10% Human – by Dr. Alanna Collen

The title, of course, is a nod to how by cell count, we are only about 10% human, and the other 90% are assorted microbes.

Dr. Collen starts with the premise that “all diseases begin in the gut” which is perhaps a little bold, but as a general rule of thumb, the gut is, in fairness, implicated in most things—even if not being the cause, it generally plays at least some role in the pathogenesis of disease.

The book talks us through the various ways that our trillions of tiny friends (and some foes) interact with us, from immune-related considerations, to nutrient metabolism, to neurotransmitters, and in some cases, direct mind control, which may sound like a stretch but it has to do with the vagus nerve “gut-brain highway”, and how microbes have evolved to tug on its strings just right. Bearing in mind, most of these microbes have very short life cycles, which means evolution happens for them so much more rapidly than it does for us—something that Dr. Collen, with her PhD in evolutionary biology, has plenty to say about.

There is a practical element too: advice on how to avoid the many illnesses that come with having our various microbiomes (it’s not just the gut!) out of balance, and how to keep everything working together as a team.

The style is quite light pop-science and, once we get past the first chapter (which is about the history of the field), quite a pleasant read as Dr. Collen has an enjoyable and entertaining tone.

Bottom line: if you’d like to understand more about all the things that come together to make us functionally 100% human, then this book is an excellent guide to that.

Click here to check out 10% Human, and learn about how we interact with ourselves!