SO, WHAT EXACTLY IS "THE GUT"?
When we talk about the gut, we're talking about the digestive tract. It's a complex ecosystem of living microorganisms, intestinal and immune tissue, and a unique nervous system that can function completely on its own.

There are TWO very closely related variables that determine our gut health:

The Microbiome
Our microbiome is the population of over 100 trillion microorganisms — that's 10x the number of human cells in the body — consisting of fungi, parasites, bacteria, and viruses that a) mostly live in our gut and b) have evolved symbiotically with us.

Determined by our DNA and exposure to our mother's microbiome (through the birth canal, breastmilk, and possibly the womb) our microbiome is with us from birth. These microorganisms diversify as we grow and, while some of them are pathogenic (or disease-causing), most are "good" gut flora that...
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