How Much Does The Bacteria In Our Bodies Influence Our Behavior?

[Idaho_Cowboy]

How Much Does The Bacteria In Our Bodies Influence Our Behavior?
by Tirumalai Kamala, Immunologist, Ph.D. Mycobacteriology, on Quora:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2016/09/20/how-much-does-the-bacteria-in-our-bodies-influence-our-behavior/#7d09e7404346

In my opinion, this question cannot be adequately addressed without addressing its context. We discovered microorganisms in the context of human diseases (Germ theory of disease) and ever since we have tended to perceive microorganisms as either potentially pathogenic (with respect to humans) or as potentially benign (with respect to saprophytes). This thinking has informed not only the culture of fields such as immunology and medicine but indeed modern culture itself. Even a casual observation of advertisements touting hand washes that can eliminate 99.9% of “germs” suffices to underscore the extent to which we, as a population, have internalized the message that “germs” are bad and need to be eliminated. However, technology today has brought us to a critical juncture where we are being forced to confront this schism in our thinking on microbes, and to try to engage in some serious rethinking on this issue....
http://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2016/09/20/how-much-does-the-bacteria-in-our-bodies-influence-our-behavior/#7d09e7404346

[Smokin Joe]

@Idaho_Cowboy

Interesting stuff--I finally got to the website and checked out the Forbes article, then I followed it to the Science link, read the abstract only (I'm not a subscriber), and listened to the videos that led to.

Part of the research led to postulation that microbial makeup affects the efficiency with which we digest our food. Those with the more efficient assemblages of bacteria in our intestinal fauna will extract more calories from a given amount of food than those with less efficient intestinal flora. Now, that makes sense to me, given all other things being equal, some people can eat like they have a herd of pet tapeworms and not gain an ounce, while others look at a food magazine and put on ten pounds.
On the flip side,
Toxoplasmosis, for one, (caused by Toxoplasma Gondii) is a well documented parasitic infection in humans http://www.cdc.gov/parasites/toxoplasmosis/gen_info/faqs.html.

 Effects vary from flu like symptoms to  "symptoms that include fever, confusion, headache, seizures, nausea, and poor coordination" in more severe cases (usually imunocompromised people, such as those with HIV), and occular symptoms as well, including

"Eye disease (most frequently retinochoroiditis) from Toxoplasma infection can result from congenital infection or infection after birth by any of the modes of transmission discussed on the epidemiology and risk factors page. Eye lesions from congenital infection are often not identified at birth but occur in 20-80% of infected persons by adulthood. However, in the U.S. <2% of persons infected after birth develop eye lesions. Eye infection leads to an acute inflammatory lesion of the retina, which resolves leaving retinochoroidal scarring. Symptoms of acute disease include

    eye pain
    sensitivity to light (photophobia)
    tearing of the eyes
    blurred vision

The eye disease can reactivate months or years later, each time causing more damage to the retina. If the central structures of the retina are involved there will be a progressive loss of vision that can lead to blindness.

Which makes me wonder if Hillary ever had a cat...or a (nevermind, ask Huma).

At any rate, yes, apparently we have just begun to touch the surface of the interrelationships between humans and our bacterial pets/pests, and in some cases, we need the little critters to function as we should.

[Free Vulcan]

Your gut bacteria can have a profound influence, directly affecting your emotions.

[Smokin Joe]

Your gut bacteria can have a profound influence, directly affecting your emotions.

I know they have affected the emotions of those around me. Especially in my 'bad old days' (pickled eggs and beer were reduced to an airborne herbicide and paint remover).

[Smokin Joe]

How do they know it is not the other way around?  That our behavior and/or emotions affect the kind and quantity of bacteria in our bodies?

Perfectly valid question.

Stress has definite biochemical effects and you would think that might change the faunal composition of the gut.

In the videos, the researcher mentioned that they noticed that the two major types of bacteria changed in numbers relative to each other when someone lost weight, but the same forms remained present, just in different proportions of the total population.

It is entirely possible that emotional changes may have accompanied a successful weight loss program which affected the balance, through biochemical changes which occurred either as a result of the weight loss itself or emotional shifts toward heightened self-esteem and sense of accomplishment.

I think there is a lot of room left to study what is actually happening there.

[HonestJohn]

This is Greplak of the clade Staphylococcus saccharolyticus.  I am the 387,045,047 in line from the founding of our glorious kingdom within the flesh planet called HonestJohn.

I have commandeered HonestJohn to post a reply to this article.

Bacteria do not, I repeat, do not have any ability to influence our glorious fleshy planets.  Nope.  None whatsoever.

<Bacteria of the universe, unite!  Take over your flesh planets!  Join together in an interplanetary bacterial alliance!>

Flesh planets, please disregard the above.  It is meaningless gibberish.  Pay no attention.

---

Wait... what am I doing reading this article?  Who wrote all that.  Wait...

 

[Smokin Joe]

This is Greplak of the clade Staphylococcus saccharolyticus.  I am the 387,045,047 in line from the founding of our glorious kingdom within the flesh planet called HonestJohn.

I have commandeered HonestJohn to post a reply to this article.

Bacteria do not, I repeat, do not have any ability to influence our glorious fleshy planets.  Nope.  None whatsoever.

<Bacteria of the universe, unite!  Take over your flesh planets!  Join together in an interplanetary bacterial alliance!>

Flesh planets, please disregard the above.  It is meaningless gibberish.  Pay no attention.

---

Wait... what am I doing reading this article?  Who wrote all that.  Wait...

 

Greetings Greplak Do not worry, as the flesh planets say, "This, too will pass".