77% of ZOE members who follow our advice improve their microbiome score on retest.
Diet is one of the biggest modifiable elements impacting our microbiome composition. Research has found that dietary alterations can lead to temporary changes in our gut microbiome composition within as little as 1-2 days.
However, our gut microbes tend to have a particular range of abundance that they don’t like to be pushed too far above or below. This is likely an evolutionary reflex from our gut microbes to protect us during feast and famine. This means that they tend to want to revert to this range after around three days if you stop any dietary changes we’ve made.
We also know that some bacteria are more resistant to change, while others are very responsive to diet. It’s your long-term diet that counts, so consistency in the long term is key.
Our gut microbiome can also change in response to our environment, exercise, stress levels, sleep, and other factors. This is why it’s so important to consider the full picture when thinking about gut health.