The Healthy Gut Microbiome You Have Right Now May Not Be The One You Need in Old Age - ScienceAlert

The closer scientists look at the bacteria in the gut, the clearer its importance to our overall health becomes, and new research links a particular type of gut microbiome development with longer lifespans and a healthier old age.

In a study of more than 9,000 people across three different cohorts, new research has found that our gut microbiomes become more unique and personalised to us as we get older, and that the number of core bacteria (such as Bacteroides) tend to decrease as well.

"Prior results in microbiome-ageing research appear inconsistent, with some reports showing a decline in core gut genera in centenarian populations, while others show relative stability of the microbiome up until the onset of aging-related declines in health," says microbiologist Sean Gibbons, from ISB.