Feeling Squeamish About A Fecal Microbiota Transplant? You Might Be Right

Breaking news: poop-swapping might spread harmful germs!

Ok, when we say it like that, it sounds obvious. But in seriousness, fecal microbiota transplants (FMT) have been lauded as a magic bullet to alleviate many conditions including:

• Alcohol use disorder
• Anxiety
• Autoimmune diseases
• Depression
• Inflammatory bowel syndrome (IBS)
• Obesity
• Type 2 diabetes

The premise is that a lot of our health (good or bad) starts in the gut, and our gut microbiome is a huge part of various systems including our immune response, reward processing, moods, and metabolism. Consequently, transplanting part of a healthy person’s gut microbiome is like taking a very direct very definitely living probiotic without it having to brave the hydrochloric acid of the stomach on the way in.

However…

It might be too powerful

Based on recent research (we’ll link shortly), the problem is that FMT introduces microbes mostly from the colon in a way that allows them to proliferate too far up, such as into the small intestine, which can disrupt local ecosystems and lead to persistent microbial mismatches.

In the study, different microbial transplants colonized the entire gut, not just their native niches, and caused changes in metabolism, energy expenditure, and eating behaviors—not always in good ways, as they indiscriminately reshape the intestinal environment around them, altering tissue identity and gene expression to resemble their original habitat, with system-wide effects (sometimes adverse ones due to the mismatches) far beyond the gut.

The researchers conclude:

❝Thus, regional microbial mismatches after FMTs can lead to unintended consequences and require rethinking of microbiome-based interventions.❞

You can read about it in full, here: Microbiome mismatches from microbiota transplants lead to persistent off-target metabolic and immunomodulatory effects

What to do instead?

One proposal the researchers offered was “omni-microbial transplants” (OMT), which involve using microbes from across the entire intestinal tract to ensure natural niche-matching and safer colonization.

However, for a more at-home approach and not relying on techniques that have not yet been developed, we have written a fair bit about gut health before, such as:

• Making Friends With Your Gut (You Can Thank Us Later)
• Gut Diversity vs Aging
• The Gut Bacteria That Improve Your General Decision-Making In Life ← not just decisions about food!
• Coffee & Your Gut ← it turns out that many beneficial bacteria enjoy a cup of coffee
• Is Your Gut Leading You Into Osteoporosis?
• Stop Sabotaging Your Gut
• The Brain-Gut Highway: A Two-Way Street

Take care!