根据另一项研究，通过发展健康的饮食习惯，可以增加肠道细菌的多样性。记住，你的饮食也要为了你的肠道健康。