Modulation of the microbiome

The intestinal microbiome represents the most abundant set of microorganisms in our bodies and its modulation is a subject of major interest in the context of personalized medicine and nutrition. These microbial communities are not only significantly abundant but also incredibly diverse in terms of both the number of species that make them up as their functional potential. However, identifying the factors involved in their modulation is not a simple task because it is diverse, complex and varies depending on the geographic origin and the lifestyle of the populations.

In the context of the epidemiological and nutritional transition that many human populations have experienced, characterized by changes in eating habits, the reduction in the levels of physical activity, the increase in the prevalence of non-communicable chronic diseases, the intestinal microbiome could be the key for understanding the association between lifestyle and disease occurrence. Over the past few years, the research on the microbiome in under-studied populations, such as the Colombian population, has allowed understanding the impact of the demographic, nutritional and epidemiological changes (grouped under the term ‘westernization’) with regard to this community and to human health in general. Thus, evidence accumulates around the concept that lifestyle changes are substantiated by changes in the intestinal microbiome, which would work as a key mediator in the occurrence of chronic diseases such as obesity, cardiometabolic diseases and illnesses related to aging, among other.