Probiotic school part 1: Where do good bacteria live in you – and your dog?

In the last decade, research and interest in good and bad bacteria in the body has exploded. Since bacteria have long been more or less associated with something bad, more and more people are beginning to understand that both we and our best friend, the dog, need good bacteria in our bodies to feel good.

Huge numbers of bacteria live in and on every human and dog, in fact significantly more than we have cells in our body. Of these, an estimated 95 percent live in what is called the gastrointestinal tract, that is, from our lips down to the rectum. Most of the bacteria live in one of our largest organs: the gut.

Many bacteria are common to different species, but of course there are individual variations. Because the intestinal microbiota, which is colloquially known as the intestinal flora, is affected by factors such as genes, our environment, age and the food we eat. When we talk today about the composition of the intestinal flora, the focus is often on the latter - our diet. Which is not so strange because many of the bacteria that are in our body enter precisely through the food. There are, of course, bad bacteria that we don't want in our bodies, neither in our own nor in our dogs'. But the good bacteria are at least as crucial to our health.

The modern human has existed for roughly 200,000 years and only 10,000 years ago did agriculture develop. This means that for about 190,000 years, people ate what they could hunt and gather, such as fish, nuts, root vegetables, vegetables, eggs and lean meat. We didn't eat so much salt, sugar or lactose products, which are staples that we now consume daily, and often several times in the same day.

Industrialization: a culprit in the drama

But how does an imbalance in the intestinal flora affect our health? Although we are far from knowing everything about how the bacteria in the gut affect humans and dogs, research has come a long way. For example, it has been established that there is a two-way communication between the brain and the gut that extends much further than we could ever believe.

In the past, it was believed that communication only consisted of the brain sending signals to the gut for movement and emptying. But now we know that the gut also communicates with the brain. We know, for example, that the neurotransmitter serotonin, our "feel good" hormone which at low levels can cause depression and anxiety, is produced by the microbes in the gut. And many researchers believe that there may be a connection between disturbances in the intestinal flora and ailments such as asthma, allergies, obesity and diabetes.

For dogs, it is known that most of their immune system is located in the gut. Then it is not so strange that an imbalance in their intestinal flora can have a huge impact on their general well-being - just like for humans. The importance of the intestine for the dog's well-being is therefore not only about the consistency of your four-legged friend's poo, but also everything from behavior to fur quality.

Glossary

Probiotics
Live microorganisms, i.e. bacteria, which when ingested in sufficiently high numbers have scientifically proven positive health effects on the intended animal species.

Prebiotics
Carbohydrates that are not broken down and absorbed by the small intestine but reach the large intestine in unchanged form. In the large intestine, they are used as nutrition by the probiotic bacteria and fermented.

Microbiota
The collective name for the microorganisms that live in the gut, such as bacteria and yeasts.