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Lopsided_Roll_7120 t1_j5fe6mk wrote

II am really curious if social interaction improves microbiome diversity and overall health (and viceversa).

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categio t1_j5gk9xo wrote

I mean if we are to believe in the theory of epigenetics- this would make sense. CDC explaining epigenetics for those who do not know

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Wallabills t1_j5h4ncw wrote

  1. epigenetic isn't a theory, it's a pretty concrete observation of how dna works
  2. epigenetics can cause disease and ill health just as well as normal or good health.
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Humbabwe t1_j5hj0lh wrote

  1. You may not understand what theory actually means.
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syth9 t1_j5irypn wrote

Epigenetics is a field of study, not a theory.

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abouttogetadivorce t1_j5j4urk wrote

  1. They may not understand how specialized areas of disciplines and subjects get their names.
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Rock_in_balls t1_j5j334c wrote

What do you think theory means? Theory is the highest form of a scientific explanation. I think you’re confusing it with hypothesis.

For example, see theory of gravity or germ theory.

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Hije5 t1_j5ioorr wrote

I would imagine it improves diversity and overall health depending on exposure type, considering it is known that exposure to different environments early in life increases diversity and promotes immune systems in children. That's why some countries keep children outside. Kinda only makes sense. However, I doubt it would be as concrete as the title. People are always doing something in their environment. What they are doing alters a lot, like the butterfly effect.

I would imagine your biome is shaped by your family because your family affects your early exposures to life and even later in your life. Sharing the same food, areas, people, etc. Good chance you and your friends have the same environmental exposures and share similar things as family, and, obviously, your neighbors would have part of the same environmental exposure as you on the daily. Same with the people living in your house. You and your SO would share a similar biome because yall typically do a lot together and share a lot on the daily. Honestly, the title comes off as sensational when it really seems like this could just be chalked up to sharing the same environment and environmental factors like food, drugs, activities, people, etc.

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typesett t1_j5ggxba wrote

Fascinating

Like if you go to parties, the likelihood is more alcohol and junk

Which might change depending on city vs small town because of the type of parties and food

Just very interesting

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peer-reviewed-myopia t1_j5gu36h wrote

This is unrelated to the food at parties. It's the social interaction itself (person-to person transmission) that would induce this microbiome diversity.

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Wallabills t1_j5h57d4 wrote

food is a vector of microbiome transmission. if food isn't itself covered in microbiome friendly microbes (as all things are always covered in microbes if not in sanitary conditions), then it causes shifts in your microbiome. food changes what's allowed to grow inside of your gut as it can kill off or help various microbes thrive.

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peer-reviewed-myopia t1_j5h9zbx wrote

Food is more associated with microbiome composition, and relative shifts in that composition (like you said).

As for food-to-gut transmission, food has been found to be mostly a non-factor in introducing new strains to our microbiome. Mostly, this is because the microorganisms that make up our microbiome cannot survive for long outside the body.

That said, food-to-gut transmission may play a bigger role than currently theorized. As of now though, it's person-to-person strain transmission that looks to be mostly responsible for microbiome diversity.

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skillywilly56 t1_j5hrpbv wrote

Food is less of a vector of transmission, cause we cook it which kills the bacteria.

The nutrients provided by the food can accelerate the growth of bacteria, so foods high in fiber provide a substrate for bacteria to grow on, get the right kind of fiber and you can get the beneficial bacteria to grow faster and out pace the non beneficial bacteria.

Unless of course you’re eating all your food raw only certain foods which aren’t cooked like lettuce, would contain surface bacteria at very low concentrations.

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andyshores t1_j5lvguu wrote

Yeah I am really curious about that to if anyone has got any idea about it then let us know I would like to know.

Because these are the disease who kill a lot of people around the world every year.

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DragunWizard t1_j5ivgse wrote

My guess is that it does… but I think it also depends on the social interaction to receive positive or negative effects.

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joanzen t1_j5l8hv2 wrote

I have terrible microbiome health and I'm abnormally isolated. So diversity might be a good thing in this case?

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