Here’s what we’ll cover in this blog post:
- What is dysbiosis
- How dysbiosis impacts longevity
- How to prevent dysbiosis
Aging is a universal process, but it’s far from a mystery: biological aging is the result of an interconnected web of molecular dysfunction that drives the aging process from a cellular level, contributing to age-related decline. Scientists have come to recognize these processes as the hallmarks of aging, providing a roadmap for longevity therapy.
Though scientists originally recognized only 9 hallmarks of aging, new evidence suggests that another potential hallmark of aging is dysbiosis, or an imbalance in our gut microbiome.
What Is Our Gut Microbiome?
A microbiome is like a mini-ecosystem that supports a host of different organisms. Though it sounds weird, our gut—our gastrointestinal system—is host to a huge party of nearly 100 trillion bacteria. How well we balance the good and bad bacteria determines how good our gut party is.
When the party’s good, life is good. The benefits of a healthy gut microbiome include regular digestion, boosted immunity, improved emotional wellness, and healthier weight management. During our youth, most of us have a diverse and balanced gut microbiome. As a result, this supports good digestion, healthy immune function, and robust nutrient absorption.
But the diversity of our gut microbiome declines as we age, which is when the party starts to lose momentum. Digestive issues, skin problems, poor sleep, and weakened immunity are all signs of an unhealthy gut microbiome. In turn, these can cause age-related conditions like heart disease and dementia.
Because bad gut health correlates with age, scientists have proposed dysbiosis as a new hallmark of aging.
What Is Dysbiosis?
Dysbiosis is an imbalance of the different bacteria that live in our gut, like a party that only plays one song over and over again.
Every type of bacteria has its place in our gut. The beneficial bacteria helps our body produce vitamins, regulate inflammation, and manage blood sugar. On the other hand, bad bacteria do the opposite. They typically reduce nutrient absorption, accelerate inflammation, and dysregulate blood sugar and metabolism.
The diversity of bacteria helps keep our gut in check, producing antibodies and other factors that prevent one type of bacteria from taking over. This creates a balanced but delicate ecosystem that maintains all types of bacteria as they each serve their function.
When our gut microbiome becomes imbalanced, a small number of bacteria types become dominant, like an invasive species that throws off an entire ecosystem. This can lead to inflammation, insulin resistance, and brain fog. All these conditions can also accelerate age-related diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s.
Why Dysbiosis Matters for Longevity
Dysbiosis contributes to chronic inflammation, insulin resistance, and immune function. This leaves us susceptible not only to processes that accelerate aging, but also to age-related diseases.
On the other hand, a well-balanced gut microbiome has a host of benefits that help us age healthy. These include helping the body produce fatty acids with anti-inflammatory properties, improving the way the body responds to insulin, and boosting immunity.
Addressing dysbiosis before it occurs is critical to optimize not just how long we live, but how long we stay healthy and free of disease. To do that, we need to understand the factors that cause dysbiosis and interrupt our gut party.
How Does Dysbiosis Happen?
Dysbiosis occurs during normal aging from declining physical and cellular function. However, dysbiosis has a range of triggers that can accelerate it, which means avoiding these triggers may help delay or prevent dysbiosis.
The clearest trigger of dysbiosis is diet. Diets high in sugar and low in fiber allow bad, sugar-eating microbes to take over, increasing inflammation and insulin resistance. Eating foods with too many preservatives can also upset our gut balance.
Another potential trigger is stress. Stress can impact the fragile ecosystem of the gut by disrupting communication with the brain (known as the gut-brain axis). This can cause an imbalance of harmful bacteria.
Though our gut also hosts viruses among its bacterial population, these are usually evicted before they can develop and cause lasting damage. However, some viral infections can interrupt the balance of our gut microbiome if they manifest, though treatment with antibiotics can prevent the disease from intensifying.
But drugs like antibiotics can also clear out too much bacteria in the gut, including helpful bacteria, leaving room for one type of bacteria to take over. Though you should always take antibiotics as prescribed, you should be prepared to take steps to repair your gut microbiome after finishing your prescription.
How Can I Repair My Gut Microbiome?
Whether you just finished a round of antibiotics, or you’re simply looking to optimize your gut health for the long-term, here are some actionable steps to improve the balance of your gut microbiome and prevent dysbiosis:
- Diet
Fiber-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, can replenish beneficial bacteria and restore balance in your gut. Adding probiotics to your diet is another simple way to improve your gut health, while fermented foods like kimchi contain natural stores of probiotics. - Sleep
Try to prioritize getting at least 7-8 hours of restful, uninterrupted sleep per night to give your body the tools it needs to rebalance your gut microbiome on its own. This allows your body to naturally maintain the processes that keep your gut healthy. - Stress Management
Our body releases certain hormones when we’re stressed, like cortisol. High cortisol levels can drive inflammation and put stress on our bodily functions, including gut health. Taking time to self-care, do what you love, and relieve stress is invaluable to your gut microbiome. - Exercise
Exercise can boost gut health and balance gut microbiota by boosting energy homeostasis, or our body’s ability to regulate energy production. This improves digestive function by reducing the time it takes for food to leave the digestive tract. - Medications
Prescription therapies like Acarbose can help improve our gut microbiome by inhibiting glucoamylase enzymes, balancing blood sugar, and preventing dietary starch digestion, which then enriches our gut microbiome. Trazodone and Tran-Q Sleep can also help improve your sleep.
What if I don’t know where to start?
Our gut microbiome isn’t just a collection of bacteria—it’s a dynamic ecosystem that impacts how we feel and how we age. With the right tools, your gut microbiome can become a cornerstone of your longevity journey.
If you’re not sure where to get started, consider a longevity consultation with one of our medical experts to get you on the right track. By speaking directly to a doctor, you can gain valuable insight that eliminates guesswork, so you know what’s right for your unique health goals.
You can also take a Core Longevity Panel to measure 11 key health markers critical to your longevity, so you can better understand what’s impacting your health. If your inflammation markers are elevated, it may be time to take a closer look at your gut microbiome.
By identifying where to focus your efforts and what steps to take, you’re already one step closer to optimizing your gut microbiome and enjoying extra healthy years with your loved ones.
Note: The above statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.