I’m a gut girl from way back, but have enjoyed researching and writing my latest piece on another field I deeply care about: environmental stewardship. Today my latest piece for the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) went live exploring the soil microbiome in an age of climate change. I am convinced through this project more than ever at the deep interconnectedness of our earth and our bodies.
I love the gut. It’s what I did my doctoral research in. I never grow tired of the connections we continually make to our health through the microbes we harbor in our intestines, I love that food is one of the most important ways to secure their health (did someone say bon appétit?), and I am continually challenged to think about the societal implications of microbes as they relate to inequity.
BUT. The truth is, we can’t have a healthy gut microbiome without a healthy soil microbiome. There is no healthy food without an ecosystem in which to grow it. Much like we exist in intimate communication with our gut microbes, plants rely on their root microbes in the soil for health and resilience. And we rely on plants to fuel a healthy, fiber-rich, immunologically tame gut. Moreover, soil itself is one of our critical carbon storage sites on earth. And yet, this precious resource is gravely threatened by advancing climate change.
To read more about the intricate science of the soil microbiome, plants and climate change, see my latest piece for the American Society for Microbiology below. I hope you enjoy and learn something new!
American Society for Microbioloy // May 14, 2021
Joy and health to you all,
Christy
Christy Clutter, PhD 