The Flow of Bacteria

How we can realize a self-determined and healthy life

When we talk about ourselves, do we really realize who we are talking about? We are talking about a body, a consciousness and a mind. Let's leave the consciousness and the mind aside for this article and just look at the body. We are made up of around 30 - 50 trillion body cells. And it is precisely this grouping that we mean when we talk about ourselves. But we forget that another 50-100 trillion bacteria live on and in us. And 10,000 trillion viruses. Do we also think about them when we talk about our "self"? Not really. Yet, they form an essential unit with our body cells. They are not occupants, not foreign cells - they form our "I" just like our body cells. It's just that this is difficult to imagine.

The "good" and the "bad"

The totality of all bacteria in our body, together with their genes, form the so-called microbiome. This, in turn, is divided into various sub-microbiomes. We have a microbiome of the skin, which is also subdivided there: we have different bacteria on the rather oily forehead, in the moist armpits, on the feet, or between the toes. We have a microbiome of the gut, the lungs, the heart, the genitals, etc. - There is virtually no area in and on us that is sterile.

Nowadays, we often talk about "good" and "bad" bacteria. This is a simplification that helps people understand. However, the reality is not quite so simple. Bacteria that are "good" today can be "bad" for us tomorrow if conditions change. We would like a simplification, we would like a certain group of bacteria to be clearly good or bad, but as always in life, it is not that simple. Although the composition of our microbiome has been relatively stable since childhood, changes are possible and are triggered by our life circumstances. In fact, we live with a constant flow of bacteria. Some populations increase, while others decrease. Why is this the case?

The flow

The flow of bacteria has a simple background. The sole aim of bacteria is to multiply. This in turn depends on their environment and in particular on the nutrients available. The excretion of one substance is often the nutrient of the other bacterium. This is known as a symbiosis, in which both bacteria depend on each other. If the excreted substance were to accumulate too much, it would be toxic for the excreting bacterium. However, as another bacterium continues to metabolize precisely this substance, the dose remains low and is therefore not toxic.

The term pathogenic, i.e. disease-causing bacteria, is often used. But what exactly are these pathogenic bacteria? What are they actually? By definition, pathogenic bacteria can cause disease. For example, the bacterium Vibrio cholerae can cause the dreaded cholera disease. Salmonella leads to salmonellosis and Legionella pneumophila to the dreaded Legionnaires' disease. But is the presence of a bacterium really the cause of a disease?

Our immune system

We have an incredibly complex and adaptive defense system in our body - the immune system. We distinguish between an innate and an adaptive immune system. Our immune system therefore "knows" very well who and what it should attack. In rare cases, it overshoots its actual task - then we speak of an autoimmune disease or, in a harmless case, an allergy.

The press likes to paint a black and white picture - here the good bacteria and here the bad bacteria. As soon as the bad bacteria invade us, we become ill. That's why it's important to avoid them as much as possible. But this picture is fundamentally wrong.

Our microbiome, which is in "flow", can deal with the "bad" bacteria quite well. In fact, we already carry most pathogenic bacteria, just below the detection limit. But this is a very important difference. When we talk about an "evil" enemy that "attacks and wants to destroy the body", we are terrified and try to make our "fortress" as " waterproof" as possible through vaccinations and avoid any contact with these "evil" bacteria. The press likes to talk about horror scenarios here, about "flesh-eating" and "deadly" bacteria. But this is far too simplistic and simply wrong. It may satisfy the sensationalism of the press, but the idea that our bodies need to be "sealed off" from the "barbaric and evil" bacteria is simply a lie. But it's a sensationalist lie that sells well. Who wants positive news? Negative news sells better, and the reader's fear has always been the best circulation driver.

The bacteria are already inside us

But it's so simple. Let's just change our perspective and accept the fact that we basically have "all" bacteria in our bodies. Just in different quantities. If we eat a poor diet, preferring simple sugars that are metabolized primarily by the "bad" bacteria, and do little or no exercise, which in turn has a direct impact on our immune system, then we give the "bad" bacteria the space they need. They can multiply because we have weakened our "good" bacteria through our poor diet and lack of exercise. And suddenly we get sick!

This is when the pharmaceutical industry comes in and helps us with its drugs. It may sometimes make sense to get an antibiotic or other medication, but we must never forget that these substances mostly treat the symptoms and rarely the real causes. Instead of thinking about where we have contracted these "pathogenic" bacteria, we should rather think about what we have done, or rather not done, to allow these bacteria, which in the vast majority of cases are present in our bodies anyway, to multiply. But this often requires a change in our lifestyle and therefore effort and discipline. Instead, we go to the doctor, who is virtually forced to give us medication in the short time available, because most people do not want to be taught about their lifestyle, nor does the doctor have access to his patient or time to inform him sufficiently. The medication is prescribed and is supposed to help - until the next illness.

Allowing health

But this is "sick" in the truest sense of the word. There are endless ways to counteract this in our modern society. Exercise for around 45 minutes every day, with an optimal combination of cardio training and muscle resistance training ( weights!), as well as a balanced diet and additional supply of micronutrients and proteins, sufficient sleep and stress reduction with the help of meditation, for example. Is that so difficult? No - but annoying. It's quicker to reach for a pill.

Of course, there are exceptions and illnesses do occur even with an optimal diet, sufficient exercise and a reduction in stress. But we could reduce these illnesses by 90 % if we were prepared to do so. Instead, we reach for the Coke, eat the chips, have a few cigarettes and drinks to "switch off", which sedate us and wonder why our health is going down the drain. Why depression and neuronal diseases are increasing so massively. The mass media are fueling it with their statistics and deliberately dragging us into the downward spiral from which we are trying to break out with the help of pharmaceutical products. What a perversion! Instead, we are being dragged deeper and deeper into it.

What can be the way out? Let's say goodbye to the black and white image of the mass media and the pharmaceutical industry and take responsibility for our own well-being. Let's accept the fact that most pathogenic bacteria are already inside us, whether it's salmonella or chlamydia, for example, the cause of a sexually transmitted disease. But just below the detection limit.

The solution

Let's help our body to keep these "bad" bacteria, viruses and disease-causing processes in check and control the flow of bacteria by optimizing our nutrient supply, exercising and reducing stress. We have it in our own hands and should therefore take responsibility for ourselves. Without excuses. Consistently. We should not listen to false advisors or the media. We should listen to our inner voice and finally overcome our weaker selves.