Special Section
WHAT YOU ’ LL FIND INSIDE SPECIAL SECTION FEATURES :
Gut Bacteria Diversity — Key to Health 24
Optimal Prenatal Care — Probiotics 26
Urinary Tract & Prostate Health 28
Mood Influenced by Gut Bacteria 30
Magnesium — Critical for Health 32
Relax & Get Better Sleep 34
UPDATE ON THE MICROBIOME DIVERSITY IS THE
KEY TO HEALTH
I recently had the opportunity to interview Dr . Mark Plotkin , a renowned ethnobotanist who has spent almost three decades studying traditional plant use with traditional healers of tropical America . He has previously served as Research Associate in ethnobotanical conservation at the Botanical Museum of Harvard University , and now serves as president of the Amazon Conservation Team . This organization is dedicated to studying and raising global awareness of the ever-increasing rates of loss of diversity in terms of both plant and animal species in the Amazon region .
Dr . Plotkin made it quite clear to me that it is this diversity that allows the Amazon region to respond to changes in climate and other environmental pressures . He further revealed how the diversity of flora and fauna in the Amazon actually influences the health of the entire planet , providing a measure of resilience , or lack thereof , in terms of responding to environmental changes . I was greatly moved by this interview because , clearly , the concepts he presented are virtually identical to what goes on within each and every one of us . Like the Amazon , we are , in great measure , extremely dependent upon the diversity of the organisms that live within us . Diversity equals resilience .
Unfortunately , research is now revealing that those of us living in cosmopolitan , industrialized cultures , by and large have populations of gut bacteria that are dramatically reduced in terms of their diversity . This translates into a significant loss in our ability to adapt to the profound number of environmental stresses to which we are exposed on a daily basis .
Many factors conspire to reduce the diversity of the bacteria that live within us . These include the use of antibiotics as well as other medications , including acid-blocking drugs , stress and various environmental toxins . But by far and away , the biggest factors in terms of influence upon the health of our gut bacteria and its diversity are the choices we make each and every day in terms of what we eat . The diet we choose to consume is the most influential factor in terms of the health and diversity of the
24 Extraordinary Health ™ • Vol 28